Army officers put over 40 undergraduate business students’ practical leadership skills to the test as part of their course.
Over 40 undergraduate business students at the University have had their leadership abilities put to the test by the Army.
Leadership is a central theme for our BA Business and Management students at the University of Portsmouth. A visit from the University Officers' Training Corps (UOTC) provided a valuable opportunity to practice these skills through a series of engaging challenges. Lieutenant Jack Fitzgerald, who led the day's activities, explained: "We aim to help develop the confidence and communication skills of our fellow students, and hopefully build them up for their future careers. We hope that the skills we are teaching they’ll be able to use within a civilian setting once they graduate.”
Fostering leadership opportunities
The event, held indoors at St Paul’s sports hall, saw students participating in five leadership tasks, including navigating a 'minefield' blindfolded with only a whistle for guidance and maneuvering through a giant spider web.
Each student had the chance to lead during the challenges, enhancing their communication, coordination, team-building, and problem-solving skills—key areas also emphasised in army training.
One of our students, Linh, on the BA Business and Management, said: “I just participated in a task as a leader and I found it really useful. As a leader I have to have a big influence on the members of the team, and be willing to integrate and guide them in the tasks. Leaders need to communicate well with their team members and have a good sense of time management. To be a leader is a hard task”
India, another BA Business and Management, reflected on how leadership is more than just making decisions. India said: “The activities are making us think in groups and also take instruction while working together collaboratively to come up with ideas on how to solve the problems.”
“I’ve learnt that it’s important to listen to other people’s ideas because you can bring that to your original idea and develop something even better, so it’s good to listen to what everyone else has got to say.”
“You’re always going to face challenges, so the concept of solving these tasks – working together, thinking about how you are going to tackle the problem – that’s stuff you can apply to the real world, as well as having to work with people you’ve never worked with before. It’s really important to learn how to develop those skills.”
Leadership skills in action
The benefits of these practical leadership exercises extend beyond career prospects. Megan, BA International Business, said: “The activities were really good for team building. I think it’s a good idea to put someone in focus as the leader, with them getting direct feedback and then getting us to work together as a team, and coming together all as one.”
After the activities, students received feedback from supervising officers, helping them refine their leadership abilities for future roles. This feedback was highly valued by the participants.
Dr Andrew Stewart OBE, module coordinator and university representative on the Military Education Committee,: “It’s great to see over 40 students all taking part in unfamiliar circumstances to lead a task which helps to build their confidence for the future. They then get feedback which they can use for their assignment on how to develop their leadership skills.
“It’s such a joy and a delight to see students enjoying their participation and at the same time learning and getting feedback. At the end they all receive a personalised certificate which they can use with their CVs and at interviews.”
Officers in the University Officers' Training Corps have the opportunity to undertake their own training and personal development, too. Lt. Fitzgerald added: “I get to develop my own skills too, particularly when we did the leadership brief last week, it was a great developmental piece for me to be able to stand up for two hours and run a workshop”.