Projects per year
Abstract
This article aims to understand predictors of objective (i.e., job offers, employment status and employment quality) and subjective (i.e., perceived) graduate employability during university-to-work transitions. Using survey data from two cohorts of graduates in the UK (N=293), it contrasts three competing theoretical approaches to employability: position (based on social background), possession (of human capital) and process (of career self-management (CSM)). Findings support the process view of graduate employability, developed through engaging in career self-management, in particular environment exploration, networking and guidance seeking. There is also some support for a possession view where educational credentials predict employment quality and perceived employability. Theoretically, the study highlights the importance of proactive career behaviours as well as the constraining role of educational credentials for some during university-to-work transitions. These findings have practical implications for university students/graduates and career counsellors, and, more indirectly, for employers and policy-makers.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 1275-1291 |
Number of pages | 17 |
Journal | Studies in Higher Education |
Volume | 42 |
Issue number | 7 |
Early online date | 17 Nov 2015 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - 1 May 2017 |
Keywords
- employability
- graduates
- university employability
- university to work transitions
- careers
- career self management
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Projects
- 1 Finished
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University-to-work transitions: the role of career self-management in graduate employability and employment success
Okay-Somerville, B. (Principal Investigator) & Scholarios, D. (Co-investigator)
1/09/14 → 31/08/16
Project: Research
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Can career self-management overcome labour market disadvantage for non-professional degree graduates?
Okay-Somerville, B. & Scholarios, D., 1 Aug 2018, The 21st Century School-To-Work Transition: Improving the Working Lives of Young People. 1 ed. Valhalla, NY, Vol. 2018. (Academy of Management Proceedings; vol. 2018, no. 1).Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Conference contribution book
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Job search anxiety and perceived barriers to labour market entry
Scholarios, D. & Okay-Somerville, B., 20 May 2017.Research output: Contribution to conference › Paper › peer-review
Activities
- 1 Organiser of special symposia
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EAWOP Impact Incubator/ESRC Festival of Social Science seminar
Okay-Somerville, B. (Organiser), Searle, R. (Organiser) & Scholarios, D. (Organiser)
26 Nov 2021Activity: Participating in or Organising an Event › Organiser of special symposia