Institutional research into careers as
a way of enhancing students’
academic and career development
Maura O’Regan
30th June 2010
HEIR Conference
DCU
POLICY
RESEARCH
PRACTICE
Focus on student
satisfaction and
destinations
post-graduation
e.g.
O’Regan (2009, 2010)
Tomlinson (2007)
Holmes (2001)
Focus on the end
result,
Making career
decisions
Not linked to
theory
Career is
idiosyncratic,
subjective and
contextualised
Linked to
‘old’ theory
Tend to see the student body as a homogenous group
(one size fits all)
Simplistic view of career path
Academic development
 Academic skills
 Research methodology
 Empirical evidence – Positional papers
 Application of theory to practice
 Critical analysis
 Discussion topics
 Discipline variations
Research strategy QUALITATIVE & INTERPRETIVE
Volunteers = 30
2006-2007
PRACTICAL APPROACH
Autumn Spring Summer
Second year
undergraduates
Formal
14 History
Interviews
&
Diary entries
(single or combined)
16 Economics (modules)
15 Male
15 Female
Informal
Conversations
&
Email
Orientated to HESITATION
HIGH
James
Know what type of career they want but
realising it is too far in the future
Know what they need to do but never
seem to get around to doing it
LOW
Leave things to the last minute but take
responsibility for their procrastination
Have come to university to get a degree to
further their career ideas
Take a very strategic approach to their
career and their future
Take advantage of every opportunity
Liz
Are aware of what they need to do to
realise their career aspirations
Set themselves goals and targets
FUTURE FOCUS
Orientated to
INTROSPECTION
Orientated to LEARNING
Have made a smooth transition to
university
Have not made a smooth transition to
university
Are enjoying their studies
Are anxious about fitting in
Alice
Phoebe
HIGH
Are flexible, easy going and enjoy the
social aspects of university
CAREER RELEVANCE
Have made a smooth transition to
university
Orientated to
INSTRUMENTALISM
Worry about passing their exams
Value their studies and what they are
gaining academically
Need a lot of support as lack confidence
and self-esteem
Are relatively unconcerned about their
career - it will come later
LOW
O’Regan, M. (2010) Challenging conventional thinking about career in the higher education curriculum.
Career Research & Development NICEC Journal, 23, pp. 20-24.
Billy
James
Is studying history. Only
‘slackers’ at his school
didn’t go to university. ‘It
was presumed that I
would’…‘it was drilled
into us’. Settles into
university life very easily.
Had wanted to travel for
a year before university
but felt from the family’s
point of view, it was not
a good time to go away.
Engineer,
Journalist
Works in local
government office
during summer
vacation which was
‘a bit boring’,
I haven’t
really got
anything in
mind at the
moment. No.
I haven’t
decided
anything yet.
Does not ‘really want to do
the graduate scheme….I’d
prefer to start from a lower
level and go up through the
ranks…start from scratch’
Would like to do ‘practical
things – anything hands on
really wouldn’t be too bad’.
But ‘if there was a job leading
from doing a history degree...
I’d enjoy doing that. But I’m
just not sure what sort of job
titles there are’
Civil
service
Comes back to a
recession. He looks at the
graduate jobs. ‘I either
didn't particularly want
to do or wasn't driven
hard enough to do…I
went for some interviews
and the one thing they
said to me at the end of it
was, I lacked the drive to
get these jobs’. He agrees
and starts working in the
local pub.
Is accepted onto the paramedic
training scheme and is ‘happy I
want to do a job where I can
make a difference and like help
others. I think this time last
year, I probably wouldn't have
cared that much … And so I am
happy that has changed. It
really was travelling that made
that difference’
Paramedic
RAF
Graduates with a
2.1 and moves
back home. Goes
travelling for
three months and
it ‘was the best
thing I had ever
done ever’
Does emergency training with the
ambulance service to become
‘First Response’ trained and begins
to consider becoming a
paramedic. Thinks it will ‘be ideal.
It will ‘be intense working in
London as a paramedic. So I spent
ages writing a personal
statement…’
© Maura O’Regan
September 2009
Visits university career service
as wants a more interesting job
with better promotional
opportunities. ‘Couldn’t see
myself getting into
management’…didn’t want to
‘suck’ up to them. Decides to
do a finance related degree,
takes A level economics to get
on the course. ‘Why didn’t I
think of this years ago?
Interested in finance from an
early age – his granddad had
his own portfolio of
investments. Had ‘fantasy
portfolios myself as a kid’
Wants to be a trader but also
do an accountancy
qualification ‘because I don’t
want to be a trader all my
life…because you just burn
yourself out. I’d like to set myself up in my own business
eventually’. His concern is
that accountancy is a
‘mundane job’, ‘no buzz there,
no yeah I got it!’ Begins
applying for internships. Gets
only rejections. Goes to the
Palace to collect his Duke of
Edinburgh award.
Joe
Proprietary
Trader
Trader,
Accountant
Work on
cruise ships
Trader
Croupier
Takes a gap year because
he doesn’t know what he
wants to study at
university. Trains as a
croupier to as wants to
work on cruise ships to
combine work and travel.
‘Rushes’ into doing a
cybernetics degree and
drops out. Travels to
Australia, comes back and
works in casinos.
‘It’s like work, sleep and then get up…
So yeah basically just, well it is a
massive part of your life’. Makes
£45.000 but after expenses has
£15,000. After a year in London as a
trader by mutual agreement he
decides to leave. Starts looking for
financial advisor vacancies. Realises
he needs a qualification. Signs up for a
distance CEFA. Takes a break from job
hunting for a few weeks. Is
approached by a friend and offered
the opportunity to work as a financial
services recruitment consultant.
Buys a narrow boat.
Starts his degree
course. Does Duke of
Edinburgh Gold award
for which he coaches
judo, learns how to
horse ride, does motor
cycle maintenance,
plans an expedition. At
university is on the
student - staff
committee. Is part of a
fund management club
where they plan where
to invest their money.
Financial
services
advisor
Recruitment
consultant –
Financial
services
Begins applying for investment banking
roles in his final year. More rejections. Talks
to university staff in his department about
interview technique. Gets a First class
degree and is offered a position as a
Proprietary Trader. Pays £2,500 a month
for his desk and all the kit. ‘It is high risk,
high reward and it’s exactly what I want to
do’…’ I think I'm going to learn more in like
a week working there than I have on my
degree probably, because it is relevant to
what I'm doing’
© Maura O’Regan
September 2009
Career as a life project, a vehicle for self
development & personal fulfilment.
‘Play the game’ aware of the need to
conform to the rules of the market.
‘Working their way up’ ‘do all you can’.
Take an instrumental approach to
developing their graduate profiles.
Career progression is important – gaining on
the ground experience.
Use their knowledge of the LM to negotiate
the demands of the LM.
Female students entering male dominated
professions –accountancy, engineering.
Orientation to labour
market (LM) (ends)
Careerist
Ritualist
almost half
undergraduates
next largest
group
Active
Work as a ritual process.
Work is a means to an end, ‘something you
have to do’. Place greater value on lifestyle
and life projects operating outside the LM.
They lower the stakes and ‘scale down’.
aspirations, could be seen as managing the
risk, progress more easily with more limited
material rewards.
Less ambitious expectations - ‘do all you
need’ ‘settle for’ public sector work,
Female students shy away from male
dominated professions, go for lower
demand, lower entry markets with
anticipated smoother, more stable paths. Do
take an instrumental approach to study and
developing credentials.
Passive (means)
Rebel
Retreatist
none
2 undergraduates
The author would expect that they would
abandon LM goals
Abandoning labour market goals and
employability
Have genuine feelings of anxiety and
disaffection, developing a career is
‘daunting’
They want to extend their youth and
continue to enjoy their loosely regulated
lifestyles.
Indifferent to the LM. Aware of the
limitations of their hard credentials. LM was
seen as corrupt and greedy, although their
rebellion was passive.
Non-market
orientation
Ideal type orientation
Reference: Tomlinson, Michael (2007) Graduate employability and student attitudes and orientations to the labour market . Journal of Education and Work, 20(4) pp. 285-304
References
Holmes, Len (2001) Reconsidering Graduate Employability: the ‘graduate
identity’ approach. Quality in HE, 7(2) pp. 111-119.
O’Regan, Maura (2009) Career Pursuit: : towards an understanding of
undergraduate students’ orientation to career. Unpublished PhD,
University of Reading.
O’Regan, Maura (2010) Challenging conventional thinking about career
in the higher education curriculum. Career Research & Development
NICEC Journal, 23, pp. 20-24.
Tomlinson, Michael (2007) Graduate employability and student attitudes
and orientations to the labour market. Journal of Education and Work,
20(4) pp. 285-304.
In conclusion
Contact details: m.oregan@reading.ac.uk
Maybe I rushed into
making a careers
decision in my second
year… Phoebe
It’s really not
the end of the
world for me if I
don’t get an
amazing job
straight away…
Monica
I just don’t think it is
important enough for me to
start worrying about what I
want to do. I’d rather focus
on other stuff that I think is
more important like studying
- focusing on that as opposed
to what I want to do in the
future…Billy