What employability for higher education students?

Abstract

ABSTRACT The Bologna process has contributed to redefining the concept of employability in higher education policies. In parallel, the professionalisation movement of French higher education has become more pronounced, notably through the development of work placements within the university curricula. In this article, we propose to re-examine the definition of employability of the ‘dominant’ discourse which is strongly centred on a competency-based approach and individualisation. We highlight the importance of having a broader definition of employability by integrating subjective dimension of employability and students' representations of the world of work. Based on an original survey of 804 students enrolled in the 3rd year in a French university, we construct a typology of different student profiles according to their perceptions of employability and of the labour market. Then, by models of multivariate regressions, we analyse how previous academic success, the socio-economic environment or the fields of study are likely to explain the different representations of employability. Finally, we seek to determine which student profiles are likely to benefit from higher education professionalisation, particularly through the mobilisation of the work placement during their course.