Focus on : Graduate Skills: Students' Views on Graduate Skills

QAA Scotland's Focus On projects aim to help higher education institutions and students' associations with work in their key priority areas. Topics are chosen based on recommendations and commendations from Enhancement-led Institutional Reviews (ELIR). Focus On ties these outcomes to developmental activities, resources and events with which the whole sector can get involved. These are designed to be timely and practical, and help colleagues make a real difference in a short space of time. Focus On: Graduate Skills With debate on apprenticeships and skills high on the agenda in higher education, the Focus On: Graduate Skills undertaken in 2018-19 is relevant and timely. This project builds on previous work on this issue in the Scottish sector, including the Graduates for the 21st Century Enhancement Theme. Based on consultation with the Scottish sector, the focus of the project was on exploring the graduate skills through the lenses of equality and diversity, readiness for employment, and global perspective. QAA Scotland commissioned the authors of this report to research the views of current students on their development of graduate skills. The work presented in this report covers the findings of this research, provides an analysis of student views on the skills they are developing through their studies at Scottish higher education institutions (HEIs), highlighting examples of good practice, and offers insight into potential gaps in provision, suggesting areas for development.