Language Graduates:Addressing the issue of

employability

Graham Webb

Head of Languages

Leeds Metropolitan University

g.webb@leedsmet.ac.uk

Issues addressed in this presentation:

• Employers’ views on the employability of (Joint Honours) Languages Graduates

• A Work Based Learning Module for students that develops their employability

– To convince employers of the graduates’ employability

– To convince the students of their own employability

• Graduates’ experience and opinions

What’s the situation?Employability of language graduates is good

Keith Marshall (Uni of Wales)

• Unemployment rates of Graduates (2002)

– Medicine 0.44%– Education 3.76%– Language Graduates 5.34%– Business 6.76%– Engineering/technology 7.56%– Media Studies 9.76%

What’s the situation?

Employability of language graduates is good

Prof. Tim Connell (City University)

• “A Question of Careers” (2002)

– “The number of jobs requiring languages is growing…” (4.3)

– The value of … transferable skills should be made plain to students…” (2.15.3.2)

What’s the problem?

• Competition is growing

• We must keep up the pressure

• We should make employability increasingly explicit

– To employers– To language students

Questionnaire to 91 businesses across West

Yorkshire that import or export – or both.

Research carried out in 2007 by Graham Webb

Head of LanguagesLeeds Metropolitan University

How many employees has your company?

501+ 4%151-500

21%

51-150 22%

1-50 53%

Does your company specifically employ people with language skills?

Yes38%

No62%

Are you ever likely to employ people specifically with language skills?

Yes62%

No38%

Does your company ever need or use any of the following?

  Yes No

Written translations from English to a foreign language?  68% 32% 

Written translations from a foreign language to English  66% 34% 

Interpreting between English and a foreign language?  93% 7% 

Use of foreign languages on the telephone? 66%  34% 

Use of foreign languages on overseas trips?  69% 31% 

Reading documents/brochures/websites in a foreign language?  61% 39% 

Reading business letters/e-mails in a foreign language?  59% 41% 

Professional translation agencies?  39% 61% 

Professional interpreters?  25% 75% 

If you employed a language graduate would you expect them to be able to..?

  Yes No

Undertake translations from English into the foreign language?  92% 8% 

Undertake translations from the foreign language into English?  92% 8% 

Interpret between English and the foreign language?  92% 8% 

Undertake general correspondence in the foreign language?  92% 8% 

Write formal documents or reports in the foreign language?  73% 27% 

Use the foreign language on the telephone?  96% 4% 

Learn new foreign languages as required?  42% 58% 

What do you think about the value of foreign languages to your business

currently?

Irrelevant21%

Vital25%

Useful54%

What do you think about the value of foreign languages to your business in

the future?

More41%

Less1%

The same58%

If you employed a language graduate how much would you expect them to know

about the business world of the country whose language they studied?

Nothing7%

A little47%

A lot11%

Quite a lot35%

Addressing the needs of employers:

• Focus on applied language skills• Not just language for “business”• Languages for “the world of work”• A Work Based Learning Module for students

that develops their employability– To convince employers of language graduates’

employability– To convince the students of their own

employability

Our solution:A Level 3 Work Based Learning Module:

• For all Level 3 languages undergraduates

• Provides undergraduates with practical experience of the application of languages and transferable skills in a professional situation

• Gives hard evidence to employers and language graduates of employability

Key features of Module:

• Single 15 credit module in Level 3 (Sem 1 & 2)

• Students work in groups of 5

• Grouped by their main foreign language

• Local companies provide each group with an international market research project

• Students use the full range of their language and transferable skills to complete the project

A typical project:

Jacuzzi UK:

• Re: “Classic design” bathroom products in Spanish speaking markets:

– Identify:• Macroeconomic situation in Spain• Evolution of the sanitary ware sector• Key competitors and market share• Distribution channels for “Classic design” products• Recommendations for market entry/development

Skills developed:• Teamwork• Project management• Research• Time management• Language:

– research, questionnaires, e-mails, business culture, correspondence, telephone, technical vocabulary

• Report writing• Presentation skills

Assessment:

• Final group written report (in English)• Formal presentation to company managers

(in English)• Individual “reflective” Report (in English) –

analysing the value of the learning experience

• An element of “peer assessment”

Engaging the employers:

• Identify and meet them to explain• Ask company managers to arrange

– Factory tour– Presentation of the Project brief

• Employers allocate a liaison person• Company managers attend the final

assessed group presentation (video recorded)

What do the students get?

• Direct contact with professionals• Practical experience using languages in the

way they are needed at work• Hard evidence of output• Reflection on the skills developed – and

applied• Demonstrate they can “hit the ground

running” in their first job

What do the employers get?

• Some valuable research• Opportunity to identify potential employees• Engagement with the university• Way to demonstrate “social responsibility”• Contribute to education and preparation of

enterprising graduates• Exposure through links from our website

What do employers say about working with us?

Comments from:

Ian Burn, Camira Fabrics Ltd

David Attia, Jacuzzi UK

Karen Hirst, thebigword

Ian BurnMarketing Manager, Camira FabricsRe the student market research projects provided

by Camira Fabrics:

• …the students came up with really valuable information for us…

• …we were absolutely stunned to be honest by the amount of information they unearthed….

• …they developed skills that will really make them highly valued employees to future employers.

David AttiaInternational Business Director

Jacuzzi UKRe the student market research projects provided by

Jacuzzi UK:

• …we’ve been working with Leeds Met for 7 years and take great delight in offering their students projects on markets we are focusing on…

…

for students to use their linguistic skills is absolutely essential for today’s international marketplace…

Karen HirstHR Manager, thebigword

(the projects Leeds Met language students do)…... give added value to their applications and makes them valuable employees when they come and work for us at thebigword…

Language Graduates:Addressing the issue of

employability

Graham Webb

Head of Languages

Leeds Metropolitan University

g.webb@leedsmet.ac.uk

Questionnaire to 30 language graduates from between 1998 and 2005

Research carried out in 2007 by Graham Webb

Head of LanguagesLeeds Metropolitan University

Have you used your languages at all since graduating?

No4%

Yes96%

Have you had any jobs where languages have been essential?

No46%

Yes54%

Do you use languages at work now?

Sometimes36%

Never29%

All the time18%

Often18%

Have your languages been useful at all since you graduated?

Yes100%

No0%

Have you ever been paid more because of your language skills?

No54%

Yes46%

Do you specifically want a job where you use your language skills?

No39%

Yes61%

Have you travelled abroad with any of your jobs so far?

No36%

Yes64%

Have you learned any other languages since graduating?

Yes21%

No79%

Are you glad you studied languages at university?

Yes100%

No0%

Language Graduates:Addressing the issue of

employability

Graham Webb

Head of Languages

Leeds Metropolitan University

g.webb@leedsmet.ac.uk