Given the recent focus on the employability and earnings of university graduates in the UK, there is a need to explore the employability initiatives offered by higher education institutions (HEIs). Work placements and work experience offered through HEIs aim to improve students' job readiness, and ability to secure suitable jobs after graduation,…

Work-based learning is used and assessed in higher education a variety of ways. In this paper we look particularly at the differences between the assessment of WBL when it is constructed as a field of study, i.e., using generic and transdisciplinary criteria and when it is constructed as a mode of study, i.e., when it is assessed using subject…

Reports on a study of how business students' views of work are altered by the industrial training year of the course. It was found that there is no evidence to support the hypothesis that changes in orientations to work of the students studied would result from the one year's experience of industrial training. (CT)

Reviews reasons for incorporating work-based learning (WBL) into higher education degrees and the barriers to achieving this. Notes five key dimensions of WBL. Describes and evaluates environmental audits undertaken in a graduate geography course at Lancaster University (England). Makes recommendations for maximizing the benefits of WBL in…

This document, which is based on a survey of over 500 staff members involved in approximately 150 work experience programs in the United Kingdom, deals with developing work experience programs and training the staff involved in these programs. The research project on which this document is based is briefly described. The first major section deals…

Describes the context and objective of a Work-Place Cooperative Project (WPCP) established in the School of Geography at the University of Leeds in 1995. The project presents students with business, commerce, industry, and environmental research issues that have geographical dimensions. Includes a number of examples from the WPCP. (MJP)

This book on work experience programs in the United Kingdom begins with "History and Policy Context" (Ian Jamieson, Andrew Miller), which reviews the development of work experience in the United Kingdom, considers the current policy framework, and poses possible future scenarios. "The Concept of Work Experience" (A. G. Watts)…

This paper reports a survey of the progress of participants in a year in industry scheme for A' level graduates in the UK typically aged 18/19. The scheme involves spending a supervised year in industry prior to a degree programme in engineering. The evidence shows that the year in industry: has a beneficial effect on the degree classification of…

Intended for those responsible for supervised work experience in all levels in further and higher education, this book debates some issues surrounding placements and outlines a procedure for managing them. Chapter 1 is an introduction to the topic. Chapter 2 discusses the educational purpose of placements. Chapter 3 suggests that some difficulties…

This guide is intended to assist those responsible for supporting and evaluating a Youth Training Scheme (YTS) program in Great Britain. The first section contains an overview of the objectives and design of YTS. Addressed for the Certificate of Prevocational Education, a sample work learning guide (planned work experience and on-the-job training,…