Transition from higher education to employment: A case study of graduates of faculty of social sciences University of Botswana

Abstract

This study presents the opinions of a stratified sample of 542 graduates of the Faculty of Social Sciences, University of Botswana on their transition from higher education to employment and the extent to which the job held are appropriate to the level of education attained. The study revealed that the mean transition time for all the graduates was 4.6 months with a standard deviation of 0.19 months while they made an average of 13.5 contacts with employers before getting their first emp-loyment. The results of the analysis further showed a downward trend in the percentage of graduates whose transition times were less than 4 months over the study period. In addition the study revealed that over 72% of the graduates felt strongly that their jobs were appropriate to their level of education and relevant to the courses taken in the university and the public sector was still the highest employer. Based on the findings, the study recommends among other things, that the Botswana Government should sensitise and boost private sector involvement in the employment of graduates into their services in order to reduce the full burden of employment of graduates. Key words: Transition, University of Botswana, higher education, employment, faculty of social sciences.