Northern Lights

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International Dimensions of Graduate Employability
Employability and Enterprise in China and UK
similarities and differences Oxford - 16 October
2009
David Bagley Dr. Peter Sewell University of
Central Lancashire
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What well cover

• Our PMI2 project in China
• Enterprise and Employability at UCLan
• Enterprise and Employability at SIFT
• Similarities and differences

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The UClan-SIFT PMI2 project

• PMI2
• Prime Ministers second Initiative for
  International Education
• Aims to create mutual, complementary and
  sustainable partnerships between the UK and
  PMI2 priority countries.
• 2. The UCLan-SIFT PMI2 project
• Aims to produce a deeper shared understanding of
  the best practice in developing graduate
  employability and entrepreneurship
• To understand graduate Employability and
  Entrepreneurship issues in China
• To extend existing collaborative projects
• To explore new opportunities and partnerships

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The Project Partners

• University of Central Lancashire (UCLan) has many
  applied and vocational programmes but also strong
  culture of pure research and non-vocational
  courses with 32,000 students
• Shanghai Institute of Foreign Trade (SIFT) A
  smaller University 10,000 students, mainly
  studying courses related to International Business

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All about UCLan
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Employability Enterprise
Medium Term Strategy

• UCLan will provide sector leading support to
  ensure that its students become confident,
  skilled graduates with the ability to make a
  success of their future learning, employment,
  self employment or other choices.

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The essential components of graduate employability
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Employability Enterprise at UCLan

• Students are viewed as customers.
• Employability Enterprise to be embedded in all
  courses and is part of the academic programme
  what, how, where we teach.
• EE provision is led and co-ordinated by
  Futures a new unit which draws together
  Academic Centres with the Careers Service and
  Business Incubation.
• New futures award for students in addition to
  degree.

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Embedded Bolt-on approach

• Central safety net generic provision of
  accredited bolt-on modules. (eg Planning Your
  Career, Starting a Business, placements,
  mentoring).
• Tailored options for specific course (eg Planning
  your Career in Film Media).
• Embedded in core modules (eg in Linguistics).
• Extra-curricular enrichment workshops.
• An additional award for undergraduates.

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An additional award

• The futures awards is a new accredited programme
  to be taken by all full time undergraduate
  students. It will allow students to develop
  employability and enterprise skills no matter
  what their programme of study.

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UCLan approach

• Key strategic theme.
• Coherent underpinning model.
• Aim is to embed EE in all programmes.
• Bolt-on and extra-curricular options available.
• An additional award for undergraduates.
• Delivered predominantly by academics.
• Led by futures a central comprehensive
  academic service.

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Your approach

• How does your (UK) university approach EE?
• Bolt-on / embedded
• Shared understanding.
• Additional award available.
• Who delivers?
• Compare your approach with people around you.

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The Context in China

• Graduate Employability is of massive importance
  in China and Universities are judged on their
  employment destinations.
• This year some 6 million students will graduate
  from universities across China.
• There are some 1.5 million graduates from last
  year who have yet to find jobs.
• So there will be 7.5 million graduates looking
  for jobs this year.

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Shanghai Institute of Foreign Trade (SIFT)
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Shanghai Institute of Foreign Trade (SIFT)

• Excellent track record in Employability.
• Stress the Entrepreneurial Spirit.
• Involve local business community heavily in
  Professional Development Centre.
• Involve students heavily in Student Motivation
  Centre.
• See students as products.
• Have EE programme delivered by young graduates.

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Employability workshop at the Student Motivation
Centre
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Employability workshop at the Student Motivation
Centre
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Similarities between UCLan and SIFT

• Both
• are operating in a challenging employment market
  for their graduating students
• see the provision of opportunity for
  Employability and Entrepreneurial learning as
  vital
• have organisational strategies to develop and
  enhance Employability and Entrepreneurship
  education
• are actively pursuing an internationalisation
  agenda

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UCLan - SIFT approaches
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In small groups

• Exchange experiences of EE in UK /or China.
• Fill in the grid to summarise your discussions.
  (Add rows as you see fit).
• Be prepared to report back any crucial issues.
• Well collect in the grids, amalgamate them and
  circulate them.

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Questions and issues

• Any questions or other issues to consider?

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Further Information
David Bagley dbagley_at_uclan.ac.uk
Dr. Peter Sewell pjsewell_at_uclan.ac.uk
University of Central Lancashire The Media
Factory Preston United Kingdom PR1
2HE www.uclan.ac.uk/futures 441772 895858
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Definitions - Employability
Employability is having a set of skills,
understanding and personal attributes that make a
person more likely to choose and secure
occupations in which they can be satisfied and
successful. (Dacre Pool Sewell, 2007)
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Enterprise

• Enterprise is having a willingness to undertake
  new or risky projects, participating actively
  with energy and initiative.
• Being Enterprising is the ability of individuals
  and businesses to respond positively to change,
  to take risks, be competitive, innovative,
  creative and proactive, and to generate and
  implement new ideas and new ways of doing
  things.
• (NW Regional Enterprise Strategy (draft) 2008)

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Enterprising people Entrepreneurs

• Enterprising individuals demonstrate
  behaviours, attitudes and skills such as
  independence, opportunity seeking, strategic
  thinking and a commitment to making things
  happen. They can apply these skills in more or
  less any walk of life. There are enterprising
  individuals in, for example, the clergy,
  education, public administration and the
  voluntary sector. They may have little knowledge
  of, or interest in, business.
• Entrepreneurs apply such skills and
  behaviours to the process of setting up and
  running (and perhaps growing) a new for profit or
  social business organisation.
• (Botham Mason 2007)

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The 3 Es
?
ENTERPRISE
ENTREPRENEURSHIP
EMPLOYABILITY
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English Language Studies Initiative for
Employability

• Examples of Projects
• Events in Schools
• Evaluating / critiquing Advertising
• Company protocols and procedures
• PR and Press Releases
• Customer / Client Information leaflets
• Brochures
• Newsletters Website content

• Employability is embedded in core modules and
  programmes.
• ELSIE encourages students to combine personal
  development and employability learning with
  subject specific knowledge in English Language
  and Linguistics.

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Realistic Work Environments

• RWEs offer students
• Academic Credit
• Employability and Enterprise Skills
• Insights into Particular Careers
• Contacts for Work Placements and future
  employment
• Development of Subject-specific ( generic)
  skills

Mitchell Kenyon Independent Cinema)
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The Media Factory

• A new 15 million building drawing together
  media, design, music, performing arts, and
  enterprise.

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How we teach an English module

• Insight into Publishing requires students to
  publish. For example, they produced Taste an
  anthology of poetry on the theme of food. They
  developed a business plan, invited and edited
  submissions, designed and marketed the book to
  support a charity. They produced reflective
  diaries and a critical appraisal of their work as
  part of the assessment.
• The module is delivered by lecturers in English
  Literature.

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How are we doing it?
Engaging students in live projects
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Challenges

• Getting students involved.
• Economic climate.
• Embedding EE in the curriculum.
• Staff development.
• Persuading major employers to engage.
• Tracking down alumni.