Aim of the Research
The impact of work placements on skills development and career outcomes for business and management graduates.
The research aimed to look at the value of work placement in provision of employability skills and in giving students a head start in their career. The data used is both qualitative and quantitative. Quantitative data was retrieved from a class of 1999 survey which was done through questionnaire and studies one of two graduates in all subjects who finished their undergraduate education in 1999 at 38 institutions in the United Kingdom four years after their graduation in 2003.The qualitative data was drawn from 25 interviews which were done between 2003 and 2004 with the sample being cross-sectional from business and management graduates who had responded to the survey done by the class of 1999.
An interdisciplinary team from University of West of England and Warwick University carried out the research and the aim was to find out the differences in employment outcomes, experiences and career trajectories among a number of UK graduates. Responses were received from 1060 graduates and overall response rate was 24%. Overall, the findings showed the impact of work placement for business and management graduates being inconsistent. There were differences according to the type of business and management degree. This research contributed to the research question as it provides a basis for determining if placement programs are suitable for undergraduate business students.
Jackson, Denise. “Employability skill development in work-integrated learning: Barriers and best practice.” Studies in Higher Education 40, no. 2 (2015): 350-367.
The purpose of this research was to find out the contribution that work integrated learning makes to undergraduate skill outcomes. The study is carried out in an Australian University. The research objectives discussion was based on data collected from undergraduates with a population size of 131 who were taking work integrated learning as part of their degree programme.
An online survey was used to carry out the quantitative research.Sample size used was 100 and was drawn from students who were under separate semester timetables.The research was done in October and November 2012.The main findings of the research show that skill outcomes of a student is aligned greatly with extant literature although more research should be carried out in this particular area. The study found that the readiness and prior experience of a student would influence their degree of learning during placement. A greater range of influencing variables should however be investigated.
The strength of the study was that it considered a wide variety of students. The limitation is that the study was based on self-report data, which may have influenced by the ability of a participant to remember the information, which is required. This article helps in answering the research question as it shows that how a student is prepared during the undergraduate degree influences how they behave in the work environment.
Freudenberg, Brett, Mark Brimble, and Craig Cameron.”WIL and generic skill development: The development of business students’ generic skills through work-integrated learning.” Asia-Pacific Journal of Cooperative Education, Vol. 12, No. 2, pp. 79-93, 2011
Research Conduct
There is a growing concern about teaching and learning performance outcomes in business studies. There is a gap between what the industry requires and the attributes of graduates. Work Integrated learning (WIL) can help in improving the attributes of graduates.WIL has been a challenge to form and implement in Australian Universities. This research looks at how a professional development program is integrated into business degree programs and enhances learning, employability and generic skills. The impact of professional development programs on development of student generic skills is looked at over a period of 12 months.
The study was done using longitudinal survey to look at the impact of the professional development program on first year students. This was done during the university orientation week to capture the students before they were engaged deeply into the university. The instrument was given out again 12 months later. Another control group of students that were not in the professional development program. The groups of students used had started their education in 2008 (Group 1) and 2009 (Group 2) respectively. Group I used a sample of 170 while Group 2 used a sample of 203.
The findings show that in the first group, professional development students are careful about their generic skills at the beginning of the degree. They lowest score was 4.12 over 7 for written communication skills and highest score was 4.86 out of 7 for career and vocational skills. In the second group, professional development students are much more confident in their skills at the beginning of their degree. The weakest skills in both groups are communication and concept analysis. The strengths of this research are the consideration of interviewing the students before they commence studies and a few months after as it shows if the students have grown over the period. The limitation is the short time frame for the analysis. More studies are being made with more groups so that they get a more conclusive finding. The research partially answers the research question as it shows that professional development has an impact on business students’ development though a more conclusive research should be done.
Nenzhelele,Tshilidzi Eric. “Employability through Experiential Learning Course in Open Distance Learning Institution.” Mediterranean Journal of Social Sciences 5, no. 20 (2014): 1602.
The labor market has seen supply of business and management graduates increase significantly. Some graduates however lack employability skills. Experiential learning is a method, which has been suggested to reduce skills gap in business management students. Experiential learning can be in form on internships, volunteering and simulations. This research aimed to set up the influence work integrated learning in administrative management on employability. It shows the value of experiential learning in business management in open distance learning institutions. The research used a sample of 330 who had registered for experiential learning in administrative management courses. A questionnaire was used to collect data. Only 97 questionnaires were returned back. The questionnaire measured employability by establishing skills acquired during the course.
The findings showed that most administrative positions are mostly occupied by women. Most students were middle-aged, single and employed. Many students indicated that work mentors are not always available hence, they do not complete programmes on time. Many students were placed in public service industries and they indicated that two months was not enough experience in the work environment to enable them complete their projects. Administrative practices are found to have positive influence on employability. Experiential learning gives students’ employability skills hence institutions should incorporate it into their courses. The strength of this study is that it is carried out in an environment where there is open distance learning. It answers the research question as it proves that adding experiential learning to courses enhances skills of students.
Procter, Chris. “Employability and entrepreneurship embedded in professional placements in the business curriculum.” Journal of Chinese entrepreneurship 3, no. 1 (2011): 49-57.
The paper explains how professional placements in a Salford business school in the United Kingdom leads to employability. It explores how this can further lad into student entrepreneurship. The university introduced a sandwich degree where an undergraduate works for a year in a company between the second and final year of completing their degree. This gives students an opportunity to develop knowledge and skills, which are relevant to their degree and assess if they are suitable for a long-term graduate position.
The professional placement makes up 11% of the value of the final degree and these students achieve either a first class or upper second class. The students are placed in multinationals or SME’s. They are also placed in the health service, local government and education facilities. The findings show that professional experience is of importance to students and organizations, which host them. It has a potential for expansion especially in terms of student placement and entrepreneurship education. There is space for improvement by ensuring quality of placements and placement experience. There should also be enough quality students to make good quality applications. Lack of engagement of students on employability is a fruitful area for research.
In the current global market, there is shortage of skills which has largely impacted business organizations mostly in countries that are in the developing phase. However, regarding the shortage of skills, there happen to exist particular issues which encumber proper implementation of the recruitment process of graduates. The issue, on the contrary, does not result from graduates’ shortage; however, it is a shortage of skills and talents. Regarding the challenges facing multinational business organizations, the gravest issue is the retention and attraction of skilled staff. This is however, most evident in economies that are developing. Such an issue has placed the multinational business organizations in lots of pressure in ensuring that the needs of the stakeholders are met regardless of privately or publicly ownership. To alleviate such pressures, these organizations conform to recruiting key staff by having cohorts of graduate student managed. Since most companies are plunging into economic uncertainty as well as a shortage of skills, multinational organizations have decided to search for retention and recruitment strategies that are more effective.
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