Interprofessional education for first year psychology students: career plans, perceived relevance and attitudes

Undergraduate psychology students have been largely excluded from interprofessional education (IPE) initiatives. In contrast to many health professions, undergraduate psychology students do not engage in work placements as part of their degree, and many enter careers outside the health care context. However, the collaborative skills gained through an IPE experience may well be beneficial to students who work in this wider context. This research examines whether undergraduate psychology students’ views of IPE vary according to their planned career directions, and if so, whether the perceived relevance of IPE mediates the relationships. A sample of 188 Australian university undergraduate psychology students completed an online questionnaire following completion of a first-year IPE health sciences program. Path analysis indicated that psychology students’ attitudes towards IPE are associated with both professional identification and practitioner orientation, fully mediated through the perceived relevance of IPE to future career and study plans. Stronger professional identification and practitioner orientation were associated with greater perceived relevance and more positive and less negative attitudes towards IPE. Placing a stronger emphasis on the generalizability of IP skills taught may increase students’ awareness of the relevance outside of the health context, reducing disengagement of students planning alternative careers

Tempo Fall 2015

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Career management attitudes among business undergraduates

© Australian Council for Educational Research 2016. Globalisation, organisational restructuring and new technology have been connected with a shift to ‘protean’ and ‘boundaryless’ career attitudes with workers, including new graduates, increasingly required to be self-reliant in successfully navigating their careers. This study explores protean and boundaryless career attitudes among Business undergraduates and the influence of demographic, background and employment characteristics on these attitudes. Data were collected for Business undergraduates at a UK (N = 88) and Australian university (N = 284). Results indicate the students score more highly, on average, in the self-direction and boundaryless mindset dimensions. Relatively lower mean scores for physical mobility and values-driven suggest a ‘one high, one low’ pattern among the two items that constitute protean and boundaryless career attitudes. Employment status and Business degree specialisation were found to significantly predict career attitudes. Findings develop our understanding of whether emerging professionals are equipped to effectively self-manage their careers and implications for educators and professional practitioners are discussed

Family-Centered Training and Therapy as Substance Abuse Intervention in Adolescents

We hypothesized that providing mental health resources for adolescents and educating their parents and families would decrease the prevalence of substance abuse in the Camden, NJ community given that overdose death had risen 138% from 2014-2018. Educating parents and families on the importance of adolescents dealing with mental disorders may help evaluate the mental stability of their child and prevent them from turning to illicit substance to cope. Increasing the communication and the availability of resources for adolescents to turn to before resorting to illicit substances can have beneficial effects

Evaluating the impact of career management skills module and internship programme within a university business school

This study evaluates the impact of an intervention on business school graduates’ employability comprising of a curriculum-based career management skills (CMS) module and an industrial placement year. The study uses data from the destinations of leavers of higher education survey to examine the employability of different groups within the cohort (no intervention, CMS module only and CMS module plus structured work experience). It finds that structured work experience has clear, positive effects on the ability of graduates to secure employment in ‘graduate level’ jobs within six months of graduation. Furthermore, participation in the CMS module also has a clear, positive effect upon the ability of participants to secure employment

‘ … and now it’s over to you’: recognising and supporting the role of careers leaders in schools in England

There is a long history of teachers and schools being involved in the delivery of career education and guidance. As the breadth of career education and guidance activity in English schools grew throughout the twentieth century it became increasingly necessary to have an individual within the school responsible for leading and managing this activity (the careers leader). The transfer of responsibility for career guidance from local authorities to schools following the Education Act 2011 has intensified the need for this role. There have been various attempts to conceptualise and professionalise the role of careers leader and to develop appropriate training and support. This article defines the role and the rationale for the role, sets out its history and makes recommendations for the future professionalisation of the role. It is argued that this will include recognition of the role by policy, professionalisation and the development of a career structure and the development of appropriate training and CPD.N/

Reclaiming professional identity through postgraduate professional development: Career practitioners reclaiming their professional selves

Careers advisers in the UK have experienced significant change and upheaval within their professional practice. This research explores the role of postgraduate level professional development in contributing to professional identity. The research utilises a case study approach and adopts multiple tools to provide an in-depth examination of practitioners’ perceptions of themselves as professionals within their lived world experience. It presents a group of practitioners struggling to define themselves as professionals due to changing occupational nomenclature resulting from shifting government policy. Postgraduate professional development generated a perceived enhancement in professional identity through exposure to theory, policy and opportunities for reflection, thus contributing to more confident and empowered practitioners. Engagement with study facilitated development of confident, empowered practitioners with a strengthened sense of professional self

Developing employability in higher education music

The development of employability in higher music education concerns students, musicians, educators, administrators and funding bodies, and yet employability is both impossible to measure and poorly defined. This paper sets the context for a set of short papers that explore employability from the perspective of music. Because many of the issues they raise have relevance across the creative industries, this paper discusses research that positions them within this broader context. The paper highlights the need for both the functional (how-to) aspects of employability and those that are cognitive: development of students' cognitive dispositions and their capacity to engage as professionals. As such, the paper argues that employability requires collaborative action on three fronts: enhancement of the ways in which employment outcomes are defined and measured; initiatives that engage students in career- and life-relevant activities; and advocacy work that re-aligns stakeholder perceptions of graduate work and employability itself

Australian graduates’ work readiness – deficiencies, causes and potential solutions

Purpose – It is widely reported that there is a competence deficit between graduating from Australian higher education (HE) and becoming work ready and that the deficit is becoming more pronounced. The purpose of this paper is to examine the work readiness competencies of Australian HE and vocational education (VE) graduates. The reported competence deficits, the causes of these deficits and the potential strategies to overcome these deficits are discussed. Design/methodology/approach – A qualitative, inductive research design was used to examine Australian graduates’ work readiness competence, potential deficits, their causes and possible solutions to gain some preliminary insights and help shape future research. A multiple case design was used comprising key stakeholders’ in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. In-depth semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions were conducted to gain insights from the key stakeholders. Findings – The stakeholders reported that the Australian VE and HE sectors do not sufficiently prepare graduates in terms of their work readiness skills. Self-management skills, communication (written and expression), team-work skills, cognitive skills, system thinking and innovation and creativity were the main work readiness competency deficits reported by the stakeholders. Research limitations/implications – The research has its limitations in terms of the limited sample and time frame, and the absence of input from graduates. The results of the study indicate the deteriorating state of the Australian graduate labour market and emphasise that an integrated approach is urgently required from all stakeholders to facilitate the transition and reduce the time taken from graduation to employment. Originality/value – The focus of the study is located in the Australian labour market in terms of the competencies that reportedly are present upon graduation and the competencies that employers are looking for on recruitment. The requisite competency list and the deficits are examined through the lens of four stakeholder groups; government representatives, industry representatives and VE and HE representatives. Keywords Employability, Competence deficits, Government and industry stakeholders

Learning experiences for the transition to professional work

A better educated workforce contributes to a more informed and tolerant society with higher economic output, and this is also associated with higher levels of personal health, interpersonal trust and civic and social engagement. Against this backdrop, the role of universities has expanded, as university learning has moved beyond providing an education to preparing students for leadership positions within society. This article examines the effectiveness of final-year learning experiences from the perception of recent graduates. The aim is to improve undergraduate curriculum to facilitate the transition to professional employment. An online quantitative and qualitative survey instrument was developed to investigate graduates’ perceptions of their different learning experiences and assessment types in their senior year. Four hundred and twelve alumni from five universities completed the survey. Our results indicate that graduates value case studies, group work and oral presentations, and that graduates rate lectures and guest lectures from practitioners as the least important in their transition to work. The results validate the use of graduate capability frameworks and mapping the development of the skills over the curriculum. These results are useful for curriculum designers to assist with designing programmes on the transition to professional work