Private education provider Raffles Education Corporation says it has launched the Raffles European Dual Academy (REDA) and signed a collaborative agreement with Germany’s Baden-Württemberg Cooperative State University and Spain’s University Alcalá.

REDA will be the first academy in Asia to introduce the “Duale Hochschule” or Dual Education System which combines both theory and practical education and is practised in Germany, Spain, Switzerland and Denmark.

Raffles Education says the DES model involves alternate study phases in theory and practical experience in participating companies and industries, allowing students to gain first-hand experience at the workplace where they learn teamwork, value creation, target orientation, work ethics and hone social skills.

Students are required to complete six supervised practical modules with partner companies during their three-year programme with REDA. Each three-month module will focus on one or more specific functional areas, including production design, international marketing, customer relationship management, accounting and finance.

Students will also be assigned an independent academic coach as well as company mentorships throughout the programme and are expected to complete supervised real-life projects with a designated company for a total of 18 months.