Impact of Entrepreneurship Teaching on the Employability of Scientists and Engineers Dr Simon O'Leary, Lecturer in the Faculty of Business & Management, Regent's College London. Inner Circle, Regent's Park, London, NW1 4NS. www.regents.ac.uk 020-7487-7455
[email protected] Key Words: Impact Entrepreneurship Teaching Employability Scientist Engineer. Abstract Objectives The aim is to add to the accumulative knowledge in the field through investigating the impact of entrepreneurship teaching on the employability of scientists and engineers. This is a foundation paper for a series of research activities to construct and validate a conceptual framework, not only to illustrate the impact on the employability of scientists and engineers, but also to identify ways of improving the teaching of entrepreneurship and related business issues to science and engineering students. Prior work Business teaching is already a component of many science and engineering degrees. These often include a range of compulsory or optional modules with titles including words such as business, industry, economics, finance, enterprise and entrepreneurship. In addition, companies often give presentations on business issues for science and engineering students and work placements are a common element in many programmes across the sector. Approach This paper synthesises findings from a number of secondary sources and proposes a way forward in a new area of study. That new area of study concerns the extent of entrepreneurship-related content in science and engineering courses at higher education institutions, the provision through professional bodies and an assessment of companies to better understand their expectations of science and engineering graduates. Results This research indicates that entrepreneurship and related business issues are addressed on many science and engineering courses. These vary in both quality and quantity depending on the requirements of the particular degree course, on the desires of the students and on the expertise available to deliver such materials. The impact on employability and the involvement of others such as the professional bodies, companies and government needs to be further assessed, making particular use of the author’s wide network of contacts developed during over twenty years working in the science and engineering industry. Implications There are potential benefits to several stakeholders. The students should benefit in enhancing their employability, the higher education institution should be able to increase the attractiveness of its courses, potential employers should have a richer pool of talent to call upon and the economy should benefit as existing businesses are improved and new businesses are established. Value This research is intended to help guide the design and delivery of entrepreneurship teaching for scientists and engineers so that their employability is enhanced through a deeper understanding and use of the language of business. The initial findings are that employability is enhanced via content (accumulation of relevant knowledge), capability (applying such knowledge in a relevant way) and character (personal qualities to work effectively alone and with others).
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1. Introduction In a comprehensive survey of entrepreneurship in higher education (World Economic Forum 2009), it is emphasised that high-growth enterprises are essential to the success of national economies, that such activities have been insufficiently supported in most countries over recent decades, that decision-makers across society need to help promote collaboration between universities and business, and that entrepreneurship education has an important contribution to make. The same report also argues that, with the world facing unprecedented economic, environmental and social challenges, all members of society need to be more entrepreneurial in the way they live their lives. It has also been highlighted (Herrmann 2008) that entrepreneurship is not for business alone and that public bodies and social ventures need to recruit such graduates to effect change in their own organisations. In the science and engineering fields (Global Knowledge Initiative 2011 and Amadel 2011), it is signposted that many of the modern global challenges such as pollution, environmental damage, climate change, global warming and sustainability in general, will require a multi-disciplinary and collaborative approach across the public and private sectors to effect long-term solutions and, therefore, academic courses need to respond to reflect this demand. Therefore, the focus of this report is on one part of that objective, assessing the impact of entrepreneurship teaching on the employability of scientists and engineers in the higher education sector. Higher Education For many years, employability has been a key phrase in the world of higher education for each of the principal stakeholders; students, higher education institutions, employers, professional bodies and governments. It has taken on a particular prominence in the UK with the introduction over the last decade of rising university tuition fees for home students. Employability is important for each party for a variety of reasons: - Students are in part hoping to see a return on what is becoming an increasingly expensive investment in their own future. - Higher Education Institutions are in an increasingly competitive environment for funding and for suitable students at undergraduate and postgraduate levels and, at the same time new sets of university performance measures, which include employability factors, continue to develop (Smith 2000). - Employers need capable graduate applicants to help them compete in highly competitive and mobile market places. - Professional bodies are seeking to enhance the profile of their members and to reinforce their own influence on policies. - Governments and nations are in a highly competitive world environment as business further globalises and emerging economies become ever more powerful. Consequently, employability is a broad and complex issue and needs to be tackled in many different ways. Doubts have existed for some time (Cranmer 2006) that employability skills can be effectively developed in the classroom alone and hence the issue if often tackled in a mixture of ways, such as through the curriculum, through career services groups, via external speakers, in case studies, in consultancy projects and in placements of various types and durations. Many universities now have employability strategies in place or in development. At the same time, other initiatives are in place that can be expected to have a positive influence on translating those employability strategies into actual practices. For example, the performance measurement of UK universities has, until recent years, been focused on a university’s research standing but now other measures, such as the National Student Survey, are used in many of the published league tables. It has been argued (Salter 2010) that the Research Assessment Exercise (RAE) shifted a third of academics away from practitioner-oriented outlets, and it appears that the Research Excellence Framework (REF) may be an attempt to shift the balance by the introduction of the concept of impact of research on wider society. On the other hand, there are some sceptics and, with the emergence of a predominantly knowledge economy in many parts of the world as opposed to a manufacturing economy, it is also argued (Brown 2002) that there may be insufficient positions available for the quantity of graduates available. In other words, without the continued emergence of innovative new businesses, graduates may be employable but not in employment. This research The aim of this research is to focus in on a particular aspect of employability (the teaching of entrepreneurship and related practices) and to assess how such teaching appears to influence the employability of one large group of students (scientists and engineers). A broader aim is to potentially create a platform of knowledge for 2
research into other aspects of teaching and how they impact on the employability of students from other disciplines, in particular to explore if and how business and management related learning and teaching in general has an impact on the employability of students studying various disciplines. Science and engineering has been chosen at this stage as they are disciplines that the author is qualified and practiced in and has a wide network of professional contacts It is intended to identify areas of best practice and opportunities where improvements can be made. Ultimately, it is hoped that the learning can be embedded into the teaching in science and engineering programmes and, with further research and in collaboration with others, into other disciplines as well. A team, or teams, may well form as the research develops beyond this initial platform. The focus therefore is to address to what extent the employability of two particular disciplines, science and engineering, is affected by the inclusion of business and management related content particularly that related to entrepreneurship, in their degrees. Even so, this is itself a very large task as both science and engineering are umbrellas for a huge variety of courses and programmes at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. Therefore, by necessity, this first phase of research will focus on particular pockets within these disciplines. At this point, there are essentially three broad stages to the methodology: - Here, a literature review, covering several elements: Prior pedagogic, scientific and engineering academic research and previous reports by various professional groupings on the issue. - Next, a range of structured discussions with colleagues across the higher education sector, a variety of students across the disciplines and a variety of employers and professional bodies, including a portfolio of suitable surveys and interviews to clarify the initial findings. - Finally, the development of a series of work streams on specific aspects of this broad issue. It is inevitable that the thrust of the research will evolve as it progresses through each of these stages. However, the end goal remains the same; an improved understanding of how business and management related teaching could potentially improve the employability of students studying sciences and engineering and, potentially in the longer run, those studying other disciplines as well. Employability is influenced by many factors and has been widely studied. Therefore, numerous sources of information exist as well as other published materials on league tables, skills, curricula, assessments, learning outside the teaching room, employer needs, sector specific issues, enterprise issues, soft skills, international aspects and work experience to name just a few. The aim is to base the research methodology on the key themes for social science research, that is, a clear and relevant purpose within the resources available, showing originality and accuracy and a transparent level of accountability, producing findings from which it is hoped that cautious generalisations can be made in an objective and ethical way (Denscombe 2002). The following section explores the issue of employability further, to seek out what it is that employers are looking for and what it is that higher education is providing. 2. Employability Employability has been defined (Moreland 2006) as “a set of skills, knowledge and personal attributes that make an individual more likely to secure and be successful in their chosen occupation to the benefit of themselves, the workforce, the community and the economy.” Employer needs In a survey of 233 employers for the Council for Industry and Higher Education (Archer 2008), several issues were highlighted with respect to what employers think and want: - Most (86%) employers consider good communication skills to be essential, but were generally dissatisfied with graduates’ ability to express themselves effectively. - Aside from numeracy and literary skills, ‘soft’ skills such as team working are considered even more important than other such ‘hard’ skills. - Most (65%) international employers indicated that overseas professional work experience is an asset for graduates. In a separate report (Myers 2010), it is noted that language studies are often blended together with business-related subjects to enhance student knowledge and employability. Enhancing the employability of students is tackled in many different ways across the higher education sector. This includes formal examined modules, work placements, optional business courses, careers services, voluntary work experience, group work, personal development plans and many others as highlighted across a variety of disciplines (Becket 2010). Several authors have identified other skills and examples of where such
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skills can be developed as illustrated in Appendix 1. In many cases, being able to demonstrate particular skills or personal attributes is advocated. Skills A skill is defined (Collins 2011) as a special ability or expertise enabling one to perform an activity very well and something, such as a trade, requiring special knowledge or expertise. In many cases, the aim is to develop the skills of the student and an interesting contrast has been made (Andrews 2008) between ‘soft skills’ and ‘hard business knowledge’. The soft skills identified were professionalism, reliability, the ability to cope with uncertainty, the ability to work under pressure, the ability to plan and think strategically, the capability to communicate and interact with others, either in teams or through networking, good written and verbal communication skills, information and communication technology skills, creativity and self-confidence, good self-management and time-management skills and a willingness to learn and accept responsibility. The ‘hard business knowledge and skills’ required to enhance employability include a business qualification, expertise in specific business areas such as marketing, organisational behaviour, finance, information technology and others, practical abilities such as for giving effective presentations, ability to put forward an argument, analytical and problem solving skills, ability to cope with complexity, able to work as an individual and in teams and business acumen and ability to apply knowledge, often garnered through work experience. Clearly, there are degrees of overlap between some of the soft and hard skills. Skills are often grouped or categorised, such as into core skills and process skills, and also desired personal qualities are highlighted in addition to these skills (Maher 2010) as outlined in more detail in Appendix 2. The development of such skills has also been linked to a customised programme of Personal Development Planning (Bill 2010). Also, work placements, where a student spends a period of time (typically a few months or up to a year) with an employer, are offered by many higher education institutions as an important part of their programmes. The institution may also attach explicit learning objectives to such an activity (Higson 2010) as shown in Appendix 3. Other terms often used are transferable skills and traits (Bolles 2005) where it is emphasised that it is not just the learning of a skill that matters but also the style in which that skill is used, and that a skill can be translated into an action verb (such as creating, modelling, instructing or detecting) to demonstrate the benefit of a particular skill to a potential employer at the application stage. Behavioural and personal attributes It has been suggested (Knight 2002) that employability can be embedded in any academic subject in higher education and that it extends beyond the sole provision of skills to students, and the highlights of an attempt to introduce a ‘skills plus’ agenda were: - A need for transparency to both staff and students about how employability is linked to the teaching/learning activities. - The early introduction of employability into the curriculum and its continued reinforcement. - Make use of the fact that many students were working part-time and this could help in raising employability issues. - Incorporate employability issues into the assessment criteria. - Address the potential issue of curriculum overload. - Assess health and safety and insurance criteria to ensure that they do not inadvertently hinder the development of employability skills through, for example, fieldwork or work placements. Some argue that, although the word ‘skills’ is often used in the employability field, it is actually a desired performance (competence and effectiveness) that is required by employers and that this is as much an aspect of human behaviour as it is a demonstration of a particular skill (Holmes 2001). This is further reinforced in a study of internationalisation and employability (Leggott 2007) where it is concluded that employability attributes are just as important as employability skills for students seeking international employment opportunities. Delivery It is argued here that a well designed and delivered entrepreneurship, or business enterprise, programme is capable of delivering much of what is required by students to substantially enhance their employability prospects, further consequences being an enhanced reputation for the higher education institution, and more satisfied employers and professional bodies. The following section explores the issue of entrepreneurship in more depth, to outline what is meant by the term and what it is that higher education is focused on.
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3. Entrepreneurship An entrepreneur is often considered to be someone who is prepared to undertake a new enterprise or someone who demonstrates a lack of acceptance of the status quo or of accepting things as they are. Typically, entrepreneurs may be considered those who are able to realise a new opportunity, whereas management may be focused on the best way to operate and optimise the existing systems and processes. Entrepreneurship is now widely recognised along with innovation as the pathway to prosperity, essential for the acceleration of economic growth in both developed and developing countries to create wealth reduce unemployment and tackle poverty (Economist 2011). Trends In a recent and comprehensive appraisal of universities and enterprise education (Rae 2010), it is suggested that the financial crisis in 2008 has created a new economic era within which entrepreneurship has a new role to play. Rae describes a change in entrepreneurship from “Ent 1” to “ Ent 2”, with the latter featuring a greater emphasis on teamwork, social awareness, ethics, economic sustainability, careful use of resources, feminine values and grassroots enterprise. This fits well with the observation (Gibb 2002) that entrepreneurs thrive in periods like this, where unpredictability and change are becoming the norm. It is advocated (Hannon 2004) that developing the skills to cope with such changes is best achieved an experiential approach rather through purely theoretical means. It is interesting to note that, for now, the current financial crisis is mainly affecting the developed world (e.g. North America, Europe, Japan) while the developing nations (such as China, Brazil, India, Indonesia, Turkey and several others) continue to grow. Nevertheless, much of that growth is fuelled by cash reserves built up over the last decade and by a greater focus on domestic markets and, with the customer bases is the developed world reducing their product demand, the will ultimately have an impact on the developing nations as well. Some international perspectives on entrepreneurship are therefore worth considering. International perspectives As the world becomes ever more globalised in terms of business, politics, economics and culture, it is important to assess the international perspectives of the issue of entrepreneurship and education. The availability of, and accessibility to, opportunities to learn about entrepreneurship, and develop such skills, varies across nations and institutions but appears to be, on the whole, increasing across the board, albeit at different rates of acceleration. A recent study, based on a survey of first-year business students in Australia, Portugal, Finland, Germany, Slovenia, Poland, United Kingdom and United Arab Emirates (Sowmya et al. 2010) indicates that the majority of these students had a positive attitude towards entrepreneurship and that investments in entrepreneurship education are both valued and valuable. Value creation Does entrepreneurship education create value and, if so, how? Questions such as these formed the basis of a recent study (Jones 2010) into the role and purpose of entrepreneurship education, where it is concluded that, although entrepreneurship education may lead to increases in business start-ups, it is perhaps more likely to develop unique life-long skills which can be of significant value to employers generally. Furthermore, it is suggested that entrepreneurship education can be achieved across faculty and disciplinary boundaries and is not confined to the business school or similar entities. Jones (2010) outlines the approach with the words “we call this process the development of the reasonable adventurer” and it is in these adjectives that perhaps succinctly capture much of what entrepreneurship education is trying to achieve. Context New businesses have been launched all around the world for many centuries and the word entrepreneur itself, based on the French ‘entreprendre’, the ability to take charge, is believed to have been introduced over 250 years ago (Burns 2011). Nevertheless, entrepreneurship has taken on a new leash of life in the last couple of decades and, in recent years, a whole raft of books has been published on entrepreneurship (including Rae 2007a, Jones 2009, Mullins 2010, Williams 2010, Ashton 2010, Mariotti 2010 & Burns 2011). Many of these and others are used as core or supportive textbooks for entrepreneurship and enterprise modules in higher education. Content does of course vary but some common factors can be recognised: -
Generating, nurturing and assessing ideas. Opportunity recognition. Different types of businesses that can be set up. How to prepare a business plan. Understanding the potential customer base. Determining local, regional, national and international potential. 5
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Marketing issues. Converting all this preparation into sales. Financing the start-up and the development of the business. Legal and regulatory issues. Managing people effectively. Managing growth phases.
It is clear from this list that such materials are of great use not only to business start-ups but also to the development of existing businesses and indeed to the start-up and development of other social and charitable enterprises as well. This could suggest that, through addressing issues such as these, students start to learn the language of business and are therefore in a better position to converse with potential employers, thus enhancing their employability. After all, gaining employment is in many ways a sale in itself and therefore students need to learn how best to market themselves for the opportunities that they wish to pursue. Higher Education A number of studies into entrepreneurship in higher education have been reviewed and the highlights of a selection, together with some comments, are outlined below. In a systematic literature review on entrepreneurship education (Pittaway 2007), it was found that, while entrepreneurship education certainly increases student propensity and intention toward entrepreneurial activities, it is unclear to what extent this enhanced propensity is translated into actual behaviour and that there is a lack of consensus generally on what entrepreneurship or enterprise education actually is when implemented in practice. Entrepreneurship education may not necessarily result in direct entrepreneurial activity, such as a new business start-up, but it may be enhancing the employability of students to existing organisations. In a report for the National Council of Graduate Entrepreneurship (EKOS 2010), it is concluded that “graduates who have formal entrepreneurship training are more likely to display entrepreneurial skills that can drive innovation and change in a business environment” and that “entrepreneurship training offers a wide range of skills that are able to add value in a modern competitive global environment”. This appears to confirm the broader benefit to business as a whole of students having an understanding and experience of entrepreneurship. In a report commissioned by a triumvirate of interested parties, the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts NESTA, the National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship NGCE & the Council for Industry and Higher Education CIHE (Herrmann 2008), it is highlighted that entrepreneurship can help to not only transform the business world but also has significant potential for societal change. Of particular interest are its potential benefits for students across the whole spectrum of disciplines and its impact on developing graduates with entrepreneurial mindsets who can help to impart innovation, creativity, collaboration and risktaking in all areas of the private and public sector. This suggests that it is not only businesses that can benefit, but also the public sector, social enterprises and charitable organisations. In assessing the connection between enterprise and employability (Rae 2007b), it is concluded that any associated learning experience must be relevant to the student’s core degree subject and be both stimulating and enjoyable. The focus needs to be on developing entrepreneurial qualities rather than producing entrepreneurs. This reinforces the point that the potential benefit of entrepreneurship education is in the development of the characteristics of an entrepreneur within the higher education student population rather than in the direct launch of new businesses themselves. Such qualities or capabilities are outlined in a self-assessment entrepreneurship toolkit (Rae 2007a) which brings together includes entrepreneurial capabilities (personal organisation, investigating opportunity, applying innovation, strategic venture planning, market development) and management capabilities (leading and managing people, managing organisation and operations, managing finance and resources, responsible management). The following section is focused on scientists and engineers, to assess to what extent employability and entrepreneurship play a part in their experience of higher education. 4. Scientists and Engineers Employment statistics show (Marriott 2006) that scientists, engineers and technologists play a major role in high-technology industries but are also highly desirable in other sectors because of their quantitative and other technical skills. Scientists and engineers as a whole graduates generally do well in both gaining employment 6
and in the level of salary achieved compared to the average of all subjects (HECSU 2010) although there are variations by subject and the focus of these statistics is only one the period six months after graduation. Opportunities to develop skills and personal qualities A thorough study (Toland 2011) on science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in higher education, describes a set of generic employability skills that STEM graduates need to demonstrate more of at the recruitment stage. These include self-management, team working, business and customer awareness, problem solving, communication and literacy, application of numeracy and application of information technology. The overall aim for such graduates is to be able to demonstrate the ability to apply both theoretical and practical knowledge to real industrial processes. When it comes to the issue of communications, research in the biological sciences field (Marshall 2011) has highlighting an interesting paradox between what students perceive to be a strength and what employers believe to be their primary area for improvement. The study shows that, for written communication skills, students considers this to be their top strength while it is considered, by employers in the public and private sector, to be the first or second area in most need of improvement. In a specific study of employability skill needs in engineering (Markes 2006), it is highlighted that employers want graduates who can help them with change and that this requires not just a batch of individual skills but the combination of such skills together with technical knowledge and work experience, most likely achieved through a closer working relationship between industry and higher education. A comprehensive analysis by The Royal Academy of Engineering (Lamb 2010) on developing engineering graduates for industry, confirms that industry seeks graduates with expertise in technical skills and in the application of complementary skills, which are outlined in further detail in three recommendations, highlights of which are that teaching staff experience counts for students and that relevance motivates their development, that public and private investment in experience-led delivery in higher education is essential, and that energy and resources needs to be invested to embed university and industry links. However, it has also been highlighted (Toland 2011) that the number of higher education staff with prior experience of industry has declined, especially in research-led institutions, and the same report recommends three ways to tackle this: Recognition and reward of staff that pursue employer engagement activities, raising staff experience levels through collaborative research and industry secondments (such as via knowledge transfer partnerships) and the setting up of employer forums to capture improvements to the curricula and to bring industrialists and business people into the teaching. Chemical science graduates have expressed concern (Purcell 2008) that their courses did not provide enough opportunity to develop some of the skills necessary for finding employment, highlighting team-work, leadership and communication skills (written and spoken) in particular and, for developing their careers later on, problemsolving skills, management skills and creativity. In the same study, employers outlined that the skills that they felt chemical science graduates demonstrated were analytical skills, numeracy, research skills, logic, attention to detail and accuracy but there were often weak areas such as spoken and written communication, teamwork, social skills, leadership and an ability to deal with people. In the European chemical industry (CEFIC 2010), the most important business and personal skills needed by scientists and engineers have been identified. For business skills, innovation management skills (abilities to translate research into sales to generate new businesses), project management skills (to turn innovative ideas into profitable and cost-effective business) and strategic and visionary management skills (to create new innovations and to outline long-term areas of focus) are highlighted. For personal skills, communication skills (to ensure effective collaboration with colleagues, business people and customers), creative thinking skills (to generate new ideas that could ultimately change existing businesses or develop into new areas) and team work skills (to work with others from different disciplines, and in potentially complex projects, to develop innovative solutions) are the common factors across the disciplines. The suggestion is that a greater focus on financial and business skills will be required in science and engineering curricula so that graduates will be better able to turn ideas into real business. In the same vein, a further graduate skills study with a focus on chemistry (Hanson 2010) also recommends that chemistry degree programmes should provide additional opportunities for the development of oral presentation skills in particular. Professional bodies & university careers services Many of the professional bodies (Toland 2011) offer a wide range of support on student employability matters for scientists and engineers but it is unclear to what extent higher education institutions make use of this material or expertise. Another source of material and expertise can also often be found in a university careers services group, and it may be worthwhile for science and engineering departments to consider how best to 7
incorporate such information into their curricula. Some higher education institution are already doing so and, in some cases, offering official certificates of attainment (University of Kent 2011) or similar. 5. Conclusions The World Economic Forum has called for action on entrepreneurship education (World Economic Forum 2009) and a long-term commitment to the matter, signalling that “entrepreneurial skills are core components to building socially inclusive and highly participatory economies in an increasingly global and competitive world” and highlighting the need for us all to learn from the best models of entrepreneurship education from around the world. Science and engineering graduates tend to do quite well in terms of gaining employment but there is still room for improvement and the benefits of enhancing employability can be felt by many other stakeholders, including the higher education institutions themselves, employers and government. This research suggests that a well-designed and delivered entrepreneurship or enterprise programme or module can enhance a student’s employability by delivering the opportunity to appreciate, learn and develop many of the skills, behavioural and personal qualities that employers are seeking. The author’s initial concept is that the issue may be able to be captured by the “3C’s” of Content, Capability & Character: - 1st, Content, concerns principally the content of the curriculum itself and is an area that a higher education institution can address directly. - 2nd, Capability, concerns the delivery of the curriculum and the opportunity it offers to develop soft skills such as communications and team working skills. This is an area where employers can add value. - 3rd, Character, concerns the student’s personal development throughout the experience of higher education. This is an issue that touches upon both curricula and extra-curricula activities. In summary, employability can be enhanced through a combination of the content of the curriculum and the development of key capabilities and characteristics, which open up the doors of opportunity.
6. Further Research Several avenues of further research emerge from this initial appraisal: Refining these concepts with employers across different industry and business sectors, assessing the current entrepreneurship and enterprise teaching delivery across different higher education institutions, integrating entrepreneurial matters into modular delivery in curricula, developing assessment methods to include weighting for entrepreneurship, reviewing geographical variations on a national and international basis and, ultimately, extending into other disciplinary areas. 7. References Amadel, B. (2011), Engineering for the Developing World - Engineering Challenges, National Academy of Engineering, Washington DC, USA, www.engineeringchallenges.org/cms/7126/7356.aspx (accessed on 24/9/2011). Andrews, J. & Higson, H. (2008), Graduate Employability, ‘Soft Skills’ versus ‘Hard’ Business Knowledge: A European study, Higher Education in Europe, Vol.33, No.4. Archer, W. & Davison, J. (2008), Graduate Employability: The view of employers, The Council for Industry and Higher Education. Ashton, R. (2010), Brilliant checklists for entrepreneurs: Your shortcut to success, Pearson Education. Becket, N. & Kemp, P. (2010), Enhancing graduate employability in business and management, hospitality, leisure, sport, tourism, Threshold Press. Bill, K. & Bowen-Jones, W. (2010), Enhancing enterprise, entrepreneurship and employability through PDP, in Becket, N. & Kemp, P. (2010), Threshold Press. 8
Bolles, R. (2005), What Color is Your Parachute?, Ten Speed Press. Brown, P., Hesketh, A. & Williams, S. (2002), Employability in a Knowledge-Driven Economy, Working Paper Series, Paper 26, School of Social Sciences, Cardiff University. Burns, P. (2011), Entrepreneurship and small business: Start-up, growth and maturity, Palgrave Macmillan. CEFIC The European Chemical Industry Council (2010), Study on Skills for Innovation, www.cefic.org/Documents/PolicyCentre/Skills-for-Innovation-in-the-European-Chemical-Industry.pdf (accessed on 18/7/2011). Collins Online Dictionary (2011), http://www.collinslanguage.com (accessed on 18/7/2011). Cranmer, S. (2006), Enhancing graduate employability: best intentions and mixed outcomes, Studies in Higher Education, Vol.31, No.2. Denscombe, M. (2002), Ground Rules for Good Research: A 10 point Guide for Social Researchers, Open University Press. Economist articles (2011), ‘Uncorking Enterprise’ on policy makers (Feb 26), ‘Young, gifted and blocked’ on South Korea (May 14) & ‘Something must give’ on Japan (25 Jun), The Economist. EKOS (2010), International Entrepreneurship Educators Programme: Economic Impact Potential, Report for National Council of Graduate Entrepreneurship, http://www.ncge.org.uk/publication/ieepreport.pdf (accessed on 18/7/2011). Gibb, A. (2002), In pursuit of a new enterprise and entrepreneurship paradigm for learning, creative destruction, new values, new ways of doing things and new combinations of knowledge, International Journal of Management Reviews, Vol.4, No.3, pp.233-269. Global Knowledge Initiative (2011), Our Mission - Global Knowledge Partnerships, Washington DC, USA. http://globalknowledgeinitiative.org/mission/index.html (accessed 24/9/2011). Hannon, P. (2004), Making the Journey from Student to Entrepreneur: A Review of the Existing Research into Graduate Entrepreneurship, Birmingham UK: National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship. Hanson, S. & Overton, T. (2010), Skills required by new chemistry graduates and their development in degree programmes, The Higher Education Academy. Herrmann, K., Hannon, P., Cox, J. & Ternouth, P. (2008), Developing Entrepreneurial Graduates, National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA), National Council for Graduate Entrepreneurship (NGCE) & Council for Industry and Higher Education (CIHE), NESTA. HECSU Higher Education Careers Services Unit & AGCAS Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (2010), What Do Graduates Do? Higson, H. & Parkes, E. (2010), Preparing Aston Business School students for placement, in Becket, N. & Kemp, P. (2010), Threshold Press. Holmes, L. (2001), Reconsidering Graduate Employability: the ‘graduate identity’ approach, Quality in Higher Education, Vol.7, No.2. Jones, C. (2010), Entrepreneurship education: Revisiting our role and its purpose, Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, Vol.17, No.4, pp500-513. Jones, M., Dimitratos, P., Fletcher, M. & Young, S. (2009), Internationalization, Entrepreneurship and the Smaller Firm: Evidence from around the world, Edward Elgar. Knight, T.K. & Yorke, M. (2002), Employability through the curriculum, Tertiary Education and Management, 8, 261-276. Lamb, F, Arlett, C., Dales, R., Ditchfield, B, Parkin, B. & Wakeham, W. (2010), Engineering graduates for industry, The Royal Academy of Engineering. 9
Leggott, D. & Stapleford, J. (2007), Internationalisation and employability, in Jones, E. & Brown, S., Internationalising Higher Education, Routledge. Maher, A. (2010), Embedding employability in the curriculum: Enhancing students’ career-planning skills, in Becket, N. & Kemp, P. (2010), Threshold Press. Markes, I. (2006), A review of literature on employability skills in engineering, European Journal of Engineering Education, Vol.31, No.6. Mariotti, S. & Glackin, C., Entrepreneurship: Starting and Operating a Small Business, Prentice Hall. Marriott, B. (2006), Scientists, engineers and technologists in Great Britain, Labour Market Trends, Office for National Statistics. Marshall, D., DeAngelis, P., Havens, K., Holsinger, K., Kennedy, K, Kramer, A., Muir, R., Olwell, P., Schierenbeck, K., Stritch, L. & Zorn-Arnold, B. (2011), Perceptions of Strengths and Deficiencies: Disconnects between Graduate Students and Prospective Employers, BioScience, Vol. 61, No.2. Moreland, N. (2006), Entrepreneurship & Higher Education: An Employability Perspective, Learning & Employability Series, ESECT, York. Mullins, J. (2010), The new business road test: What entrepreneurs and executives should do before writing a business plan, Pearson Education. Myers, G. (2010), Embedding employability and making it explicit within the learning experience: The language routes at Sheffield Hallam University, in Becket, N. & Kemp, P. (2010), Threshold Press. Pittaway, L. and Cope, J. (2007), Entrepreneurship Education: A Systematic Review of the Evidence, International Small Business Journal, Vol. 25(5), pp.479-510. Purcell, K., Atfield, G., Ball, C. & Elias, P. (2008), An Investigation of the Factors Affecting the Post-University Employment of Chemical Science Graduates in the UK, Warwick Institute for Employment Research. Rae, D. (2010), Universities and enterprise education: Responding to the challenges of the new era, Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, Vol.17, No.4, pp.591-606. Rae, D. (2007a), Entrepreneurship: From Opportunity to Action, Palgrave Macmillan. Rae, D. (2007b), Connecting enterprise and graduate employability: Challenges to the higher education culture and curriculum?, Education+Training, Vol.49, No.8/9. Salter, A., Tartari, V., D’Este, P. & Neely, A (2010), The Republic of Engagement: Exploring UK Academic Attitudes to Collaborating with Industry and Entrepreneurship, Advanced Institute of Management Research. Smith, J., McKnight, A. & Naylor, R. (2000), Graduate Employability: Policy and performance in higher education in the UK, The Economic Journal, 110, F382-411. Sowmya, D., Majumdar, S. & Gallant, M., Relevance of education for potential entrepreneurs: An international investigation, Journal of Small Business and Enterprise Development, Vol.17, No.4, pp.626-640. Toland, T. (2011), HE STEM Employability Skills Review, The National Higher Education Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (HE STEM) Programme. University of Kent (2011), Careers Employability Award, www.kent.ac.uk/careers/moodle.htm (accessed 25/9/2011). Williams, S. (2010), The Financial Times Guide to Business Start Up, Pearson Education. World Economic Forum (2009), Educating the Next Wave of Entrepreneurs.
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8. Appendices Appendix 1: What employers are looking for. From HECSU Higher Education Careers Services Unit & AGCAS Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (2010), What Do Graduates Do? Table entitled ‘Skills that employers want and how they can be developed’:
Type of skill
Employers’ requirements -‐ ‘Buzz’ words
Self-‐reliance skills
• • • • • •
People skills
• • • • • •
Some examples of how the skills can be developed through interests, work experience and education Self-‐awareness – purposeful, focused, • Duke of Edinburgh Award self-‐belief, realistic • Young Enterprise Award Proactivity – resourceful, drive, self-‐ • Music band (play regularly at reliant local venues Willingness to learn – inquisitive, • Participate in competitive motivated, enthusiastic sports Self-‐promotion – positive, persistent, • Public speaking/debating ambitious society Networking – initiator, relationship-‐ • Amateur dramatics builder, resourceful Planning action – decision-‐maker, planner, able to prioritise Team working – supportive, organised, co-‐ordinator, deliverer Interpersonal skills – listener, adviser, co-‐operative, assertive Oral communication – communicator, presenter, influencer Leadership – motivator, energetic, visionary Customer orientation – friendly, caring, diplomatic Foreign language – specific language skills
• • • • • •
Working in a shop/supermarket/restaurant Fundraising for charity Voluntary work Member of orchestra Play sport for team Guide/Scout leader Air Training Corps
• • • • • •
Young Enterprise Award Project work through studies Mensa membership Book club Member of local club/society Music grades
•
European Computer Driving Licence (ECDL) Language skills Web design skills Writing for school/college newspaper First Aid at Work qualification NVQ qualification
•
General employment skills
• • • • • •
Problem-‐solving – practical, logical, results orientated Flexibility – versatile, willing, multi-‐ skilled Business acumen – entrepreneurial, competitive, risk taker IT/computer literacy – office skills, keyboard skills, software packages Numeracy – accurate, quick-‐thinker, methodical Commitment – dedicated, trustworthy, conscientious
Specialist skills
•
•
Specific occupational knowledge skills – specialist relevant knowledge, e.g. languages, IT Technical skills – e.g. journalism, engineering, accounting, sales
• • •
• •
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Appendix 2: The ’39 steps’ toward employability. From Maher, A. (2010), Embedding employability in the curriculum: Enhancing students’ career-planning skills, in Becket, N. & Kemp, P. (2010), Threshold Press. Table entitled ‘Aspects of employability’: A: Personal Qualities 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10.
Malleable self-theory: belief that attributes (e.g. intelligence) are not fixed and can be developed Self-awareness: awareness of own strengths and weaknesses, aims and values Self-confidence: confidence in dealing with the challenges in employment and life Independence: ability to work without supervision Emotional intelligence: sensitivity to others’ emotions and the effects they can have Adaptability: ability to respond positively to changing circumstances and new challenges Stress tolerance: ability to retain effectiveness under pressure Initiative: ability to take action unprompted Willingness to learn: commitment to ongoing learning to meet the needs of employment and life Reflectiveness: the disposition to reflect evaluatively on the performance of oneself and others
B: Core Skills 11. 12. 13. 14. 15. 16. 17. 18. 19. 20. 21. 22.
Reading effectiveness: the recognition and retention of key points Numeracy: ability to use numbers at an appropriate level of accuracy Information retrieval: ability to access different information sources Language skills: possession of more than a single language Self-management: ability to work in an efficient and structured manner Critical analysis: ability to ‘deconstruct’ a problem or situation Creativity: ability to be original or inventive and to apply lateral thinking Listening: focused attention in which key points are recognised Written communication: clear reports, letters etc., written specifically for the reader Oral presentations: clear and confident presentation of information to a group Explaining: orally and in writing Global awareness: in terms of both cultures and economics
C: Process Skills 23. 24. 25. 26. 27. 28. 29. 30. 31. 32. 33. 34. 35. 36. 37. 38. 39.
Computer literacy: ability to use arrange of software Commercial awareness: understanding of business issues and priorities Political sensitivity: appreciates how organisations actually work and acts accordingly Ability to work cross-culturally: both within and beyond UK Ethical sensitivity: appreciates ethical aspects of employment and acts accordingly Prioritising: ability to rank tasks according to importance Planning: setting of achievable goals and structuring action Applying subject understanding: use of disciplinary understanding from HE programme (e.g. marketing, finance, human resource management etc) Acting morally: has a moral code and acts accordingly Coping with ambiguity and complexity: ability to handle ambiguous and complex situations Problem-solving: selection and use of appropriate methods to find solutions Influencing: convincing others of the validity of one’s own point of view Arguing for and/or justifying a point of view or a course of action Resolving conflict: both intra-personally and in relationships with others Decision-making: choice of the best option from a range of alternatives Negotiating: discussion to achieve mutually satisfactory resolution of contentious issues Teamwork: can work constructively with others on a common task
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Appendix 3: What student can learn through work placements. From Higson, H. & Parkes, E. (2010), Preparing Aston Business School students for placement, in Becket, N. & Kemp, P. (2010), Threshold Press. Table entitled ‘Learning objectives for students on placement’: The Aston Business School placement year carries a set of explicit, robust learning objectives: a. To benefit from the integration of university study and work experience in ways that facilitates critical reflection on each. b. To experience the responsibilities, tasks and relationships in managerial work at a level appropriate to a third-year undergraduate student in a business school. c.
Where students are specialising in a particular functional or professional area, to gain greater practical understanding of their chosen specialism.
d. To gain an understanding of the ways in which their placement organisation operates and how this might relate to other organisations and management processes. e. To build personal awareness of their own interests, competencies, values and potential. f.
To develop the ability to share their work experience and evaluations with peers and with academic staff in order to gain more from the final year of study and to assist others to do like wise.
g. To increase the ability to make informed career choices.
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