The employability agenda

Most universities have chosen to embrace employability as a central part of their mission in the light of government, community and industry demands that higher education should be more closely aligned with the national agendas for economic growth and social cohesion (Andrewartha & Harvey, 2017). Although the definition of employability may not be consistent, it is often framed around the ability of an individual to build capacity and capabilities to seek and retain useful employment and prosper in the work environment (Yorke, 2006). This capacity and capability development usually focuses on what employers say they are seeking in graduates,although more recent interpretations of employability include behavioural characteristics such as adaptability, innovation, self-reflection and disposition to maintain sustained employment (Bennett, Richardson & MacKinnon, 2016). What is interesting is that employment rates can be measured relatively easily but there is no definitive way to measure employability. In our previous book (Higgs, Crisp, &Letts, 2019) on this topic many authors reviewed and critiqued strategies that universities have implemented to promote students’ (and thus graduates’) ability to develop and sustain their own employability across changing employment marketplaces.