Student Employability Profiles Health Science and Practice

1
Student Employability Profiles Health Science and
Practice

• Employability Special Interest Group
• 21 September 2005
• Aston University

2
Sharing the Outcomes

• Bianca Kubler and Peter Forbes working for 12
  LTSN SCs, ESECT and CIHE supported by AGR QAA
  and AGCAS

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Employability Matters

• Employability promotes
• life long learning
• qualities like resourcefulness as well as
  technical / vocational knowledge
• the ability to contribute to society
• Supports widening participation and diversity
  agendas
• Employability employability profiling helps
  students both during and post qualification to
  gather and develop specific core skills

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Student Employability ProfilesWhy?

• Response to demand from Higher Education Subject
  Centre Network staff for material to support
  their academic colleagues in making work related
  skills learning more explicit in course programme
  design and delivery

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Which Subject Centres?

• Built Environment
• Business Management and Accountancy
• Economics
• Engineering
• English
• Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

• Health Sciences and Practice
• Materials Science
• Mathematics, Stats and OR
• Philosophical and Religious Studies
• Physical Sciences
• Psychology

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What are the Profiles?

• Evidence from QAA benchmark statements of the
  work related skills developable through study of
  a particular subject
• Summary of knowledge taught
• Skills mapped against competencies identified by
  CIHE as ones that help transform organisations
• Glossary of terms

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Employer Competencies

• Cognitive skills (problem solving.)
• Generic competencies (listen, influence)
• Personal capabilities (lifelong learning,
  emotional intelligence, personal attributes)
• Technical ability
• Business and/or organisation awareness
• Practical and professional elements

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Health Science and Practice Profiles

• Health Science
• Nursing
• Midwifery
• Health Visiting
• Pharmacy
• Allied Health Professions

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Allied Health Professions
Profiles for the Allied Health professions
include
Physiotherapists Podiatry Radiographers Speech
and Language therapists
Dieticians Occupational Health therapists Othoptic
s
A common template was created from the QAA
benchmarks and the emerging Health Profession
Framework developed by 11 different health
profession groups - Health Profession Council
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Approach

• QAA subject benchmark statements used in
  creating behavioural criteria for each subject
• Generic Employability Competencies defined by
  CIHE Employers Group and from the work of
  Professor Lee Harvey
• Behavioural criteria mapped against generic
  competencies for each subject criteria
• Approach introduced elements of rigour and is
  similar to job/role analysis work in
  organisations - applied behavioural research

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Analysis

• Matching of benchmark statements with generic
  competency statements and extracting relevant
  criteria, mapping this to create the templates
• Discussion with relevant subject centre staff,
  use of literature and website information
• Drawing on 20 years experience of this work
  across all professional roles in blue chip
  companies and Professional Bodies
• Employers input and endorsement from CIHE
  policy forum employer members.

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Outputs

• 22 subject specific profiles produced for 12
  Subject Centres
• A glossary of behavioural criteria descriptors by
  generic
• competency for use by Subject Centre staff.
• Reflective questions on competencies and
  behavioural criteria developed to support
  students personal development planning
• Subject Centres have basis for subject specific
  competency framework

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A Tool

• Can be used
• in a tool box for employability development
• input to PDPs, CVs and career planning
• as a basis for evidencing curriculum based skills
  development
• evidence to market a Subject to pre university
  students and also employers

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Benefits

• Students
• awareness of skills being developed
• ability to articulate skills
• basis for strengthening PDPs, CVs and career
  planning
• boost to life long learning capability

• Academics
• attract more quality pre university students
• reduce retention issues
• curriculum can be steered to bring employability
  to life
• (impact of formal assessment)

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Benefits for Employers

• Improved return on investment in employment
  marketing and recruitment
• Reduced risks in hiring from new sources
  (reflecting effect of widening participation and
  diversity)

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Next Steps

• Student Employability Profiles Phase 2
• Working with remaining subject centres
• Create a composite Employability Guide for
  Employers
• HEA to digitise all Profiles so that subject
  centres can
• enhance and develop their profiles
• QAA Scotland

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Challenges

• Winning academics confidence
• Motivating students
• Changing pre university students perception of a
  Subject
• Influencing employers, particularly to improve
  understanding of impact of widening participation
  and diversity

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Lessons and Implications

• Concept of ESECT should continue
• Academy Subject Centre staff are key bridge
  builders
• Remaining subjects to be covered
• Value for all but particularly for widening
  participation and diversity agendas
• Possible to reconcile academic values with work
  related learning