HIGHER EDUCATION - WHAT IS IT GOOD FOR? KNOWLEDGE OR EMPLOYABILITY

This session will look at the course-based support offered to students at a UK university. The university has taken an innovative approach to supporting undergraduate students with their employability from year one through to graduation and beyond. This continuing research aims to disseminate and implement a non-traditional style of delivery into the teaching of employability skills. The driver for this was previous, consistent, feedback from students that traditional skills and employment modules were too broad and generic and they wanting a more personalised approach. The business courses that have adopted this new approach have embedded the concept in all years of study, building up a student's personal 'toolkit' of skills to prepare them for their careers and lives in society. This personalisation process, coupled with a view of transition that covers students' entire time at university, has had mixed results from both an academic and a student perspective. The link is to the conference topic of pedagogical innovations in Education - Personalised Learning. Whilst the concept of non-traditional delivery is well known in UK HE, the debate of what HEIs should be providing is an interesting area to consider further too.