Students' undergraduate expectations and post-graduation experiences of the value of a degree

The internationally shared belief that higher education has a role to play in delivering graduates with an ability to contribute to the knowledge-based economy is one of the main driving forces behind the 'employability agenda' that has emerged in UK higher education in recent years. For a variety of reasons, including the genuine desire to meet the needs of its graduates, geography is responding to the employability agenda through curriculum change and innovation. However, it is important that any employment-related developments and initiatives are informed by the opinions and experiences of present and former students. This paper addresses this need by comparing the undergraduate career expectations and post-graduation career experiences of geography students from the University of Plymouth. The study allows comparisons to be made between two cohorts and reveals which aspects of their degree the graduate cohort found to be most and least useful in their current employment.