www.careers.qut.edu.au

QUT Careers and Employment

Career Development Learning

Whose responsibility is it? Practitioners or academics?

Alan McAlpine

(Manager, Careers & Employment)

Career Development Learning

• Theoretical approaches• National• Local• Specifics (QUT Career Development Programs)• Discussion

Career development learning … learning about the content and process of career development or life/career management.

• The content of career development learning …. learning about self and learning about the world of work.

• Process learning … the development of the skills necessary to navigate a successful and satisfying life/career

“Career development learning places the student at the heart of the learning process and enhances the quality of workplace learning”

Professor Tony Watts, National Symposium, 2008

DOTS Model

Watts (1977, 2006)

Systems Theory Framework (Patton & McMahon, 1999)

Career Planning and International Career Counselling Models

McAlpine et al. 2006 Gibson et al. 2006

National Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (NAGCAS)

Project Team

University of WollongongRMIT UniversityUniversity of Southern QueenslandFlinders UniversityMonash University

Career Development Learning:maximising the contribution of work integrated learning to the student experience

Developing graduate careers from workplace experiences

Project Purpose & Deliverables• A scoping study to explore the contribution of

career development learning to work-integrated learning in higher education

• Produce a set of learning resources, principles, guidelines, models, and examples of practice: – how, when, where, and why career development

contributes to work integrated learning

Career Development Learning

Four facets of the DOTS model:Learning about SelfLearning about OpportunitiesLearning about Decision makingLearning about Transitions (Watts, 2006)

CDL Interventions

Specific modulesCurriculum integrationOutside the curriculum

• CDL questions:

• Why am I doing this degree?• How can I make the most of my

studies?• How can I determine the best

pathway for me?• How can I achieve my career

goals?• How can I exploit my talent in the

workforce?

CDL and the literature…its value• To the individual (contributions to transitions, retention

and completion rates and graduate outcomes)• To their university experience (contributions to student

engagement and student satisfaction)• To lifelong learning (contributions to managing lifelong

and lifewide transitions)• To the workplace (contributions to retention, satisfaction

and workplace productivity)• To the nation (contributions to inclusion, participation

and productivity)

Principles• Flexible partnerships support effective career development learning.• Workplace experiences can provide genuine career development learning

opportunities for all students. Multiple experiences and contexts enrich this learning.

• Career Development Learning is student centred, and designed to actively engage students in the workplace experience.

• Career development learning supports quality student centred learning opportunities across all aspects of students’ lives.

• Universities encourage students’ career development and workplace learning by supporting their capacity to systematically reflect, record, and articulate the acquired skills and experience.

• Quality assurance across the experience contributes to better outcomes.

CDL findings• For workplaces to obtain the best outcomes, explicit

career development support needs to be articulated in the workplace for students and employees.

• Disconnection between career development practice in education and in workplace settings

• Dual role for human resources staff as career development practitioners?

• Strengthen the industry/university nexus : university career development practitioners providing a stronger consultancy role to industry?

Further DetailsProject Website

www.nagcas.org.au/ALTC

• All project reports, papers and evolving resources available

• Join the community of practice on the website, to share practice and keep up to date with other practitioners

QUT - context

• 40,000 Students• 2 main campuses plus satellite campuses• 7 Faculties

– Built Environment and Engineering– Business– Creative Industries– Education– Health– Law– Science & Technology

Objectives

Core• Systems• Continuous Improvement• Professional Development & ResearchDirect• Information• Enquiries• Career CounsellingIndirect• Programs• Outreach• Graduate Destinations• Employers• External Activities

BA Modules

IT Coop

Eng Coop

Education

Nursing

Law SEP

Career Development Programs

Prospective

Undergraduate

Postgraduate

International

Schools Overseas Linkages

Industry Groups DEST Contracts

Professional Associations Research

Conference Presentations

Open Day

Orientation

Parents Evening

Student e-Portfolio

Graduate Destinations/CEQ

Career Mentor Scheme

First Year Experience

Information Seminars

Employer Liaison

Employer Presentations

Employer of Choice Breakfast

Careers Fair

Work Experience Scheme

International Placements

Job Vacancies

Faculty Booklets

Generic Handout

Newsletters

Career Development Programs

Website• Prospective• International• Postgraduate• Career Planning

Enquiries

Resume feedback

Interview Coaching

Generic Workshops

Industry Expert Workshops

Elite Athletes

Ways we interact (CDL-WIL)

• General– Raising awareness of service– Providing generalist preparation workshops

• Introducing reflective tool(s)– Introduction to, and use of ePortfolio

• Preparation for WIL experience– Direct preparation for applying for WIL placement– Preparing to get best from experience

• Providing WIL experience– Hosting students

Student Lifecycle

Project Description

A Careers & Employment and TALSS initiative for QUT-wide impact

Supports other major strategic projects Transitions In (FYE), Work Integrated Learning, Transitions Out

Develop a number of online/blended co-curricular programs

Students may receive formal recognition via a statement to appear on their Australian Graduate Statement

Project Description

Can be embedded into course curriculum or completed by students at own will

Each program is split into individual modules

Students complete 5 modules plus one elective to complete a ‘program'

Students may swap programs at any time and still be accredited for modules completed

Background

• Readiness, preparation, orientation…critical through entire degree

• Major focus on linking Curriculum / PDP & Employability

• Strong push for a co-curricular approach

• QUT’s Real World philosophy - fostering Work Placements

• Visually interactive – maintain student interest - activities

Career Development Modules

Suite of Career Development Programs

Work Placement Program

Programs Matrix

Feedback - academic

• I wanted to share with you some positive feedback we got from an INB 103 student who completed the new Self Understanding 1 module this semester. He said (see below)  "I am just emailing to give you positive feedback on the self understanding module. I never thought the module would impact me as much as it did. It made me really think about what I was really interested in and now"

•  • Inspired by reflections the module generated, he saw his interests

also in tourism and is now also looking at getting qualifications in this aspects as well...

•  • I think it is great that we see how these modules are helping our

students to "find themselves" ...• Many thanks for your help in integrating them to our curricula

Feedback - student

• I am just emailing to give you positive feedback on the self understanding module. I never thought the module would impact me as much as it did. It made me really think about what I was really interested in and now I’m currently talking to TAFE to do a Certificate III in Tourism, business and a Diploma of Information Technology (Web Development). "TAFE Open Learning" offers courses externally and you can enrol anytime, so I’m thinking I may start one during the uni holidays.

• I think the inspirational one impacted me the most as it made me realise how I got into uni today and the challenges I had to reach this.

Review Process Questions

• What would a cycle of ongoing quality improvement involve?

• What general feedback do you have on the content? • How would you go about integrating into your

curriculum? • What if any content is missing and could potentially be

added?

Career Development Learning

• Whose responsibility is it? Practitioners or academics?

• Everyone's… and we must include the student