DMUIC Distance Learning Proposal: SWOT Analysis, Objectives, and Website Suggestions

Purpose and Operational Details

This coursework amounts to 50% of the final marks for the module. Check the grading / assessment sheet (see last page) for how marks will be allocated. Work on your own for all parts of the work. You are encouraged to discuss the meaning of the tasks with other students, but the content of your answers must be your own original and individual work. You will need access to the library, Internet, the module blackboard site and other resources such as journals, textbooks et..

Your main report should have a bibliography and reference section in a recognised academic style (e.g. Harvard referencing). List all sources, including ideas and suggestions taken from others. All words, diagrams, etc. taken from another source must be properly marked in the text and listed in the references. See the DMU library site for further guidance.

Summative feedback and provisional grades normally within four weeks of submission (annotated copy of report returned with grading/assessment sheet. These should be available for collection from the Student Advice Centre around the end of October. You will be emailed via Blackboard when these are available.

Make sure you are protected as far as possible against virus attack or other possible loss by retaining two backup copies of your work. Please ensure that the disk or email that you submit is free of viruses.

De Montfort University International College (DMUIC) is an Embedded College offering integrated programmes for non-UK students. DMUIC offers undergraduate and postgraduate pathways leading to a degree award from De Montfort University. A significant part of this plan is to increase the number of international students who choose to come to study in the UK at the college. The college offers a range of certificate courses and recruits’ students from several countries including India, Saudi- Arabia, China etc. who come to study. DMUIC is located at the heart of DMU’s campus - a couple of minutes’ walk from the vibrant, multi-cultural city of Leicester and barely over an hour from London by train. The college is thinking of extending and growing its international recruitment by offering more courses to be delivered in distance learning mode. This delivery channel is the core channel for increasing the number of international students who choose to study at the college and increasing the number of countries the college could market their courses to. This venture provides the impetus for significantly higher revenue as well as the awareness of DMUIC in the global market.

This assignment is in several parts and will require you to undertake research, use and apply the knowledge that you have gained on the course and your own personal knowledge and experience.

In your role as a consultant to DMUIC, you have been asked to undertake a SWOT analysis for the proposal to offer more courses to overseas students through distance learning. Your analysis needs to be detailed and will require you to research the DL marketplace, examine what the College currently offers, what its resources are etc. You need to then create and provide a SWOT diagram based on your analysis.

Based on this analysis, write a short 300 -500 (max) report that includes a summary of your findings and a list of any specific recommendations that you have. These recommendations are likely to include how any weaknesses or threats identified in the SWOT analysis can be overcome.

Having completed your SWOT analysis, using any external situation analysis model for e- commerce that you have knowledge of, for example, Porters Competitive Forces Model, or Angherns’ ICDT model, undertake an analysis and use the outcomes from the analysis, to provide a set of objectives, identify some critical success factors and key performance indicators that could be used to measure if the objectives were being met. You need only set a maximum of 5 but a minimum of 3 objectives. These can be presented in either a report or tabular format Part of your analysis should focus on what competencies and resources are required, what competition exists, what organisation changes are required or forced, what is the demand?

NB In your submission you must include any documentation that supports your analysis in parts 1 &2

In about 300 words suggest what DMUIC could do on its website to address issues such as culture and trust and how it could use on line communication tools to reach out to its potential target audience.