This session looks at the effect of real world
enterprise projects on graduate employer
perceptions
 It considers a cross section of the real world
projects run with education students at
Hope University
 Looks at general employer perceptions of
graduates employability skills
 Advises of findings from a survey of 6
employers of undergraduates done in 2010

“...having a set of skills, knowledge
understanding and personal attributes that
make a person more likely to choose and
secure occupations in which they can be
satisfied and successful” (Dacre et al, 2007, p.
280)
‘the skills, knowledge and attributes
needed to apply creative ideas and
innovations to practical solutions,’
‘initiative, independence, creativity,
problem solving, identifying and working
on opportunities,’ leadership, acting
resourcefully and responding to
challenges’
(Rea 2007 p.611)
Not all graduates need employability
skills – some already have them
 Flexible routes into HE desirable
 part-time study and including workbased learning
 205,195 part time first degree
undergraduates in 2005 (HESA 2010)
 Philosophical arguments (Oakeshott
1972)

Pan European study showed 89% of
employers thought graduates had the
skills to work in their company.
 However many employed ‘traditional’
graduates e.g. Solicitors and doctors
 No measurement of the level graduates
were employed at

Surveys suggest that employers value
skills of leadership and team working,
communication and presentation skills,
and business awareness, for example,
but that they experience difficulties in
recruiting graduates with these skills
(CIPD, 2006; AGR, 2003).



distortions caused by the Research Assessment
Exercise which meant that academic staff have a
greater incentive to publish in academic journals
than to undertake joint research with business
Rae (2007)
The prevailing culture of academic organisations is
often to focus inwards, on the organisation of
academic structures and on the subject discipline
of research and course curricula.
outdated and cumbersome university
management practices that tended to be slow
and risk averse
(Hogarth 2007)
Graduate Apprenticeship Scheme
 Sandwich courses
 WBL
 PBL
 Case Studies
 Placements
But still the skills gap persists for employers

Real world graduate enterprise
placements
 Difficult tasks
 Combined enterprise type skills with
problem based learning
 Often with added difficulties
 But well monitored
 Self funding or income generating

Study Support Developments (Everton FC
2007)
 Young Entrepreneurs Dragons Den (see
ESCalate 2008)
 Culture Clubs
 MacAttack (St Helens Library 2010)
 Children’s University (2011 unlikely to
proceed due to redundancy situation)

We asked 6 major regional graduate
education employers about the type of
skills they would pick up on the projects
we have called ‘Real World Problem
Solving’
1 month before survey
 Runthrough
 Skills identified
 Learning identified
 Questions


If the projects would enhance the ability
of education graduates to get a job
Replies as a %
Yes 75%
Likely 12%
Unlikely 2%
No
If the graduates would benefit from having better
employability skills through doing the real world
problem solving projects we had described
Improved Employability Skills
Yes 87%
Likely 8%
Unlikely 2%
No 3%
leadership
 team working,
 communication
 presentation skills,
 business awareness

This is what they said
Did Your Graduates Need Better
Leadership Skills on Joining Your
Organisation?
Yes 52%
Most did 22%
Most did Not
2%
No 26%
Did Your Graduates Have Sufficient
Teamworking Skills on Joining Your
Organisation?
Yes 75%
Most Did 12%
Most Did Not
3%
No 10%
How did you rate your graduates
communication skills overall
Insufficient for all
aspects of the post
6%
Insufficient for some
aspects of the post
46%
Sufficient for most but
not all aspects of the
post 38%
Sufficient for all
aspects of the post
10%
Were your new undergraduates presentation
skills adequate for their post?
Yes in all aspects 25%
Yes in most aspects
35%
No in some apects
30%
Not at all10%
How would you rate your new graduates
business awareness?
Excellent 18%
Good 20%
Adequate 25%
Poor 37%
100
80
60
40
20
0
Yes
Yes
No

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
Some graduates need simple skills like how to get up in the
morning!
They don’t have to take any responsibility for their actions
in university, these type of programmes will help them
realise how important it is to get things right.
Your programmes will help them plan projects and be
ready to take responsibility early
They’re very good but sometimes need a bit of help to get
started
Why don’t all universities do this sort of thing?
There is a clear difference between the ones who have
work experience – even if it’s in a shop- and the ones who
don’t
We don’t fast track graduates above other employees,
they have to perform

‘.....despite extensive development, and
evidence of innovative practices to foster
employability within universities,
employability remains a complex and
problematic area without clear or obvious
solutions. Increasingly, enterprising students
and graduates are regarded as more
employable, and there appear to be
advantages in integrating career and
enterprise development themes within the
curriculum.’ Rea (2007)
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Dacre Pool, L. and Sewell, P. (2007), “The key to employability: developing a
practical model of graduate employability”, EducationþTraining, Vol. 49 No. 4, p.
277-89.
Gallup November (2010) Employers’ perception of graduate employability:
Analytical report Flash EB No 304 European Commission
Rea, D (2007) Connecting enterprise and graduate employability; Challenges to
the higher education culture and curriculum? Education and Training, Vol. 49 No.
8/9, 2007 p. 605-619 Emerald
UK Universities (2010) Higher Education Facts and Figures
(http://www.universitiesuk.ac.uk/Publications/Documents/HigherEducationInFacts
AndFiguresSummer2010.pdf - accessed 7/4/11)
Oakeshott, M. (1972) ‘Education: the Engagement and its Frustration’, in Fuller T.
(ed.) Yale University Press.
Hogarth, T. Winterbotham, M. Hasluck, C. (2007) Employer and University
Engagement the Use and Development of Graduate Level Skills -Main Report,
Institute for Employment Research University of Warwick IFF Research Ltd