This document discusses preparing young people for future employment. It notes that one third of jobs require graduate-level skills and employers seek graduates with strong employability skills like teamwork, communication, and a good work ethic. However, only 25% of employers believe graduates are well-prepared for employment. The document recommends universities embed employability skills into degree programs rather than offering them as extras. It outlines changes one university is making, like requiring a leadership module and team-based assignments, to better develop students' skills.

1. Preparing young people for job

2. How we can prepare the
young people of today for their
future employment

3. What we’ll cover
•What employers want
•Why they want it
•How we can help them...and
the young people studying
with us

4. Graduate
employment
•One third of all jobs require
graduate level skills
•Slightly less than that are at
graduate level
•Bank of England – last 10
years all employment growth in
graduate jobs, decline in
prospects without higher
education

5. Are we doing
enough?
“…we believe the
current supply of
graduates is broadly
acceptable in terms of
quantity, there are
question marks over
quality – especially what
they’re studying and
how they use what
they’ve learnt.”

6. What employers
are looking for

7. Subject vs General Ability
•44% looking for specific technical knowledge,
eg: STEM
•48% take degree as indication of all-round
ability

8. Employability skills
•Highly sought-after
•Need to hit the ground running and add value
•Evidence of skills in team-working,
communication, creativity, having a positive
attitude, good work ethic, being punctual,
reliable and able to meet deadlines.

9. Top 10 Skills
1. Honesty and integrity;
2. Basic literacy skills;
3. Basic oral communication skills (e.g. telephone skills);
4. Reliability;
5. Being hardworking and having a good work ethic;
6. Numeracy skills;
7. A positive, ‘can do’ attitude;
8. Punctuality;
9. The ability to meet deadlines; and
10. Team working and co-operation skills

10. Employers most impressed by...
•Honesty and integrity (93%)
•IT skills (85%)
•Reliability (85%)
•Ability to work in teams (82%)

11. ...but less impressed by gaps
•Business acumen (-41%)
•Leadership skills (-41%)
•Decision-making (-42%)
•Negotiating/influencing skills (-42%)
Where evidenced, a big “sell” for employers

12. Net result
•Only 25% of employers believe young people
(graduates and non-graduates) are well-prepared
for employment
•Employability skills keenly sought
•90% of directors believe universities should do
more to enhance employability skills

13. Overall
•71% of companies satisfied overall with
standard (12% dissatisfied)
•68% satisfied with technical skills (9%
dissatisfied)
•55% satisfied with wider employability skills
(18% dissatisfied)

14. How universities compare
•51% - quality of university education good or
excellent
•31% - FE good or excellent
•22% - schools good or excellent

15. Recommendations
•No one “right” way, but employability and
enterprise must be central to education
•Embed within programmes – not an optional
extra

16. What Teesside University
Business School is doing
•Full undergraduate review 2008/9 – “live”
October 2009
•Business-led approach
•Designed from the customer in, rather than out
from our interests

17. Three big changes...
•Skills embedded in programmes
– not “do you know how to do it?”, but “have you done it?”
•Leadership and mentoring module
– compulsory part of every programme
•Team working assignments
- having to work with people you don’t like, persuading and
influencing, presentation skills

18. ...and the biggest one of all
•Use of leading-edge business simulation
software
- cross disciplinary problems
- synthesising knowledge
- concentrates on “real world” application
- managing in an uncertain environment
- group dynamics