Graduate Employability: A Review of Conceptual and Empirical Themes

Abstract

The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of some of the dominant empirical and conceptual themes in the area of graduate employment and employability over the past decade. The paper considers the wider context of higher education (HE) and labour market change, and the policy thinking towards graduate employability. It draws upon various studies to highlight the different labour market perceptions, experiences and outcomes of graduates in the United Kingdom and other national contexts. It further draws upon research that has explored the ways in which students and graduates construct their employability and begin to manage the transition from HE to work. The paper explores some of the conceptual notions that have informed understandings of graduate employability, and argues for a broader understanding of employability than that offered by policymakers.

University students’ perceptions of their ‘ability selves’ and employability: a pilot study

“…The importance of social adeptness and extroversion shows up in our results and accords with the previous research (Tomlinson, 2012). As suggested in public discussions, including bestsellers on the subject (e.g.…”

“…A complementary explanation would be that the students' anticipations of working life-related requirements are already reflected in their selfdescriptions as voiced in the predominant employment discourse (cf. Tomlinson, 2012).…”

“…Thus, academically educated people also have to flexibly adapt to a job market by developing and maintaining their employability (Tomlinson, 2008(Tomlinson, , 2010(Tomlinson, , 2012. Preparing work-ready graduates is currently regarded as a major role of higher education (Daniels & Brooker, 2014).…”

“…Potential worker status is expressed through attributes associated with the graduate's future identity: employability is not just about getting a job, but about learning, having and developing general workrelated abilities, the so-called 'core' or 'enterprise' skills, such as creativity, problem-solving skills, innovativeness, flexibility, communication, emotional intelligence, teamwork and the ability to take risks (Bridgstock, 2009;McQuaid & Lindsay, 2005). These skills represent 'soft currencies' (Tomlinson, 2012), which are transferable to a wide range of employment contexts, i.e. can be carried luggage-like from job to job (Payne, 2000), and which help graduates become effective navigators and successful competitors in unstable labour markets.…”

“…Boden & Nedeva, 2010;Fallows & Steven, 2000;Tomlinson, 2012). However, little scholarly attention has been paid to the relationship between the university students' interpretations of their abilities and their perceptions of their own employability.…”