India, Oct 16: Sheffield Hallam University, United Kingdom, and the International Institute of Sports & Management, India, are signing a Memorandum of Understanding on Friday to explore closer academic and institutional collaboration.
The agreement identifies three areas for potential cooperation: joint research and knowledge exchange; opportunities for student and staff mobility; and the exploration of progression pathways and potential collaborative academic provision.
The signing brings together Oliver Coppard, Mayor of South Yorkshire; Dharmendra Shadija, Head of School, Computing and Digital Technologies at Sheffield Hallam University; and Nilesh Kulkarni, Founder & Director of IISM.
The proposed partnership brings together IISM’s specialist expertise in sports management and sports science with Sheffield Hallam’s strengths in sport education, applied research, sports engineering, physical activity and the wider sport industry. Through research links, opportunities for mobility and the exploration of academic progression pathways, the institutions aim to identify practical areas for cooperation that can develop over time.
Oliver Coppard, Mayor of South Yorkshire said:
“South Yorkshire shares a love of cricket with India, so it is fitting that Sheffield Hallam has renewed its MoU with the International Institute of Sports and Management. International partnerships like this work best when both sides have something great to offer. Both universities have deep expertise across sports management - from sports science to education to research. I look forward to this relationship going from strength to strength and can promise any Indian students coming to South Yorkshire a warm welcome and a brilliant student experience."
Dharmendra Shadija, Head of School, Computing and Digital Technologies, Sheffield Hallam University said:
“At Sheffield Hallam, we value academic work that connects knowledge with practical impact. This MoU provides a starting point to explore collaborative research, opportunities for student and staff mobility, and potential progression pathways with IISM. We are keen to identify areas where our institutions can learn from one another and develop meaningful academic activity.”
Nilesh Kulkarni, Founder & Director, International Institute of Sports & Management (IISM) said:
“This understanding with Sheffield Hallam University represents an important opportunity for IISM to broaden its international academic engagement. We want our students and faculty to benefit from wider perspectives, collaborative research and well-designed progression pathways. Our focus will be on turning the areas identified in the MoU into purposeful opportunities for learning and institutional development.”
The MoU outlines areas for exploration rather than announcing specific exchange places, courses or research projects. Any individual initiatives will be subject to further discussion and agreement between the institutions.
