Jesse Norman writes for The Telegraph.

To level up the country, we need to level up education. That is the message of the Government’s recent announcement about cracking down on low-quality degrees and driving up opportunities for our school leavers. And it is absolutely right. In education, the idea of levelling up is pretty clear: higher-quality degrees for those who want one, greater opportunity and quality for those who want vocational training, more good degree apprenticeships for young people to learn while they are earning. 

But alongside these established approaches is a fascinating new option: the blended academic-vocational degree, which is being pioneered by a revolutionary new university project in my constituency of Hereford: the New Model Institute for Technology and Engineering, or NMITE for short.

In a sector long criticised for its lack of innovation, the emergence of new models is massively welcome. 

NMITE students work through hands-on learning-by-doing in small teams, in engineering studios like their future work environments. They study 46 weeks a year, on accelerated Bachelors and Masters degree programmes, tackling a constant flow of real-world challenges, set by real companies as clients, in specific short and intense learning modules. 

The result is that they learn academic content, technical skills and professional practice together from the start. And engineering firms are waking up to the potential. The first module client was a small business; the most recent is BAE Systems. 

As regards students, NMITE has been designed to be as inclusive as possible. Potential applicants have to show they can do what is a very demanding degree. But because the focus is on concentrated learning through practice, NMITE does not impose the usual requirement to have a Maths A-level that deters many, especially women, from becoming engineers. 

Instead, NMITE looks for five qualities in a student: grit, curiosity, passion, creativity and collaboration. It wants students who can deal with adversity, who can learn and think independently, who have deep interests or hobbies, who can work imaginatively through problems, and who are team players. It doesn’t matter what school you went to, what your background is, or who your parents are. 

Many of these young people come from poorer and more diverse families, and NMITE seeks to give them a world-class technical education, without ignoring the “hidden curriculum” of human skills that make such a difference to future success. 

This “whole person” approach means learning shaped not just by technology, but by economics, ethics, design, the arts, and business. There is an emphasis on self-reliance, community spirit and volunteering, which reflects the values of Hereford as a working garrison city in a rural setting. In many ways, though the technologies and applications may be cutting-edge, the basic educational philosophy is well-tested, almost old-fashioned. 

The emphasis on skills reinforces the knowledge gained; the focus on professional practice with clients creates students who are better able to step into jobs; the practical nature of the work creates young people who want to do things, not just stand by. 

So: is it working? Bear in mind that NMITE first opened its doors to degree students in September 2021. Even so, the early signs are encouraging. By this September, it expects to have 100 or so students. The Ucas forms of applicants show they are also applying to very good, established universities such as Birmingham, Nottingham and Cardiff. 

That’s a good sign. Here’s another: the Quality Assurance Agency’s assessment of NMITE’s courses has been extremely positive. And only this week, NMITE announced that it has been given New Degree Awarding Powers by the Office for Students, a vital step to enable further growth. 

Most encouragingly, half the first graduating cohort of 2024 have already been offered jobs by local businesses starting at £30,000 – a great starting salary anywhere, and more than the median adult salary in Herefordshire. That means building and keeping skills locally. Not bad for an institution that is less than two years old. 

NMITE’s goal is to prove the value of its educational approach, and then work with local partners to see if it can be replicated elsewhere. There are large towns and small cities up and down the country with low skills, low productivity and sluggish economic growth, so the need is massive. 

I think of NMITE as the small modular nuclear reactor of higher education; a pocket-sized powerhouse. The idea behind it has the potential to transform local economies, and the lives of thousands, perhaps tens of thousands, of young people. That’s real levelling up in action.