POLICY

Employability is currently high on the list of Government policies with a considerable number of strategy documents having recently been produced. The importance of work-related learning and the role of 'employability' in higher education has long been recognised (Knight and Yorke, 2002) and is concerned with developing the skills and competencies required to compete in a changing labour market.

Part of the remit of the Department for Education and Skills (http://www.dfes.gov.uk) is to ‘enable young people to equip themselves with life and work skills, and encourage adults to achieve their full potential through learning.’

HEFCE Reports

Review of the Graduate Apprenticeship scheme (Nov 2004) HEFCE commissioned the Enhancing Student Employability Co-ordination Team (ESECT) to conduct a review of the Graduate Apprenticeship scheme in July 2003, following the end of development funding. The aim of the review was to evaluate the success of the scheme and assess whether Graduate Apprenticeships (GAs) had added value to higher education in developing students’ employability and meeting the needs of employers. The findings of this review are available on the HEFCE website

How Much Does Higher Education Enhance the Employability of Graduates?(Aug 2003) - This study investigates universities' efforts to enhance graduate employability and the extent to which they are successful. It provides evidence on how HE courses seek to improve the employability of their graduates, and evaluates the success of these in the light of graduates' experiences in finding their first employment and experiences in their early years of employment. Graduates in five subject areas were focused on: biological sciences , business studies , computer science/studies, design studies, history.

The Work Related Learning Report was announced by Margaret Hodge at the CRAC/UCAS Admissions to Higher Education Conference on 19 March 2002. The report focuses on how to expand students' work experience opportunities and to facilitate closer relationships between key partners if this expansion is to become a reality.

Access to what: analysis of factors determining graduate employability (Nov 2002) This report is the first output of a project entitled 'Access to what? How to convert educational opportunity into employment opportunity for groups from disadvantaged backgrounds'. The project is being funded by the Higher Education Funding Councils for England, Scotland and Wales, Universities UK, the Commission for Racial Equality, the Council for Industry and Higher Education, the Higher Education Careers Services Unit and the Open University.

UK graduates and the impact of work experience(Dec 2002) This report examines the links between work experience during higher education and experiences within the labour market in the UK, post-graduation. It has been based on data on UK graduates, with a sample drawn from the 1994/5 cohort of students graduating in ‘first degree’ or equivalent programmes.

HEFCE 01/21 Inditocars of employment and other post-qualification activities. Following the Dearing report into higher education, the HE funding councils in the UK set up a steering group (the Performance Indicators Steering Group, PISG) to look at what Performance Indicators should be produced for higher education institutions. This document shows the first set of performance indicators (PIs) about the employment outcomes of higher education. The full report (including annexes and employment indicators) is available on the HEFCE website

The Government’s Strategy Unit: Workforce Development The Government has acknowledged the need to examine whether the UK's approach to Workforce Development effectively promotes productivity, economic performance and opportunities for individuals to realise their potential. ‘Workforce development has been described as a relatively new term for training and skills development. It sits between training (which has a narrow focus) and education (which is broad), and is firmly grounded in business need. The Government’s Strategy Unit developed action plan for a better skilled workforce for Britain. The plan sets out how the government will work to increase skills training and development over the next five years, and put the needs of employers and individuals at the heart of their policies. The full reports, In Demand: Adult Skills for the 21st Century – Part 1 and Part 2 are available Here