The myth of job readiness? Written communication, employability, and the ‘skills gap’ in higher education

an article by Tim Moore (Swinburne University of Technology, Hawthorn, VIC, Australia) and Janne Morton (University of Melbourne, Parkville, VIC, Australia) published in Studies in Higher Education Volume 42 Issue 3 (2017)

Abstract

Recent developments in higher education have seen a strong emphasis placed on making graduates ‘job ready’ for their work in the professions. A driver of this agenda has been the many mass-scale surveys conducted with business and industry about the abilities and general employability of graduates.

This Australian-based study is focused on perceptions and attitudes around one such ability – professional writing skills.

‘Discourse-based interviews' were conducted with managers and supervisors from a range of professional areas. Their responses were most interesting, and served, among other things, to challenge some of the emerging ideas about ‘job readiness’ in current debates about the directions of higher education.

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Determinants of timely completion: the impact of Bachelor's degree programme characteristics and student motivation on study progress

an article by Cor J.M. Suhre, Ellen P.W.A. Jansen and M. Torenbeek (Centre for Learning and Teaching, University of Groningen, The Netherlands) published in Higher Education Research & Development Volume 32 Issue 3 (June 2013)

Abstract

Timely completion of university degree programmes is a topic of growing concern to higher education institutions and their students.

This paper reports on a study about the impact of degree programme characteristics and student motivation on study progress. The setting for the study is a Dutch law school. Data on degree programme characteristics, student ability, motivation, academic performance and academic pressure were collected from 168 first-year students six months after the start of their studies.

Analysis of the effects of degree programme characteristics and studentsrsquo; initial motivation on study progress shows that study progress mainly depends on ability, timely completion goals and transparency of assessments. The study also shows that transparency of assessment procedures considerably lowers fear of failure and academic pressure.

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Widening participation to doctoral education and research degrees: a research agenda for an emerging policy issue

an article by Alistair McCulloch (University of South Australia, Adelaide, Australia) and Liz Thomas (Edge Hill University, Ormskirk, UK) published in Higher Education Research & Development Volume 32 Issue 2 (April 2013)

Abstract

Widening participation is on the political agenda but, to date, policy, practice and research has focused on undergraduate education.

This article identifies an emerging widening participation focus on doctoral education.

Using England as a case study, the article examines this development within the context of the long-standing concern with equity in education, before reviewing the relatively small literature addressing who participates (and why) in doctoral and more general postgraduate education.

An analysis of Widening Participation Strategic Assessments produced in 2009 by 129 English Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) reveals an emergent institutional awareness of this new development.

Finally, a research agenda for widening participation to research degrees, focusing on research students, HEIs and policy-makers, is outlined. The conclusion calls for this agenda to be pursued at institutional, national and cross-national levels so that future policy can be made and implemented on the basis of a robust evidence base.

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