Work Related Learning-Report on HEA funded Scoping Study

1. Work Related Learning-Report on HEA funded Scoping Study Jane Weir, Director, Careers Service

2. Background • Commitment to enhancing student employability • SFC’s ‘Learning to Work’ report • Work of the QAA Enhancement Theme on Employability • WRL emerging as a huge challenge • Application to SFC for Strategic Change Grant funding • Contact with HEA for support

3. Outline of three-year project Three phases with associated activities: • Feasibility: to provide evidence base for phases 2 & 3, ongoing research in WRL throughout project • Implementation and best practice:Development of placements/internships and related opportunities, pilot projects in 6 non-vocational subject disciplines • Establishing models for sustainability:Embedding of WRL activity within curricula and production of staff development materials

4. Relevance of Scoping Study • To provide a baseline of knowledge for a more focused feasibility study in Phase 1 of project • Scoping study will identify the primary sources for investigating the best sector-wide strategic and operational approaches to embracing WRL • Will help clarify what we mean by WRL

5. Project Objectives • To identify and categorise the range of UK-wide strategic institutional and operational WRL activity • To examine methods that have been effective in promoting, disseminating and sustaining strategic and operational WRL activities • To disseminate outputs to stakeholders across the UK and feed into other work by HEA • To conduct study between March and July 2006

6. Preliminary findings • Term ‘work related learning’ used in HE as a generic term to mean broadly development of work-relevant skills and awareness of work-different terms used interchangeably by practitioners • Depending on definition used, scope of activities which come under heading will vary • Moreland’s definition considered to be clearest: ‘Involving students learning about themselves and the world of work and their wider lives’

7. Preliminary findings • Considerable amount of WRL activity underway within HEIs • However, wide range of activities in non-vocational subjects, involving diversity of approaches • Much of this activity not been identified under WRL but more as ‘enhancing employability of undergraduate students’

8. Different categories • Enhancing employability:new employability modules, mentoring programmes, enterprise workshops, voluntary work, clubs & societies-often add-ons • Development of work related skills:FDs, HNDs, WBL (in the form of whole degree programmes) • Support for WRL:reporting of WRL in PDP, Staff Development

9. Identified Gaps • Very little evaluative evidence in existence-area populated by descriptive case studies-little or no research undertaken on the effectiveness of different approaches • Research that does exist tends to focus on specific activities (e.g. work placements) is usually descriptive more than evaluative

10. Issues • No consensus on what should be included in WRL • Key problems -about assessments in the workplace and giving support to workplace learning • Evidence that some student groups less likely to take up work placement opportunities • Challenges of sustaining employability projects beyond the development phase • Need better evaluative evidence (I.e. indicators of successful WRL outcomes)

11. Issues (continued) • Lack of inter-connectedness of various WRL activities within HEIs • Despite the level of progress that has been made to enhance employability, it is still a challenge to give WRL opportunities for all students in HE-especially in research-led HEIs