Swinburne launches $1.1 M Cisco Networking Academy teaching facility
In Summary
- Swinburne launches Cisco Networking Academy as part of its Future Ready Learners strategy
- The labs will provide industry-accredited Cisco training
Swinburne has launched a $1.1 million networking academy for students at its Hawthorn campus.
The Cisco Networking Academy comprises three state-of-the-art labs for higher education students and three for Pathways and Vocational Education students, with 17 network racks and 700 Cisco devices.
The labs will help train the next generation of technology talent such as telecommunications engineers and data networking specialists, with the skills needed to thrive in the digital economy.
Each student workstation can set-up, control and enable a wide range of real world networking environments, from small to extremely large and complex networks.
Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic), Professor Duncan Bentley says the academy will also offer certified Cisco training programs.
“The labs can be used to build large-scale broadband networks and provide industry-accredited Cisco training,” Professor Bentley says.
"This facility gives our students greater access to networking equipment and the use of virtual systems allows students to develop very large networks.
“One of the unique features of these labs is Swinburne’s home grown software Gordon which fully controls all aspects of the Cisco hardware in these labs.”
The labs are a long term investment aligning with the Future-Ready Learners pillar of Swinburne’s 2025 Vision and Strategy
“Our Cisco Networking Academy improves career opportunities for people in more than 180 countries around the world, helping over one million students a year,” Vice-President of Cisco Australia & New Zealand, Ken Boal says.
“We partner with academic institutions, governments, and non-profits to develop workforce-ready technology skills for students.
“In Australia, we have already supported the education of 154,556 students through 116 partnerships, for 19 years Swinburne has been a valued partner in delivering this training.”
“Swinburne is dedicated to innovation, research, STEM and Women in IT initiatives, such as Women Rock-IT, and we look forward to collaborative ventures with Cisco encompassing the Internet of Things, Smart campus and Blockchain initiatives,” Professor Bentley says.
“We share the common vision of enhancing educational outcomes through the effective use of technology to improve lecture practice, underpin modern facilities development and improve student and community engagement in learning.”