Employability

Black university student making his voice heard

We must reverse the rapid erosion of student oracy

The inexorable march of technology is leading to fewer direct conversations in universities – here’s how to help your students improve their oral skills

Richard Willis

University of Sussex, University of South Wales

Image depicting different elements of and outcomes from learning

Show off students’ employability with e-portfolios

Why and how to make e-portfolios a central part of university courses, helping students identify and exhibit skills that will appeal to employers, by Lourdes Guàrdia and Marcelo Maina

Lourdes Guàrdia, Marcelo Maina

Open University of Catalonia (UOC)

Research and business need to go hand in hand in an uncertain future

Four tips for developing students’ business skills

How to teach skills that bridge the gap between completing an undergraduate business programme and embarking on a successful career, by Qi Li and Rosemary Bai

Rosemary Bai, Qi Li

Chinese University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen

University career services can leverage social media

Social mobility via social media: opportunities for career services

Four practical suggestions for how university career services can make greater use of social media to support social mobility among their students

William E. Donald, Kaz Scattergood

University of Southampton, Ronin Institute, University of Liverpool

Matching students with college programmes improves employability

In the rush to meet labour market needs, universities can’t forget the human element

Understanding that students are people first, with lived experiences that influence their choice of college and career, will help position graduates for success

Steven Johnson

National University

Is online education killing conversation

Will online education lead to the death of conversation?

Students who can critique ideas and generate sound, reasoned arguments in real time will be better prepared to find success after they graduate, says Rebekah Wanic

Rebekah Wanic

Nova Southeastern University

Adult learners require a variety of supports at university

I know first-hand that adult learners need a variety of supports to succeed

From flexible class schedules to a friendly smile, colleges that focus on individual needs are best positioned to help learners thrive at school and in life

Shannon Uresti

College of Health Care Professions

Students working on a project together

The secrets of supporting successful student start-ups

Guidance to how universities can support student entrepreneurship and successful business creation, shared by John Lonsdale

John Lonsdale

The University of Edinburgh

two young women talking over a laptop

Strategies for developing live student-client projects

Projects in which students work in a professional consulting capacity with “client” organisations can bring many benefits for all involved, but need careful set-up and support, as Lyvia Royd-Taylor explains

Lyvia Royd-Taylor

University of Brighton

Businesswoman mentors student

Experiential learning gives students invaluable workplace exposure

Strong industry partnerships can help students broaden their career objectives and create graduate opportunities

Reem Althawadi

Zayed University

Group hug of university students

Using the ‘36 questions to fall in love’ to revolutionise group work

Nici Sweaney shares a simple classroom task rooted in the psychology of interpersonal relationships that anyone can use to help students bond and feel more comfortable with group work

Nici Sweaney

Australian National University

Sustainable internship programme

How a sustainable internship programme can support social mobility

Students from disadvantaged backgrounds can remain on the back foot when entering the workforce. This programme offers higher education practitioners a replicable model that includes professional skills development and access

Fiona Hudson, Inís Fitzpatrick , Cathy Mcloughlin

Dublin City University

Learning digital skills

Enable learners to become confident digital explorers

Universities must help students develop digital skills and competencies that will set them up for successful lives after they graduate

Mike Cooray, Rikke Duus

Hult International Business School (Ashridge), University College London

Building a course around target 'customers'

Why higher education must serve students as the customer and the product

An effective university programme should continually adapt in order to add value for and to the students so that they can meet future workplace demands, Haksin Chan and Roy Ying explain

Haksin Chan, Roy Ying

The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong

Careers chatbot

Six tips for implementing a careers chatbot ethically and effectively

Helping students make good academic choices fuelled by their career aspirations before they start studying is crucial – and a well-designed chatbot can be very useful

Caroline Tolond, Deirdre Hughes, Chris Percy

Arden University, CiCi

Virtual summit

Experiential education through a simulated summit to combat human trafficking

Advice on setting pedagogical goals and planning a simulated international summit to support experiential learning for remote students, by Clara Chapdelaine-Feliciati

Clara Chapdelaine-Feliciati

Xi'an Jiaotong - Liverpool University

Woman giving a presentation

Do we need to grade students’ presentation skills?

Presentation skills are considered essential by employers, but does this mean they should be graded at university? Marking can distract from the goal of improvement, and there are better ways to motivate students, says Axel Wieneke

Axel Wieneke

The University of Queensland

Tech brain

How we can use AI to power career-driven lifelong learning

By using data from job postings, course catalogues and students’ CVs, AI can help people address skill gaps and plot their educational journeys

Teck-Hua Ho

National University of Singapore

Two female students working on a laptop

Digital Universities task force: upskilling the MENA region through online learning

Ahead of Digital Universities Week MENA, a task force of four higher education experts shared insights on how online learning could help meet the growing demand for key employability skills across the region

Miranda Prynne

THE Campus

How to communicate the value of the arts and humanities to students

Classroom tips for debunking the arts and humanities employability myth

David Dodick offers practical pointers gleaned from a course he designed and taught aimed at communicating the value of arts and humanities degrees for various careers

David Dodick

University of California, Berkeley

Engineering students

Engineering schools are riddled with issues – reinvention is required

From increasing diversity to embracing flexibility, engineering schools must enter a period of self-reflection if they are to remain viable

David Poole

Liaison International

An agile person

A step-by-step guide to implementing an agile curriculum

Flexible, innovative and creative, agile curricula offer many advantages over traditional approaches – here’s how to get started, says Olufunke Aluko-Daniels

Olufunke Aluko-Daniels

University of Huddersfield

A remote student working in a group with other students via an online meeting

Lessons in helping remote students obtain practical work experience

Universities face obstacles in helping distance learners access practical work experience. Ewout van der Schaft and Alex Mackrell share insight from initiatives at their business school

Ewout van der Schaft, Alex Mackrell

Xi'an Jiaotong - Liverpool University

HE-industry partnerships are crucial for students to emerge from university work-ready

Half of students feel they’re not ready for a job – we must solve the HE-industry disconnect

Are localised higher education and industry research partnerships delivering? Salah Al-Majeed reflects on how to bring sometimes disparate organisations closer together

Salah Al-Majeed

University of Lincoln

Teamwork skills are crucial for students to learn as they head into the workplace

Six tips on helping your students improve their teamwork skills

We know that teamwork is more important than ever before – here’s how to help students identify their ideal role in a team, agree on responsibilities and more

Ingrid Benavides

Monterrey Institute of Technology

Image showing a young research assistant

Making undergraduate access to research experience transparent and inclusive

A barrier to research careers is accessing the relevant experience. Saloni Krishnan and Nura Sidarus outline a scheme that has helped a wider range of undergraduate students secure research placements

Saloni Krishnan, Nura Sidarus

Royal Holloway, University of London

Image representing the uncertainty of the future

How we used a business management theory to help students cope with uncertainty

Uncertainty is a major challenge to mental health so a team at Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University used a business management tool to help students cope with worries about the future. Here, they explain how

Zheng Feei Ma, Jian Li Hao, Yu Song, Peng Liu

Xi'an Jiaotong - Liverpool University

Giving students the chance to work in a professional company housed in a university has benefits for all

We started a commercial software company at our university – and you should too

Staffed by students, epiGenesys provides profits for the university and allows students to work in a lively, supportive and successful business environment

Mike Holcombe

University of Sheffield

Image depicting effective teamwork

Training students in effective teamwork and collaboration

The ability to work effectively as part of a team is a vital life skill. Steven Bateman, Yan Jin and Jie Zhang explain how they support and train students in teamwork

Steven Bateman, Yan Jin, Jie Zhang

Xi'an Jiaotong - Liverpool University

Candidates waiting for a job interview

Recruiting university tutors using an interactive group activity

Hiring candidates with strong academic results may seem like the best way to recruit tutors. But this does not always mean they will have the right attributes to support student learning. In this video, Carl Sherwood explains how and why to use a group interview process to recruit university tutors

Carl Sherwood

The University of Queensland

Lifelong learning needs a reboot to help professionals untangle their continuing education options

Lifelong learning needs a reboot – here’s how to do it

Instead of untangling a miscellany of education products, lifelong learners should find the structure and purpose of their degree continues into their professional life

Matt Riley

Blueprint Prep

University staff and leadership should not forget that the academic and the vocational are deeply intertwined

Don’t forget that the ‘academic’ and the ‘vocational’ are deeply intertwined

It’s not enough to focus solely on academic mission, but neither is it enough to think of universities as little more than training schools, says Sir Chris Husbands

Chris Husbands

Sheffield Hallam University

A teenager with street smarts, but university graduates will need to combine practical and academic skills to boost employability

Do our students need to be book smart or street smart? They need to be both

Employers want talent to jump right in and fulfil new tasks without a lot of coaching. Project-based learning will help prepare students for this new way of thinking and working

Lee Ann Walker

Colorado State University Global

Image of students learning the transferrable skills wanted in the workplace

Strategies to train students in three transferable skills wanted by employers

Two simple teaching methods that faculty can use in the classroom to train students in the communication, problem-solving and critical thinking skills sought by employers, shared by Elly Vandegrift

Elly Vandegrift

University of Oregon

Papparazzi. Bringing in an expert guest to your university classes can help with student attention

Tips on bringing expert professionals to class to support learning

Capturing students’ attention can be a challenge for teachers. We propose bringing the real world to the classroom through expert guests, say Gabriela Espínola and Mariana Elizondo

Gabriela Espínola , Mariana Elizondo

Monterrey Institute of Technology

An excerpt of Romeo and Juliet, a literary work which could be used to teach students career-based skills

Five practical ways the literature classroom can help student careers

Olivia Burgess offers five tips for using literature classes to explore workplace preparation and engage career-minded students

Olivia Burgess

Colorado State University Global

Learning at work

Challenge-based learning: design and delivery in undergraduate courses

Courses that incorporate real problems from real companies offer students a rare chance to acquire knowledge while also developing useful professional skills

Nelly Ramirez Vásquez , Maria del Rosario Rosas Escalona

Monterrey Institute of Technology

Looking to the future of the workforce and universities

The sector must come together when talk turns to promoting economic success

What could be more important than preparing our students for jobs in the local economy and supporting graduates to become the entrepreneurs of the future? asks Sir David Bell

David Bell

University of Sunderland

Advice on guiding students in developing their sense of identity through transitions from education into work

Learner, student, graduate: a toolkit for student identity formation and critical reflection

A toolkit to guide students in developing and critically reflecting upon their own identities and journeys as they progress through higher education and into professional life

Rebecca Westrup, Sophie Reading

University of East Anglia

LinkedIn is quickly becoming academia’s key tool for career progression

For students and academics alike, it’s becoming hard to ignore LinkedIn’s combination of networking and self-promotional opportunities

Gillian McCurdy

Arden University

Advice on developing higher education programmes that meet the skills needs of Gen Z students

Catering to Gen Z’s needs: creating a flexible and adaptable education programme

Universities need to teach broad knowledge and skills that will help graduates adapt in a fast-changing future workplace. Three academics share insights from developing a generalist approach to training business students

Eric Chee, Roy Ying, Winnie Chan

The Hang Seng University of Hong Kong

Career action plans: assignments to inform students about job options and start preparing them to their preferred careers

Assessing career action plans: improving graduate employability

Career action plans are assignments designed to guide students in making informed choices and preparing for future jobs. Alexander Bradley explains how they work

Alexander Bradley

The University of Portsmouth

Using 'career corners' to present employment options to students

Career corners: a simple way to improve student job preparation

Many students enter their final year with no idea what they wish to do after university. Career corners aim to help by providing job and industry overviews that facilitate informed choices

Alexander Bradley

The University of Portsmouth

Black, Latinx and first-generation students need help garnering social capital if their higher education investment is to pay off in terms of a career

If we truly want a level playing field, we must focus on social capital

For minoritised students to really benefit from HE, they need support to understand the world of work, build connections and activate networks

Andy Chan, Kristina Francis

Wake Forest University, JFFLabs

Advice on the key steps to design and deliver effective microcredentials that meet diverse learner needs

Three steps to developing useful microcredentials

The key considerations for developing an effective microcredentials portfolio that meets the needs of diverse learners and employers

Natcha Thawesaengskulthai, Bajinder Pal Singh , Warinya Chemnasiri , Pietro Borsano

Chulalongkorn University

Young woman works on engineering planning project, contextual learning, HELF

Contextual learning: linking learning to the real world

Experience in the professional world can set your students up for a seamless transfer from higher education to the world of work

Alexandra Osika, Stephanie MacMahon, Jason M. Lodge, Annemaree Carroll

The University of Queensland

Learning as becoming, lifelong education, holistic approach, HELF framework

Learning as becoming: what do students become as a result of their higher education experience?

A learning framework can help students understand their transition from higher education to the professional world as well as support their holistic experience of university life

Alexandra Osika, Stephanie MacMahon, Jason M. Lodge, Annemaree Carroll

The University of Queensland

Advice on developing a course portfolio that meets workplace demand for upskilling

Pivoting university course offerings to upskill the workforce

Teresa Ironside outlines how universities can develop their course portfolio to meet changing workplace skills demands and deliver education to a wider range of learners

Teresa Ironside

The University of Edinburgh

With the right kind of support, university students with mental disabilities can thrive both on campus and in the workplace

We can help students with intellectual disabilities shatter glass ceilings

With the right approach and a strong institutional commitment, students with intellectual disabilities can thrive at university and in the workplace

Meg Grigal, Ann Werbach

University of Massachusetts Boston, InsideTrack

Woman on rock at beach dipping toes in water illustrating work-integrated learning

Helping students to see the future career value of their work-integrated learning

Real-world experience and outputs tailored to industry allow students to see the relevance of what they learn in the classroom

Sabine Matook

The University of Queensland