Ikkle
The level of study required for the ICAO FOO licence is not far removed from the ATPL. The College has used existing pilot study materials and tailored them, with airline and UKOMA help - that relationship continues. That was the only way we were going to get a course up and running, Glasgow was the only organisation I could find who would take this on. As an existing JAR CPL/ATPL training school they had a head start which made this course affordable. The development of a course from scratch, if you could find someone to do it, would have cost more than double.
Bear in mind the commercial return vs the number of likely students is low. Despite the teething problems at the start of the course, credit where credit is due, at least the Glasgow College of Nautical Studies took this task on and from what OpsBod tells me stand behind their committment to get the course right. They are a further education college with a long tradition in nautical studies and have on board many of the ex-British Aerospace Flying College PIK trainers.
You need to go back and read my previous posts regarding the basis of the course as I don't want to reopen a debate we've already had on these fora. But, I will say, this course isn't about 'your' job, its about giving a broad range of knowledge that enables you to work in airline ops in any environment so that you have complete appreciation of what is happening in flight, and in that context it is indeed important that you know cockpit instrumentation.
For interest Senior Dispatcher posted this link to the EUFALDA and german Dispatcher training.
http://www.flugdienstberater.org/Assembly03.htm
FG, after 33 years in Ops I've bowed out, gracefully I hope, to do consultancy and some more sailing!