Improving Engineering students' awareness of employabilty skills: A case study at Ulster University

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contributionpeer-review

Abstract

Despite the high tuition cost of a university education in the UK it is a disappointing phenomenon that many students fail to capitalise on opportunities at university to develop the ‘softer’ professional skills that they will need to be successful in the fast-paced, evolving, and often uncertain work environment of the future. This study describes first and final year engineering students’ attitudes towards how their employability skills were developed as a result of their experiences at Ulster University and analyses their perceptions about what curriculum developers could do to further improve their employability prospects on graduation.
Original languageEnglish
Title of host publicationUnknown Host Publication
PublisherHigher Education Academy
Number of pages1
Publication statusAccepted/In press - 16 Dec 2016
EventHEA Annual Conference 2017 Generation TEF: Teaching in the spotlight - Manchester
Duration: 16 Dec 2016 → …

Conference

ConferenceHEA Annual Conference 2017 Generation TEF: Teaching in the spotlight
Period16/12/16 → …

Bibliographical note

Reference text: Archer, W and Davison, J., 2008. Graduate Employability: What do employers think and want? London CIHE
Florman,S., 2007. Non-technical studies for engineers: the challenge of relevance. European Journal of Engineering Education, 22 (3), 249-258
Jones, V., 2015. Preparing our Students for Employability: Responsibilities and Strategies, In: Employability in Action: Opportunities for Developing the Student Experience Conference. Belfast, 2015. University of Ulster.
Royal Academy of Engineering, 2007. Educating Engineers for the 21st century. London. RAE. Available at:
<http://www.raeng.org.uk/publications/reports/educating-engineers-21st-century> [Accessed 19 December 2016]

Keywords

  • Graduate employability
  • student perceptions
  • active engagement
  • professional skills

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