Research educators, scholars, and employers often debate the nature and purpose of doctoral training. Should doctoral degrees exist only to make new knowledge and replenish the academic workforce or are they part of broader societal-enhancement and employment agendas? Or both? This study aimed to identify and analyse tensions in Australian…

Background: Engineering education seeks to prepare students for engineering practice, but the concept of preparedness is often ill-defined. Moreover, findings from studies of different populations or in different contexts vary regarding how well new graduates are prepared. These variations, coupled with the lack of clarity, suggest the need to…

The contexts of fatherhood in the 21[superscript st] -century are leading to meaningful changes in responsibilities for fathers. These changes are welcomed by many and benefit the family unit in many ways. However, nontraditional doctoral student fathers pursuing a doctorate and maintaining full-time employment face numerous challenges as they…

This qualitative phenomenological study employs a phenomenological approach to investigate the lived experiences of veterans returning to higher education. It aims to explore and understand the experiences and difficulties faced by veterans as they reintegrate into college education. Thematic analysis is used to analyze qualitative data,…

Recognizing the significance of soft skills in workplace success, some organizations have implemented strategies such as internships, conferences, and workplace coaching to aid employees in developing these skills. Given that Generation Z employees are now entering the workforce in greater numbers, it becomes imperative to employ methods that…

The field of nutrition has seen a growing interest and demand in recent years, with more students choosing to study within the field. This demand has highlighted the importance of producing work-ready graduates with skills that enhance their employability and ability to contribute effectively to the workforce. This study investigated the role of…

As colleges and universities continue to navigate the longer-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, a wealth of knowledge and insights exists within many community colleges to inform how to best prepare students for the fast-changing demands of learning, work, and life. Using a strengths-based approach and interviews with students from three large…

New managerialism and neo-liberal discourses have re-shaped traditional academic practices towards the vocational aspects of higher education. One institutional response to the growing graduate employability policy agenda has been the introduction of work-integrated learning (WIL) within Australian universities, a form of learning to require…

The purpose of this qualitative study was to understand how ten student veterans persist after entering private, 4-year institutions of higher education during or following their military service. The study's conceptual framework, drawing from Vacchi's Model of Student Veteran Support (2011, 2013), employs a narrative approach to spotlight the…

The high rates of premature contract termination (PCT) in vocational education and training (VET) programs have led to an increasing number of studies examining the reasons why adolescents drop out. Since adolescents' trajectories after a PCT are quite diverse, a thorough assessment of different "dropout directions" is called for.…

Combining work and higher education is becoming a standard part of young people's lives. The challenges of balancing vocational and educational commitments make young people more susceptible to stress and burnout. However, vocational and educational contexts can also stimulate professional development and evoke engagement. This study follows a…

This study compares the transition from education to work for Norwegian graduates with a professional STEM master's degree to that of their peers with a non-professional STEM master's degree. We find that professional STEM graduates tend to have better labour market outcomes than other STEM graduates. However, the unemployment rate of professional…

Working-class students often face more challenges in securing graduate-level jobs than their middle-class peers. This paper applies the concept of boundary crossing in studying the experience of Finnish business graduates from a working-class background (n = 27) and asks what types of boundaries they have faced and how they have managed them on…

This study examines how the association between higher education and the socioeconomic status is affected by positional educational advantages in West Germany from 1976 to 2015. Positional educational advantages account for the declining exclusiveness of higher education degrees in the course of educational expansion, which is accompanied by…

In recognition of the forty-year anniversary of "Higher Education Research & Development," this article reviews the research on higher education and the world of work in the journal, including how 'work' has been defined, prioritised, integrated, and predicted in the field of higher education research. Based on an analysis of…