A collaborative approach to placement preparation and career planning for university students: a case study

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1 Journal of Vocational Education & Training ISSN: (Print) (Online) Journal homepage: A collaborative approach to placement preparation and career planning for university students: a case study Stephen Barthorpe & Melanie Hall To cite this article: Stephen Barthorpe & Melanie Hall (2000) A collaborative approach to placement preparation and career planning for university students: a case study, Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 52:2, , DOI: / To link to this article: Published online: 19 Dec Submit your article to this journal Article views: 729 View related articles Citing articles: 5 View citing articles Full Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at Download by: [ ] Date: 04 January 2017, At: 02:48

2 Journal of Vocational Education and Training, Volume 52, Number 2, 2000 A Collaborative Approach to Placement Preparation and Career Planning for University Students: a case study STEPHEN BARTHORPE & MELANIE HALL University of Glamorgan, Pontypridd, United Kingdom ABSTRACT The increasing proportion of graduates in the working population forces employers to be more demanding and discriminating in their selection of employees. Employers are especially concerned to recruit new graduates make an immediate contribution without a lengthy induction process. Preparing higher education students for their sandwich industrial placement year and also their future careers is therefore vitally important. This article discusses the innovative and collaborative placement and careers preparation programme given to students at the University of Glamorgan during the past four years. The programme is jointly delivered by a placement tutor and a careers advisor. The key to the success of this programme is the synergy developed between the two programme coordinators, who combine their respective extensive industrial experience and career counselling skills to facilitate a series of effective, participative workshops that develop the students employability attributes. Introduction A review of the placement preparation given to students in Building and Civil Engineering courses by a placements tutor and a simultaneous, independent analysis of the effectiveness of career counselling by a careers advisor at the University of Glamorgan in 1995, led to a partnership between academic and careers service staff that developed an innovative, collaborative Career Planning and Placement Preparation Programme. Prior to the collaborative approach, students received their placement preparation from placement tutors (lecturers with student specific placement responsibilities). The preparation included CV writing 165

3 Stephen Barthorpe & Melanie Hall and interview techniques. Although well intentioned and enthusiastically delivered, it lacked the depth of career development knowledge and skills, which the careers service counsellors could offer. This interest by the placement tutor in improving the placement preparation coincided with a desire by the careers service counsellors to improve their career planning provision. This suggested a move away from the more time-consuming individual consultation given to students in their final year, towards a more structured and dynamic programme of workshops and seminars aimed at second year students prior to their placements. Follow-up consultation sessions were still available to students requiring individual advice. Exploratory discussions between the placement tutors of the School of the Built Environment and the Careers Service Counsellors identified the shortcomings of their separate placement and career planning provision, and led to the creation of a jointly prepared and delivered Career Planning programme. Although this generic model has been developed for construction industry students, it can be easily adapted to other vocations and is also currently used in a non-industry specific application across the University of Glamorgan campus on an open-access basis. Career Planning/Placement Preparation Workshop Programme The programme consisted of the following components: Overview of placement and career opportunities and preferences Creative job searching Skills Identification The application process CV writing The recruitment process Interview technique Mock interviews Induction, and health and safety aspects of placements Feedback session (Table I) Workshop exercises involved both peer and tutor assessments and feedback. Students are required, at short notice, to give brief presentations and conduct interviews as interviewers, interviewees and as observers, to develop interpersonal and communication skills and also gain confidence. Collaborative Career Planning and Placement Preparation Programme A comprehensive workbook was produced and used during the workshops, and as reference material for later use after the completion of 166

4 PLACEMENT PREPARATION AND CAREER PLANNING the programme. The workbook: Job Hunting a systematic and creative way to do it combines essential careers guidance theory and good practice with individual and group assessed exercises. Week Workshop (2 hours duration) Title Workshop contents Student activity (tutor /peer assessed where appropriate) 1 Overview of placement/ career opportunities & preferences 2 Creative Job Searching Industry-specific overview of opportunities Overview of opportunities with clients/suppliers etc. Indication of geographical employer demand Presentation by former placement students Student placement preferences indicated Where to look for jobs / placements How to apply CVs, SAF s, Letters, Enquiries Case Studies Students complete Placement Preferences form indicating short list of placement types and geographical preferences. (Placement tutor uses forms to match student / employer requirements during placement search) Student centred brainstorming session identifying extensive job opportunity sources. Assignment - Students required to write an application letter and Standard Application Form for mock interview in week 7 3 Skills Identification Job description introduction Core Skills identification Definition of Competent Worker criteria Linking employer core competence requirements with applicant skills and attributes Students devise a job description and person specification from a selection of published advertisements. Students produce their own advertisement. Students identify their skills and attributes from previous or current employment, sports, social or charity involvement. 4 The Application Process - CVs 5 The Recruitment Process CV essentials structure, contents & presentation Emphasising a skills based CV Gearing a CV towards a specific job Video Why ask me that Employer selection procedures First / second interview requirements Presentation by guest-speaker from industry highlighting standards and requirements expected of applicants. Students required to produce a CV for later assessment Feedback and review of video Students complete a time-controlled psychometric test Students develop group dynamics in wilderness survival exercise. Question / Answer session with guest speaker 6 Interview Technique Interview technique introduced Interviewer / Interviewee techniques Video Two whole days 7 Mock Interviews Assessed Mock Interviews in video suite Students role play interviewer, interviewee and observer Feedback and review of video Students conduct assessed interviews as interviewee and interviewer 8 Induction & Health + Safety Aspects of Placements Health & Safety issues discussed risks identified Simulated Induction Video So you re in charge Students sign confirming attendance and understanding of simulated induction. Feedback and review of video 9 Feedback Session Brief summary of programme Update of placement opportunities Guidance given regarding placement requirements Student Feedback taken Students complete questionnaire indicating level of satisfaction Table I. Collaborative career planning and placement preparation programme. 167

5 Stephen Barthorpe & Melanie Hall The Career Planning/Placement Preparation Workshop Programme Guide Week 1: overview of placement and career opportunities and preferences The placement tutor provides an overview of the industry and likely opportunities available within it, as well as those that may exist in associated client, support and supply industries. An indication of geographic regional employment trends is given, as well as encouragement to consider international opportunities. Former placement students, currently in their final academic year are invited to share their placement experiences and answer questions generated by the prospective placement students. Students complete a Placements Preferences form, short-listing their preferred type of work placement (design, site engineering, surveying, etc.) and also indicating their mobility and geographical preference. This information enables the placement tutor to match employer and student requirements more effectively, therefore, increasing the mutual levels of suitability and satisfaction. Week 2: creative job searching The emphasis early in the programme is to get the students to identify where potential placement or career opportunities exist. In a highly interactive approach involving brainstorming and snowballing techniques the students are able to appreciate the diversity of sources available. The fundamental application process is introduced including: speculative enquiries, application letters, CVs, Employer and Standard Application Forms. Students are required to complete a Standard Application Form before the next workshop as part of their assessment. Week 3: skills identification The identification of core skills and the definition of the criteria needed to be a competent worker are explored. Students use examples of job advertisements extracts from appropriate journals are included in the workbook to carefully ascertain employer requirements and produce job descriptions, and person specifications for group analysis and discussion. Once the basic understanding of employer requirements and esoteric terminology is appreciated, the students are then better prepared to identify their own skills and attributes from their current or 168

6 PLACEMENT PREPARATION AND CAREER PLANNING previous full-time or part-time work experiences, and sporting, recreational or charity involvement and achievements. Students commonly understate their potential until the link between common skill attributes and employability criteria is understood. These links are not always necessarily understood by employers either especially if the recruitment process is conducted by staff inexperienced in careers or human resource development. The relationship, therefore, for leadership potential in the workforce and responsibilities attached to being sports team captain, for example, need to be emphasised on student s CVs. Week 4: the application process CVs The application process is developed and particular attention is attached to the production of a skills-based CV. Presentation, structure and content is discussed with appropriate examples provided in the workbook. Students are advised to make a standard CV, which should be customised to suit each specific job application where necessary. A useful video, Why Ask Me That? is used to illustrate the importance of carefully identifying and emphasising all appropriate skills and attributes on CVs when making job applications. Week 5: the recruitment process A variety of employer selection procedures is introduced, emphasising possible single and multiple selection stages. Students complete a brief time-controlled psychometric test (a hybrid of private and civil service employer tests utilising written, numerate and spatial problems), and receive immediate results and feedback. Students are then given the opportunity to develop their group dynamic skills by doing a wilderness survival exercise. A presentation by a senior manager of a national contracting organisation is given to the students adding credibility to the programme, and highlighting the competitive nature of the recruitment process and the need for high quality applications. Week 6: interview technique Interview technique is discussed, highlighting the important preparation stages, including: researching the prospective employer particulars directly from the organisation and indirectly through Internet, journal and official government sources; 169

7 Stephen Barthorpe & Melanie Hall students role-play interviews as interviewers, interviewees and as observers; killer questions are used and appropriate answers considered. Staff observe all three students in the interview simulation and provide feedback. Privately, one of the students, usually the interviewee, will be given an instruction by the tutor to perform an aggressive, disinterested or over-familiar role. The other two students, being unaware of this, have their reactions tested, and enhanced interest and enjoyment is usually achieved when the secret is shared at the end of the interview by the tutor. The role-play exercise continues until the students have had the opportunity to rotate roles and perform each part of the interview process. The video Two Whole Days is shown to indicate the variety and quality of individual and group assessments required by employers. Week 7: mock interviews Students bring their CVs and Standard Application Forms to an interview suite to be interviewed by a panel comprising of staff and students. The interview is video-recorded and transmitted to an observation room, where students can monitor the progress of the interview and learn from good, as well as bad habits and techniques. The interview lasts 10 minutes and is rather intensive. The video recording tends to add to the pressure of the occasion, and brief preliminary feedback is given by staff at the conclusion of the interview for the benefit of interviewee and student interviewer. Formal written feedback and assessment is provided at the end of the programme. Week 8: induction and health and safety aspects of placements The Health and Safety aspects of placements vary according to the industry or environment the students are working in. Within any particular industry there may exist different working environments that influence the extent and nature of risk. Emphasis needs to be given, therefore, on all possible health and safety issues to ensure that the students are adequately prepared for their placements. All employers are required by law (Health & Safety at Work Act, 1974ff) to have a Health & Safety Policy, and to ensure that they provide their employees (including placement students) with a safe and healthy working environment. This workshop reinforces these safety issues to the students and a simulated employer induction is given requiring the students to sign confirming their attendance and understanding. The students are therefore able to understand the importance of looking out for their own 170

8 PLACEMENT PREPARATION AND CAREER PLANNING and their colleagues safety. The video So You re in Charge is shown, which identifies typical safety hazards on a construction site and highlights the responsibilities of management to control these risks. Week 9: feedback session A brief summary of the whole workshop programme is given, providing a useful reminder of the important aspects of the job selection, application and recruitment stages. An update of current placement opportunities is given, together with general encouragement and advice. Feedback from applications already received by employers, where available, is also shared. An explanation of the employer and university requirements of the placement is given and reinforced with appropriate guidance notes. Finally, formal written student feedback is obtained from questionnaires, which are designed to ascertain the level of satisfaction gained by the students from the placement preparation programme. The feedback is then used to improve future programmes. Assessment Criteria Appropriate credit needs to be given to the students for the successful completion of the programme, and our experience is that students attach less importance to units that are non-assessed. Feedback from students returning from placements where they have experienced employment at first-hand, suggests the value they place on communication and interpersonal skills, topics which are sometimes seen as soft during the course. The assessment credit for this work can therefore either contribute to an existing module or operate independently as a full module credit. The assessment criteria of the model described contributes to existing modules and is apportioned as follows: Application letter 10% Standard application form 25% Curriculum vitae 25% Mock interview 40% 100%* * The total mark attained is then weighted by a factor and added to the other coursework and exam marks to determine the module grade. 171

9 Stephen Barthorpe & Melanie Hall Feedback and Critical Review The feedback obtained from completed and returned questionnaires from the students during the first year of operation of this programme was generally very satisfactory. Some suggested improvements concerning the timing of the programme delivery were made and these were implemented into the following year s programme, achieving the desired effect. The questionnaire was issued to approximately 30 students who had attended. 25 responses were returned and these are represented in Table II. Question asked: To what extent was the programme... Very poor Very good 5 Score (max.) 125* Satisfaction (%) Useful? Interesting? Delivered at the appropriate time? Developed job hunting skills? Tutors effective? Table II. End of programme evaluation. (Sample size: 25 therefore 25 5 = 125* maximum possible score to indicate 100% satisfaction.) From Table II, it is noticeable that 24 (96%) of the students ranked the programme as being useful at level 3 or above. Twenty-two students (84%) considered the programme to be interesting at level 3 or above. The least satisfactory element of the course appears to be the appropriateness of the timing of the programme at 49.6% overall. The main criticism, shared by 16 students, was that Semester B, year 2 would be a more appropriate time to deliver the programme (than Semester A as delivered for the first time in 1995). The whole aim of the programme is to enhance the students' employability and job-hunting skills. It was particularly pleasing to note that 23 (92 %) of the students rated their enhanced job-hunting skill development at level 3 or higher. 172

10 PLACEMENT PREPARATION AND CAREER PLANNING One-hundred per cent of the students rated the effectiveness of the tutors at or above level 3 (with an overall 82.4% satisfaction level). The overall average degree of satisfaction of the career and placement preparation programme extrapolated from Table II is 71.84%. This figure should increase with the improvements and refinements made to the future delivery of the programme taken from the students' suggestions. Barriers to Implementation The Dearing Report Higher Education in the Learning Society published in July 1997 makes 93 recommendations. Number 18 states: We recommend that all institutions should, over the medium term, identify opportunities to increase the extent to which programmes help students to become familiar with work, and help them reflect on such experience. Other recommendations concern the nature of programmes, and transferable or core skills. Academic institutions can and should, therefore, equip their graduates and placement students with the employability skills and attributes attainable from career and placement preparation programmes. Although the benefits and success of the career planning and placement preparation programme are evident, there are barriers to its implementation. Many diploma and degree courses at universities are modular and semester-based schemes, and paradoxically exhibit certain rigid characteristics that inhibit adaptability, especially the incorporation of a programme of non-core, vocationally-orientated soft subjects. Academics, accreditation bodies, incorporated professional bodies and even employer representatives at universities may also not welcome the introduction of a programme of study that competes for student attention with the core subjects and which may even be seen as a potential dilution of the prescribed academic focus. The team-delivered, collaborative approach may appear resourceinefficient and expensive, but the opportunity to provide such a challenging programme of guidance to a workshop involving 20 students simultaneously, not only produces enhanced learning outcomes, but significantly reduces the time-consuming one-to-one interviews that would otherwise be the case. The Careers Service continues to offer individual attention, but following the successful completion of the collaborative preparation programme of workshops, it is noticeable that students generally only require occasional job-specific counselling later to refine job-seeking skills. It is also noticeable that preplacement stage students that have acquired the basic job-seeking and employability skills from the collaborative programme are more confident and resourceful in their final 173

11 Stephen Barthorpe & Melanie Hall academic year when considering career options and when making job applications. Students also become more familiar with and are appreciative of the range of services available to them at the Careers Service compared with those students that neglected this service. The greatest potential barrier to implementation of a career planning and placement preparation programme within an existing scheme at university is, however, likely to be due to inertia and resistance to change. The model described did require a substantial amount of time and effort in planning and delivery, and also received a mixed response from some colleagues sceptical of its potential. However, the success of the programme, supported by student feedback demonstrates the effectiveness and appropriateness of its inclusion. Conclusions A significant requirement for the success of the collaborative programme delivery is the dependency upon a successful partnership between the academic placement tutors and the careers service counsellors. The model described above benefited from having experienced careers counsellors, who also have very good teaching abilities, and the placement tutors, who have relevant industrial experience, teaching abilities and an interest in careers guidance. Frequently during the workshops, anecdotal examples from the placement tutors experience reinforced career guidance theory and instruction from the careers counsellors. The placement tutors continued close liaison with industrial employers ensured that the students had up to date reference to employer requirements concerning recruitment and application opportunities and procedures. The innovative programme delivered in collaboration between academic and career service staff at the School of the Built Environment at the University of Glamorgan has produced an effective, challenging and enjoyable example, which other universities may consider worthwhile adopting. Correspondence Stephen Barthorpe, School of the Built Environment, Education Development Unit, University of Glamorgan, Pontypridd CF37 1DL, United Kingdom (sbarthor@glam.ac.uk). Video References So You re in Charge. Produced by Mighty Pen Production, Chertsey for Construction Health and Safety Group

12 PLACEMENT PREPARATION AND CAREER PLANNING Two Whole Days. Produced by Teaching Support Media Services, Southampton University. Why Ask Me That? Produced by Teaching Support Media Services, Southampton University. References Dearing, R. (1997) Higher Education in the Learning Society. Main report. London: NCIHE. Health & Safety at Work Act (1974) London: HMSO. Job Hunting a systematic and creative way to do it (1995) Pontypridd: Careers Service, University of Glamorgan. 175