Source: Eastern Institute of Technology – Tairāwhiti
10 mins ago
A screen shot of one group delivering their final presentation to The National Aquarium of New Zealand General Manager Rachel Haydon, the Education Manager Amy Stevens and Felicity Kibble (NCC).
Despite the lockdown, a group of EIT Bachelor of Business Studies students have recently completed their marketing project with a strong emphasis on social media at the National Aquarium of New Zealand. The group led by lecturer Regan Cotter just delivered their final presentation which followed a marketing research project conducted at the Aquarium in early March.
The students have impressed everyone involved with their research and innovative ideas and also with their ability to seamlessly move to online delivery once the campus had to close.
Amy Stevens, Aquarium Education Manager, is very pleased with the cooperation. “The students are a credit to EIT and very polite and conscientious individuals.”
“It was a win-win situation,” says Rachel Haydon, General Manager of the Aquarium. “It has been an incredible opportunity to provide the students with an authentic context and watch them progress through their projects. I was so impressed with their findings and recommendations and can see many of them being actionable at the Aquarium.”
For student Rowena Brown working with the National Aquarium of New Zealand has been a great practical learning experience and plenty of fun. “I really enjoyed learning about the company’s core values and helping them to adapt to the always changing marketing landscape.”
One of the students’ ideas was named “ARotahi” and involves the use of virtual and augmented reality to better engage the younger target audience. “Te Ao Māori (Māori world view) is a big focus of the Aquarium, and this group demonstrated a deep understanding of their client. It is EIT’s philosophy to equip our students with theory while providing them with hands-on experience and giving them the chance to create valuable connections,” stresses Regan.