The six day conference will be attended by Chief Executives and other senior delegates from colleges and equivalent educational institutions in the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, Fiji and New Zealand. 

In a bid to develop a more coherent international approach to post-secondary education, delegates will share experiences and discuss the potential for developing a ‘global sector’.  In the context of an increasingly globalised economy the conference will explore opportunities to create an international labour flow.

Education Secretary Fiona Hyslop is to tell the conference: “To prepare our students for an increasingly globalised world, it’s crucial that we engage with education providers in other countries to learn lessons from each other. By collaboratively developing learning programmes we can enhance our economies and societies and ensure we are ready to meet future challenges.

“We are determined to promote Scotland’s proud learning tradition at home and abroad by further developing our international lifelong learning strategy and this conference is a great opportunity to explore how we can enhance our skills base to best meet global market needs.”

Prime Minister Gordon Brown formally launched the conference on Friday with a recorded address.  Brown said: “Adam Smith College is very much at the heart of the local community and central to economic and community development in the area and also works in countries across the world. It is therefore very fitting to see the title of this year’s PIN Conference ‘The Global Sector’ and to learn that you are intending to discuss in detail how post-secondary learning can develop most successfully in a global context. I would like to congratulate the PIN Executive for bringing this event together and to all of you for your commitment to the development of post-secondary education.”

Craig Thomson, Principal of Adam Smith College, hosting the conference, commented: “This conference is a fantastic opportunity not just for Adam Smith College to showcase our work on an international stage, but for Scotland’s Colleges to demonstrate that our sector is world class.

“Over the past few years, Scotland’s Colleges have focused increasingly on working together as a coherent group, and this has meant we can do a much better job for both our students and employers. On an international level, I believe that we can do the same: by working together we can create a global sector to support our increasingly global economy.”

One initiative that has emerged through the PIN network is a strategic partnership between Adam Smith College and Box Hill Institute in Melbourne, Australia.  The project has received European funding to develop joint qualifications in catering, hospitality and construction courses, including periods of study and work in both countries.