From Brief to Co-Design: Building Authentic University-Industry Partnerships in Challenge-Based Learning

Abstract

Higher education faces growing pressure to prepare students for complex, inter-disciplinary problem solving through authentic engagement with industry. Yet challenge-based learning scholarship at undergraduate level remains thin, with most empirical accounts concentrated in engineering or postgraduate contexts. This case study addresses that gap through three action research cycles, in which two inter-disciplinary, credit-bearing electives were successively redesigned in response to student and partner feedback, delivered at a London-based university between 2024 and 2025. Drawing on student surveys, focus groups and partner reflections, the analysis reveals four inter-connected tensions: 1) balancing experiential learning with student expectations for structure; 2) moving beyond surface-level industry engagement; 3) reconciling academic rigour with practical application; 4) embedding transferable skills development implicitly rather than as an explicit add-on. From these tensions, the paper proposes a four-pillar reconceptualisation of challenge-based learning: meta-learning, ecosystem thinking, deep partnering and mutual value creation. The framework is offered as a practical guide for educators designing iterative, partner-integrated experiential courses, with specific design moves for each pillar that can be adapted to local disciplinary and institutional contexts.