Employability via Higher Education: Sustainability as Scholarship

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xiv

   PDF

2. Definitions

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 1-1

      PDF

   2. Introduction

      • Alice Diver

      Pages 3-23

   3. HE and Civil Society: What Contribution Can Universities Make to Civil Society?

      • Ceryn Evans, Stuart Fox, Chris Taylor

      Pages 25-36

   4. Learning Gain: Can It Be Measured?

      • Peter Gossman, Stephen Powell

      Pages 37-51

   5. Conceptions of Quality: Some Critical Reflections on the Impact of ‘Quality’ on Academic Practice

      • Chris Lawton

      Pages 53-65

   6. What Motivational Processes Underpin Student Engagement with Employability? A Critical Review

      • Andrew James Clements

      Pages 67-81

   7. Developing Employable, Emotionally Intelligent, and Resilient Graduate Citizens of the Future

      • Lorraine Dacre Pool, Dawne Gurbutt, Kath Houston

      Pages 83-97

   8. The Role of ‘Learner Identity’ and Experience-Related Beliefs in Developing Desirable Graduate Attributes

      • Dawne Irving-Bell

      Pages 99-111

   9. Pushing Water Uphill? The Challenges of Non-engagement

      • Vicki Louise O’Brien, Francesca Dominique Walker-Martin

      Pages 113-125

   10. Student Motivation and ‘Dropout’ Rates in Brazil

       • Dalton Tria Cusciano, Mauro Maia Laruccia, Luis Fernando Salles Moraes

       Pages 127-134

   11. Building Student Resilience for Graduate Work Readiness

       • Jacinta Ryan, Sandra Jones, Peter Hayes, Michelle Turner

       Pages 135-154

   12. “That Working-Class Ethic … Where There’s a Will There’s a Way:” A Strengths-Based Approach to Developing Employable Scholars

       • Sarah O’Shea, Janine Delahunty

       Pages 155-167

3. Designs and Difficulties

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 169-169

      PDF

   2. Precursors to Employability—How First Year Undergraduate Students Plan and Strategize to Become Employable Graduates

      • Emma Mullen, Stephanie Bridges, Sue Eccles, Doris Dippold

      Pages 171-200

   3. Engaging Students, Staff, and Employers in Developing Student Employability

      • John Bostock

      Pages 201-214

   4. Learning from and About Each Other: Developing Skills for a Connected Interdisciplinary World

      • Dawne Gurbutt

      Pages 215-225

   5. What Happens When Politics and Career Dreams Collide? Considering the Impact of Brexit on Graduate Career Aspirations

      • Theresa Thomson

      Pages 227-235

   6. Assessment Strategy: Enhancement of Student Learning Through a Programme Focus

      • Ruth Whitfield, Peter Hartley

      Pages 237-253

   7. Authentic Assessment as a Tool to Bridge the Transition Between Learning and Work

      • Robyn Davidson, Catherine Snelling, Sophie Karanicolas, Tania Crotti, Braden Phillips

      Pages 255-274

This book discusses the topic of graduate employability from the premise that in this era of ‘massification,’ economic austerity, and political uncertainties, higher education (HE) no longer guarantees a clear ‘work place advantage.’ Divided into three sections, the book offers theoretical and philosophical discourses on the ‘HE quandary,’ whilst taking into account – and critiquing - political, temporal, and national contexts. It culminates in an investigation into specific discipline areas. It offers insights into the way that institutions, decision-makers, academics, and professional support staff can work together towards ensuring that our graduates are able to cope with the varied demands and challenges of modern job markets. It harnesses arguments and reflections on the breadth and depth of the functions of HE, such as social transformation, promoting principles of social justice, and providing opportunities. It grounds these in a triadic model for enhancing student engagement and holistic learning, namely, the emotional, cognitive, and behavioural aspects. As an anthology, it is forward-gazing in terms of the sustainability debate, whilst still offering evidence-based, research-grounded, practical suggestions to readers looking for tips and tools of the trade.

• learning gain and employability
• group simulations within international business schools
• developing students' professional capabilities
• multidimensional interpersonal communication
• work-based learning
• developing employability through meaningful student
• commercial awareness of law students
• sustainability
• civil society
• resilience and emotional intelligence
• self-efficacy
• learning and instruction

“Although the pitch of this book is ‘employability’ I think it goes wider than this. The notion of the whole person model of learning and the link to identity and changing identities throughout the student journey is of interest to curriculum designers, central student support departments and students' unions. I think the book challenges the reader to re-question the purpose of HE and to see employability or work-readiness as an integral part of the HE experience rather than an outcome that is hoped to be achieved.” (Dr Roisín Curran, Lecturer in Higher Education Practice in CHERP at Ulster, Londonderry, Ireland)

“The authorship of this collection is of excellent quality, and the compositional nature of the chapter texts make use of wide-ranging and creative language expression. The text is engaging and easily readable. ... Whilst graduate employability in itself is not a new phenomenon in the social sciences literature, the particular ways in which this collection approaches the issues provide a fresh take on the now well-known neo-liberal critique in the field of higher education. … The chapters offer an ample approach on current issues affecting university education, which can be applied across disciplinary fields. The three sections are particularly pedagogically assembled in building up reader engagement with the content, from definitions to particular practical cases and finally their implications. The collection harnesses the breadth and depth of the functions of higher education for employment from innovation and technology to social transformation.” (Dr Meeri Hellstén, Department of Education, Stockholm University, Sweden)

• School of Law, Liverpool John Moores University, Liverpool, UK

  Alice Diver

Dr Alice Diver is a Senior Lecturer in Law at Liverpool John Moores University, who has worked in HE since 1993. She researches and publishes in the areas of adoption law, human rights, property law, and law in literature. A graduate of Queen’s University Belfast (1988), she previously worked as a Solicitor in private practice in Northern Ireland (1991-1995). Her teaching and research supervision areas include property law, family law, indigenous rights, and human rights law. She is the author of a 2013 monograph entitled 'A Law of Blood-ties: The 'Right' to Access Genetic Ancestry' (Springer) which is based upon her PhD (Ulster University, 2012), and co-editor of a collection of essays on the 'Justiciability of Human Rights Law in Domestic Jurisdictions’ (Springer, 2015). She has been a trustee for Kinship Care NI since 2014 and a board member of Apex Housing NI since 2013. 

 

Policies and ethics