UNIVERSITY AND EMPLOYER COLLABORATION TO IMPROVE GRADUATE EMPLOYABILITY

This research explores the relationship between universities and employers in the pursuit of improving graduate employability. The origins lie in the researcher’s experience across a variety of settings at the interface of education and the workplace. The primary aim is to explore university-employer relationships at a regional level, to inform practice and policy supporting graduates into high-skilled roles.

The study is underpinned by an interpretivist research philosophy and adopts a case study approach. The sample includes a range of academic, professional services, and senior leadership staff across three universities, with a focus on Business Schools. Employers are represented by a selection of multinational corporations, small/medium sized enterprises, and organisations from the public and third sectors.
Key findings to address the research questions around the ‘who’, ‘why’, ‘how’, and ‘what’ of graduate employability are presented. This is followed by a discussion framed by stakeholder theory which provides a fresh perspective for this topic.

It argues three key themes influence contemporary university-employer relationships: the productive role of stakeholder tension; use of common employability language by different stakeholders; and the strategic role of Careers and Employability Services leaders. A further contribution lies in the framework for practice designed to guide HE teams through the complex process of managing employer relationships to improve graduate employability. This integrates findings with relevant literature, specifically a model of university-employer relationships for higher skills provision, and a taxonomy of educator-employer links. It comprises a sequence of eight steps, with guidance for implementation.

The conclusions from this study show the application of stakeholder theory brings new insights to university-employer relationships. It offers six contributions to knowledge, and presents implications for practice and policy, whilst acknowledging limitations. It closes with suggestions for future research and a personal reflection on the doctoral experience.