Changing HE and the growth of Employability Rachel Higdon – July 2012 rhigdon@dmu.ac.uk...

Changing HE and the growth of Employability

Rachel Higdon – July 2012 rhigdon@dmu.ac.uk

What is Employability?

Yorke 2006:5 

– Employability as demonstrated by the graduate actually obtaining a job

– Employability due to the student being developed by his or her experience of higher education (a curricular and perhaps extra-curricular process)

– Employability in terms of the possession of relevant achievements (and, implicitly, potential).”

Yorke

• “a set of achievements – skills, understandings and personal attributes – that make graduates more likely to gain employment and be successful in their chosen occupations”

Employability Agenda

Since Dearing Report (1997)

What is the Employability agenda?

• Mandelson – Pushed “Civilisation and Competition” - HE to ensure undergraduates “acquired” employability to gain graduate jobs (BBC 2009)

• Coalition increases competition and marketisation of HE

Browne Review (2010) and White Paper (2011)

Browne Review 2011, White Paper 2011 and Wilson

Review 2012Link undergraduate courses directly to graduate jobs -Courses to develop employability for specific graduate jobs and show evidence through published material.

Little Difference between Labour and Coalition in terms of their

concept of employability

Dominant Models:Skill acquisition to meet employers’ needs

Human capital theory – links government policy and HE together with employment growth

Seek and value employers’ definition of graduate employability and employers’ view of current undergraduate provision

Little Difference• work placements and work experience key

requisite for graduate employability

• Graduate employability measured 6 months after graduation

• Believe HE and industry should work closer together to develop employability for graduate jobs within undergraduate degrees

• Student as consumer/student in driving seat/student voice – however little research (compared to employers ) with students

Research with Graduates

68 students from pre and post 1992 (graduating 2006-9)

Through blog with “The Guardian” and “Facebook”

Creative work

Creative work is not defined to one job – complicated

• Single artist may work in education, community sector and business worlds

• Work in SMES, self-employed, sole-trader, PAYE – mix of few or all

• Freelance, project, contracting, commissioning, paid on results etc

• Portfolio careers – Bit of everything all the time throughout career

Creative Employability

The graduate View

Industry in the curriculum – professionals involved in the curriculum

Networking contacts – for creative stimulation, work opportunities and collaboration

Feedback from others in and outside the curriculum

The graduate View Lecturers as practitioners – working and

teaching in the industry

Specific industry related skills - Theory and Practice

Modules and show case projects related to industry work

Experience – work experience, placements,

internships etc

The graduate View

Careers advice and guidance tailored to the specific industry

Graduate attributes needed for work

Student reflection/identity in industry

Student’s potential as creative artist in industry

Obstacles?

• Money

• Contacts

Implications for Staff

What is your philosophy within your discipline?

What will this affect?

• Pedagogic practice (the way the subject is taught)

• Subject content (what is taught)

• Partnerships (who we need)

Employability is not getting a job

• Yes it seems employability can be enhanced as part of the degree experience.

• However getting a job has socio-economic

factors – class, race, gender, reputation of university, personal background and family histories, location, money etc etc

References

Browne, J. (2010). Securing a sustainable future for higher education. Independent Review of Higher Education & Student Finance in England.

Department for Business Innovation and Skills (2011) Higher Education. Students at the Heart of the System

Higdon, R (2011) A grounded theory approach to employability, the creative economy and undergraduate degrees in British Universities. SRHE Annual conference.

Yorke, M. (2006). Employability in higher education: what it is-what it is not, Higher Education Academy.

Yorke, M. and P. Knight (2006). Embedding employability into the curriculum. York, The Higher Education Academy.

Wilson, T. (2012). A Review of Business-University Collaboration

Discussion