The UQ student employability vision: The University of Queensland will develop highly sought after graduates who have engaged in a range of opportunities, reflected on their experiences to realise their employability, and are able to contribute meaningfully and effect positive change locally, nationally and globally. The UQ student employability strategy

What is employability? Employability is a set of achievements – skills, understandings and personal attributes – that make graduates more likely to gain employment and be successful in their chosen occupations, which benefits themselves, the workforce, the community and the economy (Yorke 2004). Employability skills are not a substitute for specific knowledge and technical skills: but they make the difference between being good at a subject and being good at doing a job (UK Commission for Employment and Skills 2009).

UQ Employability at UQ is: a learning process through which students reflect on their engagement with a range of experiences; an understanding of personal employability and the positive contribution that this can make to society; based on an ethos of lifelong learning and ongoing personal and professional growth The UQ approach recognises that: employability is greater than acquiring the technical skills for the recruitment process; the development of achievements make graduates more likely to be effective in the workplace to the benefit of individuals, the community and the economy; self-reflective learning is essential to employability development as ‘provision of experiences alone is not a sufficient condition for enhanced employability’ (Yorke 2004, p.7)

The four goals of the strategy Employability at UQ is founded on four key goals: Goal 1: Create and foster an employability culture at UQ Goal 2: Identify and grow opportunities for students to develop their employability Goal 3: Create an institutional approach to student employability development through an experiential learning framework Goal 4: Support the transition of UQ graduates into the workplace

The employability framework LEARNING: Reflecting on experiences realises individual employability TRANSFER: Effectively communicating employability in the recruitment process and applying it in the workplace translates learning into performance AWARENESS: Employability is understood as the development of both discipline knowledge and skills, as well as personal attributes that guide workplace performance EXPERIENCES: Engaging with a range of experiences helps to develop employability AWARENESS: Employability is understood as the development of both discipline knowledge and skills, as well as personal attributes that guide workplace performance EXPERIENCES: Engaging with a range of experiences helps to develop employability LEARNING: Reflecting on experiences realises individual employability TRANSFER: Effectively communicating employability in the recruitment process and applying it in the workplace translates learning into performance

PowerPoint template and guidelines v0.9

Rationale for the MOOC A deliverable of the UQ student employability strategy Underpinned by research into employability and best practice in the United Kingdom Informed by pilot activities and interviews with employers Workshops are not scaleable: time consuming and resource intensive Online offering is always available – ease of access and can reach wider audience (we know that students don’t come to workshops!)

Course design Videos from the course team explaining the UQ student employability approach and the value of experiential learning to employability development Perspectives from interviews with students, graduates, recruiters and other employability experts, both locally and internationally, to support the key messages Interactive activities that allow course participants to practise the various elements of the UQ employability development process of understanding and connecting learning experiences to employability, articulating employability throughout the recruitment process and transferring learning into effective workplace performance

Mapping the modules to the framework

The value of the course Once students have worked through the modules they can apply the approach to any activity/experience during their studies and throughout their careers Can be used from first year onwards. Raises awareness of employability development from early stages of study The modules are appropriate for ALL students: any discipline, at any level, any academic standing (All students face the same issues translating and articulating their employability regardless of cohort)

What does this mean for me? Access to a staff set of modules which explains the approach and how it can be applied within the curriculum and in extra-curricular activities and programs Staff resource pack (with worksheets) Assistance from the UQ student employability project team to work with you to integrate the approach in a way that fits best with your program or course or activity Key message: The UQ employability approach is not about drastically changing what you do – it is just about helping students to make connections between their experiences and their employability

Benefits to UQ Shows UQ believes employability is important: –Student recruitment benefits –Improves performance of our graduates in the workplace –Influence perceptions of stakeholders re UQ support for student success –Positive impact on world rankings and reputation UQ will be a pioneer in this space - first and only employability MOOC on edX

Course trailer and example videos For further information and links to the course trailer and example videos:

UQ student employability strategy project team Project Manager: Andrea Reid Project Officer: Anna Richards