‘When it comes to what employers are looking for, I don’t think I’m it for a lot of them’: class and capitals in, and after, higher education

Abstract

Much research on adults in higher education has focused on issues of access and participation. As a result little is known about what happens to working-class students after leaving university even though employability is high on the agenda HE research on this topic in relation to such students is sparse. This research focuses on the voices of working-class students and their aspirations in relation to employability. Using two student narratives this paper draws on the findings of two countries, England and Ireland, from a six-country European project on employability of non-traditional students using biographical research methods. Their stories reveal an awareness of class inequalities in the labour market in relation to cultural, economic and social capital and issues of locality, gender and age. The stories also indicate a sense of precarity in their lifecourse in a society which has become highly reflexive and fluid (Alheit, P., and B. Dausien. 2002. "The 'Double Face' of Lifelong Learning: Two Analytical Perspectives on a 'Silent Revolution'." Studies in the Education of Adults 34 (1): 3-23).

Constructing a graduate career future: Working with Bourdieu to understand transitions from university to employment for students from working‐class backgrounds in England

“…(2020) argue, longitudinal methods permit an analysis of the interplay of structure and agency over time. While individual careers cannot be read off as straightforwardly following macro patterns of classed experience “Individual biographies reveal that personal experiences at the micro level are often shared ones of gender, class and ethnicity at the macro level” (Merrill et al., 2020, p. 167. See also Allen, 2016; Hordósy & Clark, 2018) Biographical accounts can therefore reveal the collective experience of class (and gender and race) and the interaction between structure and agency.…”

“…As Merrill et al. (2020) argue, longitudinal methods permit an analysis of the interplay of structure and agency over time. While individual careers cannot be read off as straightforwardly following macro patterns of classed experience “Individual biographies reveal that personal experiences at the micro level are often shared ones of gender, class and ethnicity at the macro level” (Merrill et al., 2020, p. 167.…”

“…However, the narratives in the following section reveal the complexities of their unfolding careers. As Merrill et al (2020) argue, longitudinal methods permit an analysis of the interplay of structure and agency over time.…”

‘Think about what our industry stands for….’: exploring the impact of external factors on line manager perceptions of graduate employability

“…It is widely documented that external barriers should also be taken into account when assessing influences on employability (McQuaid and Lindsay, 2005). Merrill et al (2019) highlighted that higher education institutions across Europe have undergone significant changes as a consequence of turbulent dynamics between higher education and the Government, and globalisation. For instance, negotiations around the UK's withdrawal from the EU have been underway since March 2017, following the British Referendum in June 2016.…”

Formation of readiness for professional mobility in senior high school students

“…Researchers use various theoretical constructs for analysis, depending on the choice of which main focus of the research changes: these are "decision points" that determine the life path [4,6], the "topology" of the life trajectory, the sequence of stages of their living, the life trajectory as the relationship of collective and individual reality [7,8,3], income received, powers of authority, working conditions [8][9][10][11], gender differences [12] etc.…”