The UK labour market is subject to ongoing pressures, from large-scale economic and industry shifts to changing labour force demographics, generating enduring skills gaps and emphasising the need for individuals to reskill or upskill to remain competitive. Job-related training is one way to close the skills gap - but are those most in need of training able to participate? And, if they do, does the market recognise and value such training? Using UK Labour Force Survey data from 2013 to 2023, this article explores disparities in access to job-related training and the associated wage outcomes. Results show that occupational skill level influences men's and women's participation in training, and that the minority gender in an industry has lower training rates, with individuals participating in training not necessarily the ones most in need of reskilling or upskilling, with notable gender-specific differences. Results also show that women (but not men) participating in training are more likely to have a higher wage 12-15 months later than those who did not participate, conditional on demographic and employment-related characteristics.
The coexistence of multiple skills ecosystems within the same territory can lead to inefficiencies, particularly when driven by distinct public authorities operating at different territorial levels. This paper explores how to address these challenges by constructing a multilevel skills ecosystem, defined as a network of interconnected skills ecosystems coexisting within the same territory. The paper explores three case studies in the Basque Country that represent distinct territorial skills strategies, each initiated by different levels of government: the Basque Government, the Provincial Council of Biscay, and the City Council of Bilbao. The analysis adopts the multilevel governance framework as it aligns with the systemic, place-based, and dynamic leadership emphasised in the skills ecosystem literature, providing a foundation for understanding governance relationships. Five main lessons learnt are discussed. The first concerns the importance of acknowledging the existence and roles of each ecosystem. The second refers to the recommendation of co-designing the governance. The third underlines leadership characteristics in multilevel skills ecosystems, often involving a transformation of internal relational dynamics within leading government bodies. The fourth lesson points to the art of managing time effectively, while the fifth focuses on the role of researchers within this construction process.
This article explores how we can understand retail employees' decisions to remain in retail work and potentially pursue it as a long-term career. Drawing on Bourdieu's sociological concepts of habitus and habitat, this study uses biographical life-story interviews with seven young adults in Denmark to examine how the alignment between individual dispositions and workplace environment shapes career persistence in a stigmatised sector. The analysis begins with the participants' upbringing and their families' perspectives on education and work, followed by their reflections during upper secondary school on potential pathways into adulthood. The study then examines the decision to enter retail, which, for some, may become a lasting commitment. Finally, it addresses participants' reflections on their career path in relation to their friends and broader societal views, where working in a supermarket is often not seen as a prestigious option. Using Bourdieu's framework of society as a social space, and considering family and educational institutions as socialising factors within this space, the participants' career trajectories can be understood as 'cases of the possible' - ways in which individual agents within society are likely to act based on their social context.
Higher education's role in fostering innovation and enacting social change is increasingly important. Transdisciplinary Work-Integrated Learning (TWIL) offers opportunities to prepare students to address societal issues by transcending disciplinary boundaries and collaboratively tackling real-world global challenges. While extensive literature exists on established WIL models, research on the critical aspects of designing, implementing and evaluating impactful TWIL activities remains scarce. This paper draws together insights from 15 TWIL academics across 14 Australian universities, highlighting important design elements such as training for small group collaboration, open-ended projects, design thinking, sustained mentorship and reciprocal partnerships. Emerging challenges related to online delivery, teamwork, scalability, resourcing, and coordinating students from different disciplines. While the study highlights TWIL's unique potential for raising awareness of global issues, building capacity for change and fostering transformational learning, it also reveals the need for thoughtful design, top-down support, and resourcing for effective provision in a challenging higher education space.
Work Integrated Learning (WIL) has the potential to optimise the gap between academia and industry by providing students with practical experience to build a skilled workforce. However, WIL often falls short of its potential. This study argues that unlocking the potential of WIL hinges on understanding the concept of ownership among stakeholders. By examining ownership dynamics among students, industry mentors, academic supervisors and WIL coordinators across six disciplines, the research highlights critical issues of control, trust, and collaboration in WIL programmes. Using a constructivist grounded theory approach, the study uncovers systemic problems, such as stakeholders' reluctance to fully embrace WIL ownership. Disparities in engagement and commitment levels reveal a lack of consistent ownership. Stakeholders frequently feel limited control over grading and project development, leading to unease and dissatisfaction. Additionally, collaboration challenges and a lack of trust further diminish the sense of ownership. These issues combine to contribute to weakened relationships, frequently leading to grade inflation, mistrust and a diminished overall student experience. The study concludes that addressing these fundamental problems has the potential to enhance and enrich the integrity, effectiveness and impact of WIL, benefitting students, higher education institutions and industry alike.
This study investigates the relationship between student employment and academic performance using survey data from two public universities in the United States - one located on the West Coast and one in the Southeast. Unlike prior research that often conceptualises student employment as a singular variable, this study introduces a differentiated framework by disaggregating work into four categories: total hours, on-campus, off-campus, and self-employment. Employing ordinary least squares regression on a sample of 358 undergraduate and graduate business students, the analysis reveals that only on-campus employment is significantly and positively associated with final course grades. Neither total work hours nor off-campus and self-employment exhibit significant associations with academic outcomes. These findings complicate the assumption that employment uniformly detracts from student success and suggest that structured, campus-based employment can enhance academic performance. Regional disparities were also observed, with students in the Southeastern institution working more hours and earning lower grades than their West Coast counterparts. The results underscore the importance of institutional support for academically integrated employment and suggest that expanding on-campus work-study programmes or aligning employment opportunities with academic disciplines may improve educational outcomes, particularly for students balancing financial necessity with academic goals.
Students in the United Kingdom are increasingly engaging in paid term-time employment, raising concerns about its negative impact on academic performance and wellbeing. When effectively balanced with academic studies, supportive employment can be theorised as increasing employee resources and wellbeing. Students who work can develop graduate capital and have reported increased satisfaction and an improved university experience. This research explores students' union perspectives on supporting young employees and adapting to workforce change. Semi-structured qualitative interviews were conducted with professional staff and a student officer working in four students' unions in the South of England. Employee needs and employer support were analysed thematically using graduate capital as a theoretical framework. Notable changes in the cohorts of students entering post-COVID employment were identified, with Human Resource Management practices adapted to meet emerging workforce needs. Findings show how employee capital can be developed for mutual benefit through entry-level term-time work, by incorporating tailored wellbeing conversations, peer mentoring, teamworking structures, clear expectations, and employee feedback mechanisms. This article positions supportive employment as a wellbeing resource and offers insights for employers navigating multigenerational workforces. It additionally proposes a new theoretical positioning of students' union employment within universities' integrated approaches to supporting student mental health.
Using population-wide registry data from Norway, this article examines the labour market implications of the gender gap in school performance by analysing how returns to lower secondary GPA vary by gender and social origin. Overall, high academic performance is associated with high income and lower unemployment probabilities for both men and women. However, the results indicate that men enjoy a compensatory advantage, suggesting that school grades are less crucial for their labour market success. In contrast, high academic performance appears to offset some of the economic disadvantages women face in the labour market. Importantly, however, this is only the case for women from high social origins. In terms of unemployment, both men and women from high-income families benefit from a compensatory advantage, suggesting that poor grades are less detrimental to the labour market opportunities of individuals from high-income backgrounds.
This study explores female entrepreneurship by examining how parental background influences entrepreneurial Intentions, given entrepreneurship's growing significance in economic development. Using survey data from 282 female university students, it analyzes connections between parental education, occupations, and daughters' entrepreneurial aspirations. Contrary to expectations, the findings did not reveal statistically significant links between parents' education levels or occupational backgrounds and their daughters' entrepreneurial Intentions. However, Subjective Norms and perceived institutional support from the university and country significantly influenced entrepreneurial Intentions. Conducted in the United Arab Emirates, where entrepreneurship is actively promoted, this research underscores the role of institutional support and societal norms over familial background. Practical implications recommend that educational institutions and policymakers create programmes involving parents to foster supportive home environments. Socially, understanding these familial dynamics can encourage broader empowerment of women as leaders and innovators, thus enhancing economic growth.
This paper explores how young adults' workplace learning opportunities are actualised in the Danish non-specialised food retail sector, addressing how these opportunities are identified and realised in a low-skilled job environment. A case study approach was employed, focusing on a major Danish retail chain. Data were collected through semi-structured biographical interviews with eight young adults and six management representatives over 12 months. The analysis is grounded in Dewey's pragmatist theoretical framework, particularly his concepts of uncertain situations and inquiry. The study identifies two main situations characterising workplace learning opportunities: (1) the highly routinised nature of work in DKretail limits immediate learning challenges, despite the company's rhetoric of being a learning-oriented enterpris,e and (2) young adults experience tension between adhering to predefined standards and taking responsibility for their own learning, navigating between rule-following and self-directed learning approaches. The study suggests a balanced approach to workplace learning that combines efficiency with opportunities for inquiry and competence development. This paper contributes to understanding workplace learning in the retail sector by analysing how learning opportunities are enacted in practice, emphasising situational analysis and pragmatist theory in capturing the dynamic and relational aspects of workplace learning.
Much research has shown that graduating from school during a recession can have long-lasting negative effects on labour market outcomes, commonly referred to as the 'scarring effect'. On the other hand, a number of studies have found that overeducation of workers is widespread in the labour markets of developed countries. This paper focuses on overeducation as a contributing factor to the scarring effect and aims to uncover the mechanism behind it. By using individual-level data for workers in Japan, where both scarring effects and overeducation are prevalent, we find that overeducation partially mitigates the scarring effect for individuals with higher education levels. Conversely, the penalty for undereducation exacerbates the scarring effect for those with lower education levels.
A significant number of Japanese multinational companies operate in Germany and require a skilled work force. Recruitment and training in particular, as part of human resource management, are often heavily influenced by practices from their home county. This raises the question of how assertive Japanese recruitment and training practices are within the German context, where the unique dual training system is of particular importance. This study therefore examines standardisation effects (the consistency of practices within an organisation across national borders) in recruitment and training in Japanese subsidiaries in Germany. The findings, based on 21 expert interviews, indicate a standardisation with regard to Japanese practices. The study reveals a strong influence on both recruitment and training within the companies studied, particularly in domains where German regulations and laws exert minimal influence. However, different types of standardisation effects emerge for distinct practices. The analysis suggests a classification into three types of standardisation, based on the degree of consistency between practices in the host and home countries, allowing for a more nuanced understanding of standardisation effects. These findings contribute to an extension of the theoretical foundations in this field.
The transformation to the bioeconomy requires entrepreneurs who can turn ideas and research into innovations. Entrepreneurship education plays a significant role in equipping higher education students with competencies that facilitate idea commercialisation and technology transfer. This study examines bioeconomy students' motivation to enter extracurricular entrepreneurship education, goals they set for it, and the impact it has on their knowledge and skills. The qualitative and quantitative data was collected from students coming from seven European countries and attending a blended entrepreneurship course tailored for the needs of bioeconomy. The mixed method analyses revealed multifaceted set of motivations and objectives relating to sustainability, and hard and soft skills needed in entrepreneurship and work life. A comparison of pre- and post-tests showed a significant improvement in the entrepreneurial knowledge and skills of the students. The results posit that it is important to consider the target group, so that generalised entrepreneurship education is not offered regardless of the study field. Universities and educators should be aware of specific motivations and objectives of the students interested in entrepreneurship education, so that they can develop the content and instructional design to better meet the needs of the target group in the form of embedded entrepreneurship education.
Dual enrolment in the United States allows high school students to concurrently enrol in college-level courses, and they have been characterised as an affordable and scalable way to help students access and succeed in college. However, dual enrolment programmes can disproportionately benefit groups of students who are already highly likely to succeed in college. We use quasi-experimental matching procedures to analyse a nationally representative dataset to examine the influence between dual credit course-taking and labour market outcomes (employment, employment in lucrative STEM fields, annual salary). We find that dually enrolled male students were 1.2 times more likely to be employed in STEM fields than their counterparts without dual credits. Dually enrolled White students, non-low-income students and students with initial majors in non-STEM fields tend to have higher annual salaries than their counterparts who did not enrol in dual credit courses, with wage premiums ranging between $1250 and $1550 annually. We did not find evidence that female students, racial minority students, low-income students, and students with initial STEM majors similarly benefit from dual enrolment. We raise equity concerns for future investment in dual enrolment programmes and the downstream effects of the role dual enrolment may play in stratifying students' labour market outcomes.
This article examines how Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) lecturers in a South African college conceptualise a humanising pedagogy within Work Integrated Learning (WIL) practices. Against a backdrop of high youth unemployment and persistent skills mismatches, the study considers how WIL might be reframed to support employability while fostering learner agency. Using a qualitative, critical design, five purposively selected lecturers drawn from the college's five campuses participated in the study. Data were generated through participatory visual methods (collage-making and a modified Mmogo-method (R)) combined with semi-structured group discussions. Findings reveal that although lecturers seldom used the term 'humanising pedagogy', their practices often reflected its principles: learner-centredness, dignity, and responsiveness to students' lived realities. The visual artefacts and narratives highlighted tacit and affective dimensions of pedagogy that interviews alone might miss. However, humanising practices were constrained by compliance-driven frameworks that emphasised logbooks, placements, and bureaucratic requirements. The study acknowledges that students' perspectives were mediated through lecturer accounts, suggesting future research should include learner voices and direct observations. Overall, the paper argues that humanising WIL holds transformative potential by nurturing purpose, workplace readiness, and entrepreneurial imagination. It contributes to debates on vocational reform by offering context-responsive guidelines for socially inclusive WIL.
Dropping out from higher education is thought to be problematic on an individual, institutional, and societal level. Research on dropouts' transition into the labour market is scarce and often falls short on incorporating the employment situation prior to leaving education. This study explores the education-employment patterns of individuals before and after dropping out. It applies sequence analysis and cluster analysis to high-quality register data to identify typical labour market trajectories. The results indicate that dropping out is linked to diverging labour market pathways. It can be embedded in long-term employment, be followed by fast labour market entry, or can be a junction in a volatile education-employment biography. Existing research suggests that parental education is a determinant of labour market trajectories. Our findings indicate that dropouts from an academic background do not largely occupy any trajectories in specific. However, they are more likely to be self-employed and less prone to certain risk scenarios.
Workplace mentors play a crucial role in supporting degree apprentices, as guides and advocates in the workplace and partners in the tripartite meetings with the university. The mentor can help to facilitate relevant work-based opportunities and identify appropriate credit-bearing workplace projects. So, it is in the interest of the university to provide the mentor with appropriate information and training. This study aimed to establish the current mentor training context within computing apprenticeship degrees in UK universities, with a specific focus on training to support inclusion. Two online surveys gathered the perspectives of workplace mentors (n = 44) and of university staff providing training (n = 13). A review of guidance materials provided to mentors by universities triangulated the picture. Activity theory (AT) facilitated a new way of exploring current training systems to include the actors and influences beyond the immediate collaboration. The main finding is that few mentors felt they were receiving adequate training for the role, with many not receiving any, representing a lost opportunity to learn and share knowledge. The AT analysis highlighted the challenges of ringfencing time for mentoring and allocating responsibility for appropriate training and inclusion strategies among the collaboration partners.
