'The degree is not enough' : students' perceptions of the role of higher education credentials for graduate work and employability
TLDR
In this article, a qualitative study with 53 final-year undergraduate students in a pre-1992 university showed that students perceive their academic qualifications as having a declining role in shaping their employment outcomes in what is perceived to be a congested and competitive graduate labour market.Abstract:
The UK Government is calling upon higher education students to see their learning as an investment that will give them direct benefits in the labour market. At the same time, the relationship between educational credentials and their returns in labour market has been changing in recent times. Based on a qualitative study with 53 final‐year undergraduate students in a pre‐1992 university, this article examines the way higher education students understand the role of their educational credentials in relation to their future employability. It shows that students perceive their academic qualifications as having a declining role in shaping their employment outcomes in what is perceived to be a congested and competitive graduate labour market. While academic credentials are still seen as a significant dimension of their employability, students increasingly see the need to add value to them in order to gain an advantage in the labour market.read more
Citations
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Social limits to growth
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The student perspective on employability
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors explored the views of over 400 business studies, marketing and human resource management undergraduate students on the development of employability skills within their curricula and found that motivation and commitment of learners is an essential prerequisite for effective outcomes.
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Graduate Employability: A Review of Conceptual and Empirical Themes
TL;DR: The authors provide an overview of some of the dominant empirical and conceptual themes in the area of graduate employment and employability over the past decade, and argue for a broader understanding of employability than that offered by policymakers.
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Higher education, social class and the mobilisation of capitals: recognising and playing the game
TL;DR: Using data from a longitudinal study of working-class and middle-class undergraduates at Bristol's two universities (the Paired Peers project), the authors employ Bourdieu's conceptual tools to examine processes of capital mobilisation and acquisition by students to enhance future social positioning.
References
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Book
Human Capital: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis, with Special Reference to Education
TL;DR: In this paper, the effects of investment in education and training on earnings and employment are discussed. But the authors focus on the relationship between age and earnings and do not explore the relation between education and fertility.
Posted Content
Human Capital: A Theoretical and Empirical Analysis, with Special Reference to Education
TL;DR: In this paper, the impact of investments in human capital on an individual's potential earnings and psychic income was analyzed, taking into account varying cultures and political regimes, the research indicates that economic earnings tend to be positively correlated to education and skill level.
Book
From Max Weber: Essays in sociology
TL;DR: A collection of Max Weber's key papers is presented in this article with a new preface by Professor Bryan S. Turner, who was one of the most prolific and influential sociologists of the twentieth century.