Cross-college students collaborate on innovative app project
Students from IT, health and social care and Science have collaborated with leading health and social care app specialists Bitjam to design an app to help deal with anxiety in young people.
The project, which lasted four weeks, saw students work in groups to develop an app that could be used by young people, with a brief to include an emotion tracker.
Two groups presented to Carl Plant and Andrew White from Bitjam Limited, showcasing their understanding and interpretations of the design brief and a preview of the app using Figma app-building software.
Irwin McNaught, who is studying T Level Software Coding, enjoyed collaborating with students from different courses, saying:
“I enjoyed working with students from different courses. Our group had a mix of students from Software Coding and Health and Social Care.
“This was the first time I’d used the Figma software, so this was a good learning experience for me.”
Carl Plant, CEO at Bitjam Limited, worked as a Mental Health Nurse for many years, and has used his extensive experience when setting up Bitjam. The company specialises in software development and apps, primarily within the health and social care sector.
Speaking about the healthcare app and working with students, he said:
“We’ve found the co-production model of working with people with lived experience ultimately benefits when developing new software to improve people’s lives.
“It was fascinating to hear the pitches from the students and the different ways they would engage with the target audience and the features they would include.
“As a company, this type of project was the best way we could give students a rich work experience, which will help their future prospects. We have seen first-hand the digital shift within the healthcare sector, so having a mix of students collaborating allowed for a lot of creativity.”
Hassan Rizvi, Principal & CEO at Stoke on Trent College, said:
“We are delighted to collaborate with Bitjam Limited for this innovative project, which allows our learners to really get their teeth into a live design brief. We’re always looking for ways to give our learners meaningful and varied encounters and experiences with employers and the workplace.
“The feedback provided to all of our learners will only enhance their career prospects when looking for careers in Health and Social Care, Science and IT.”
If your company is interested in working with Stoke on Trent College, please email business@stokecoll.ac.uk in the first instance or call 01782 603603.
