FEATURE
It is deeply
satisfying to see the expansion of the global network and to observe the pace at which the new associations have established themselves. NZAGE are a case in point. In their first year they
have attracted more than 50 members, and in November 2012 they held their own annual conference in Auckland.
AAGE’s annual conference in Melbourne. As someone who has overseen 15 AGR annual conferences I am always curious to discover how others do it. They say that plagiarism is the best form of flattery and I have no qualms about taking and adapting the best practice I come across to improve our conference programme. And I know my opposite numbers do exactly the same! I will be able to feed some of the ideas I picked up in Auckland and Melbourne into the programming of our own annual conference. It’s remarkable just how many similarities exist in graduate
recruitment and development practice across such diverse countries. One challenge that seems common to all is that of having to manage more with less. The employability agenda in higher education is a priority and the value of student work experience receives universal support. The impact and value of social media in the graduate recruitment process was a hot topic at both of the conferences, with working sessions attracting high numbers. There are also some obvious differences and ‘down under’ I discovered that the vast majority of the graduates recruited by AAGE members had undertaken vocational degrees with accounting, banking and finance, business management and law topping the list. Other popular degree disciplines include engineering, IT and Computing and Sales and Marketing. This differs significantly from
the UK where, among AGR employers, only a quarter of vacancies require a specific degree. However, in England there is growing evidence that as a consequence of the hike in tuition fees, some young people are opting out of higher education (in favour of apprenticeships) while others are opting for vocational degree courses in the belief that this will enhance their prospects of landing a job on graduation. If this trend continues it will change the shape of higher education in England. There will be plenty of teeth gnashing from traditional academics and from those employers who still value the broader degree disciplines where critical thinking skills are developed. The Australian system demands that students make
career choices before they apply to university. If we are heading in the same direction then sixth-formers will be in need of expert careers information, advice and guidance. There is, however, a widely held view that the provision of guidance in our schools is on the decline. Another consequence of a switch to earlier vocational decision making is the likelihood that there will be a growing number of HE and apprenticeship graduates who want to change career direction as they develop as adults (especially if they have not had the benefit of professional guidance). The qualifications framework must be designed in such a way as to avoid driving graduates into career cul-de-sacs.
GRADUATE RECRUITER 9
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