Measuring the impact of work place learning on graduate employability

Universities are increasingly expected to deliver graduate employability with quality workplace learning (WPL) programs considered the optimal vehicle and silver bullet for employability skill development. Surprisingly this commonly accepted link remains largely unsubstantiated given the lack of an employability measure which prevents any effective measurement of employability skills, employability factor validation, employability frameworks appraisal, stakeholder contribution evaluations, diagnostic tools (Chhinzer & Russo, 2018; Dacre Pool, Qualter, & Sewell, 2014; Tymon, 2013; Williams, Dodd, Steele, & Randall, 2016) and therefore WPL program efficacy. An effective employability measure would enable a better understanding of the relationship between employability and WPL allowing useful assessment of university WPL programs and focussed targeting of vulnerable cohorts to maximise student employability prospects. This is particularly important for business schools who traditionally do not mandate WPL programs for all students. The measurement of employability offers exciting opportunities to quantify the benefits of WPL for a wider audience.