Recent courses at the ESTEC site in The Netherlands for the European Space Agency (ESA) were extremely well received, with a selection of feedback as follows.

European Space Agency 'Top 10' comments 

1. "Very good atmosphere where discussion was possible and easy, allowing to learn better with anecdotes (good for memory). Allowed me to finally understand what is behind the Gantt instead of looking at it 'mechanically'."
2. "Good mix of didactic and groupwork."
3. "Well organised, excellent presentations and style. Thorough and relaxed at the same time."
4. "Excellent Introductory course to Project Management principles. I particularly enjoyed the interactive nature and lively course pace."
5. "The material was very well instructed and the team exercises well structured."
6. "Excellent - well prepared, well supported by field of experience, nicely animated. Well done!"
7. "[The instructor was] Charming and easy going, prepared to solve questions and doubts. Capacity to motivate and make you think out of the normal environment. Friendly but at the same time willing to achieve objectives."
8. "A pleasant, clear but sound and professional way of bringing knowledge and techniques about Project Management."
9. "Hands on exercises and 'project war' are the best!"
10. "Intuitive way of showing how to do project management from a top-level perspective. Nice exercises that helps you to work. Overall a useful course with a lot of insights and tips."

Queen's University Belfast attendees gave recent courses 4.7+ ratings (5 being excellent) - well done Fraser!

Attendees feedback reflected their experience (4.75, 4.77, 4.78 and 4.74 as follows); the 'Top 5' comments per courses are given below.

Introduction to Project Management

In addition to participants intentions to "plan [their] PhD", the 'best things' were: 

1. "Tailored to PhD students rather than companies."
2. "Well presented and interactive."
3. "Course facilitator was very enthusiastic and knows the subject extremely well."
4. "Designing project diagram and getting feedback on it."
5. "Combination of theory and useful practical examples."

Intermediate Project Management

Over the two cohorts, the top 5 'best things' about the course were:

1. "Good balance of theory and practice."
2. "Well presented, engaging, interactive, entertaining."
3. "One of the best PRDP courses."
4. "Small groups encouraged participation."
5. "Interesting examples, useful anecdotes, well structured material with many good practical examples."

CAPM Prep Day 

1. "Well delivered, helpful for my future career."
2. "Guidance on exam."
3. "Good revision of previous material."
4. "Example exam questions."
5. "Thanks this course/s have changed my career."

Participants in a recent Project Management event held at the University of Strathclyde rated the course 4.56 out of 5 (5 being excellent). 

Top 10 comments were:

1. "Very relevant course. Engaging and practical."
2. "Having an instructor with practical experience rather than just theoretical makes a huge difference."
3. "Course had right level of involvement and practical vs  theory to make it enjoyable and keep attention span."
4. "Very helpful instructor. Course very useful. I hope to apply these concepts in the near future."
5. "Very enjoyable course."
6. "Overall a well organised and excellent course. A great help!"
7. "[The trainer] is an excellent instructor. He is a very engaging speaker and connects the material with real life examples well. I will attend the risk course. (good jokes as well :) )"
8. "Some good practical tips."
9. "Loved it, hope all the courses are the same way!"
10. "Well presented. Clear and knowledgeable. Good pace. Recommend to others."

Fistral are absolutely delighted to announce that the Scottish CanSat Competition 2012 winners - Team Alpha from Bearsden Academy - have won the European CanSat Competition!! CONGRATULATIONS 

As you know, Fistral managed, sponsored and awarded the Fistral Scottish CanSat Trophy in March, and Team Alpha were worthy winners.

The Scottish CanSat Secretary Dr Paul Lyden said

• "I am absolutely delighted! The really solid Scottish approach won the day. All the preparation and processes that Fistral Training put teams through in the Scottish CanSat Competition gave the winning team the edge at the European Final. Scotland won because they had followed a process in the Scottish competition which ensured they had understood the objectives of the mission, had planned the project well, thought about risks and when other teams were running about like headless chickens before the launch, Scotland were calmly playing cards."
• "The European judging panel were very impressed as were the other teams.  It was testament to the Scottish pragmatism in technology and also the excellent project management advice given by our sponsor Fistral Training and Consultancy Ltd. who made sure the teams in the Scottish CanSat competition were well set up in project management techniques." 

The European CanSat Competition 2012 

A team of 4 high school students from Glasgow beat teams from 14 other European countries - including England, Spain, France and The Netherlands - to win the European CanSat Final 2012. 

The winning European team - Team Alpha - from Bearsden Academy won the Scottish CanSat Competition 2012 sponsored and managed by Fistral Training and Consultancy Ltd. at the end of March; and in addition to the Fistral trophy, they won a guaranteed launch spot at the European CanSat Competition in Norway.

 CanSat Disaster Averted

Between winning the Fistral Scottish CanSat Competition and the final, the winning team had 3 weeks to arrange their travel and make final preparations for the European Competition. However, a near disaster was avoided as the cans (provided by Irn Bru) that make the basis of the 'Can' Sat, were almost left where they had been ‘safely’ stowed in a school drawer! CanSat complete they were on their way.

Four of the nine students from Team Alpha were selected to represent Scotland, and along with their teacher, had to travel to Norway, launch their CanSat via rocket 1km into the air at Andøya Rocket Range, and conduct their mission experiments, and make presentations to the judging panel.

Scotland are European CanSat Winners 2012

The Scots representatives - Rebecca Mackenzie, Dominic Laing, Matthew Morris, Findlay MacRae and teacher Richard Ford - beat teams from 14 other countries across Europe in an extremely close-run and hard-fought competition. As part of the competition they completed their own Team Alpha blog which tells of their story and winning success.

Other teams were from: England, Spain, Ireland, Italy, France, Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Greece, Norway, Portugal, Romania and The Netherlands

Team Alpha (Bearsden Academy) comprised members as follows: Dominic Laing, Ryan Mitchell, Caitlin Chalmers,  Peter Meadows, Rebecca MacKenzie,  Matthew Morris,  Drew Cowan, Findlay MacRae and Grant McConnachie and their teacher is Richard Ford.

CanSat photos, links and more 

See our blogs for info on the Scottish Final at ROE, Launch Day at Strathaven Airfield, ClydeSpace visit, Training Day and comments from MSP Mike Russell, the STEMNET Ambassador Programme, Irn Bru's support of the Scottish competition and therein links to images etc.

It provides a full overview of the Scottish teams' journey to become European winners... and did I say Congratulations... Well done Bearsden Academy!!

Attendees at the University of Manchester had a lot of praise for the Fistral Certified associate of Project Management (CAPM) Preparation Day; meaning that participants are eligible for professional certification by the Project Management Institute (PMI).

Overall, the course was rated 4.54 out of 5 (5 being excellent), with recommendations for the course as follows:

• "This is very useful in all aspects of research from PhD students to senior managerial roles."
• "It is useful for projects of any type including research projects."
• "I recommend it. It is a good overview to project management, and a necessary addition to the required skills for career enhancement."
• "I would. Not necessary the exam, but definitely the whole course as it is applicable to most disciplines."
• "Definitely."
• "Yes, because I find it very useful."
• "I would recommend this course for other researchers as it could be useful for developing their career."
• "Def. It's one of the best workshops that I've attended and it's so good for my future job development."
• "Yes have done."
• "It is useful to get tools. And in this case a clarification is always appreciated."
• "Yes, as a researcher we all are involved in projects and need to manage them to deliver expected results."

Particular elements of the CAPM Day that were beneficial:

• "It was very motivating."
• "Practice exam questions, clarification of concepts and introducing/putting the vocabulary/terminology into context."
• "Resources and techniques."
• "Broke down the kowledge needed into logical parts which means the exam can be more easily revised for."
• the trainer is highly skilled."
• "Clear, structured, excellent presenter."
• "Advice on taking the CAPM exam."
• "Clear, concise and well structured course. Lots of helpful hints for the exam."
• "I liked the structure and the presenter. The course is well designed and useful to revise the theory and give us the guidance for CAPM exam preparation."
• "Good and clear explanations."
• "How to prepare myself to exam."
• "Great refresher of all learnt previously. Good to do sample questions throughout the day. Good to see what electronic exam looks like."
• "Useful intro, good balance between course req's and practical."
• "It has a practical focus. It is a good starting point to get ready for the exam."
• "The course was comprehensive and covered all relevant knowledge areas."
• "Good practical preparation."
• [The trainer was] "Professional, nice and friendly."
•  "Very well delivered. Great enthusiasm. Fraser explains/clarified all aspects very well."
• "Always fantastic. Barring my own effort, I am now well prepared for the exam."
• "Very good work, I hope you carry on for other researchers."