Career Development-The Role of

Educational Institutions

Chapter 1
(Introduction)

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1.1Introduction

Career development is the ongoing process of managing our life, learning and work. It involves
developing the skills and knowledge that enable you to plan and make informed decisions about
your education, training and career choices. Educational institutions provide students and adults
with the technical skills, knowledge and training necessary to succeed in specific occupations
and careers. It also prepares students for the world of work by introducing them to workplace
competencies that are essential no matter what career they choose. Career technical education
takes academic content and makes it accessible to students by providing it in a hands-on context.

1.2Background of the study

We conducted a survey of employers who hire recent college graduates in order to understand
employer perceptions of the role of colleges and universities in career preparation. We developed
our survey based on those information. We took help from different employers who participated
in this study. We took detailed information and employer contacts who work and recruit recent
college graduates.

1.3 Problem statement

Due to the acceleration of scientific and technological progress and global economy that requires
new skills and competencies, many working people are engaged in learning activities in order to
survive and to be competitive. Despite the increased duration of primary, secondary and
university education, the knowledge and skills acquired there are usually not sufficient for a
professional career spanning three or four decades. Does an institution provide sufficient
knowledge for career stage? Are students playing significant part in contributing to their studies?
Furthermore, are they satisfied with the educational services provided by the school? There are
stages of an individual career development. Each stage has different developmental tasks
requiring specific knowledge and skills, which drives individuals to learn (Huang, 1989). The
learned knowledge and skills, then, move the individuals from one stage to the next, which

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generates another set of learning activities. In other words, when a person perceives changes of
the environment or needs to move up to another stage of his/her career, he or she would be
uncomfortable about lacking of the knowledge, skills, and attitudes necessary to adapt or move
forward, the motivation to learning transpires. Motivation is the key to accomplish learning
goals. When the motivation of learning occurs, as a result, engaging in learning activities
becomes a person’s next action. Learning satisfaction generates more learning to occur which
could be also used to determine whether the learning needs are fulfilled for individuals as well as
an important indicator whether or not should an educational institute improve the educational
services providing to the learners.

1.4 Research Question

In order to gauge how in sync colleges are in preparing students for employment, we asked
questions in the following areas:

•How successful colleges are at producing graduates who are prepared for the workforce

•What types of institutions and credentials are most desired?

•What college majors are most desired?

•How employers balance academic and practical experience in evaluating recent college
graduates who are job candidates

•What skills should college graduates possess?

•What skills is higher education responsible for developing

•Results were segmented by industry and hiring level

•Hiring level was defined as:

–Human Resources (HR) – Recruiters or other HR staff

–Managers – People who directly manage people

–Executives – senior executives of and organization

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1.5 research objectives

This term paper includes information regarding variety of activities now offered by many
institutions and communities along with definitions and frameworks to assist with efforts to
create or expand and improve these activities. Our objectives are to find out the data regarding
employment opportunities for students, collecting info from staff in schools, as well as programs
outside of the school setting, that may be new to career education to gain a better understanding
of these activities, and implement them with quality and fidelity. We will be conducting survey
on students, employees, interns for better knowledge.

1.6 Significance of the Study

Career education offers students a framework for gaining the knowledge, skills, and experiences
necessary to navigate the myriad of options available for post-secondary success. In an
exemplary, students will participate in a well-designed sequence of career development activities
that become progressively deeper and more intensive as the students gain skills and maturity. It
ensures student attitudes and beliefs about their future selves, ensuring a personalized approach
to their learning process. The study will give us a clear idea of our findings and research and
fulfill our objectives for the research.

1.7 key terms

Career Awareness activities generally take place at the elementary level. They are designed to
make students aware of the broad range of careers and /or occupations in the world of work,
including options that may not be traditional for their gender race or ethnicity. Career awareness
activities range from limited exposure to the world of work, through occasional field trips and
classroom speakers, to comprehensive exposure. The latter may involve curriculum redesign,
introduction of students to a wide span of career options, and integration with activities at the
middle school level. Career Development is the process through which an individual comes to
understand his or her place in the world of work. Students develop and identify their careers
through a continuum of career awareness, career exploration and work exposure activities that

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help them to discern their own career path. Career development encompasses an individual's
education and career related choices, and the outcome of those choices. EDP (Educational
Development Plan) - Student document showing testing and evaluation of interests, aptitudes,
abilities, work-based learning activities, and course work required to accomplish tentative career
goals. This plan is updated on an annual basis. Careers services within universities can make a
substantial contribution to career development learning. The growth of career development
learning has significant implications for the organizational location of careers services within
institutions and for the competences required by their staff. In a number of institutions, close
links have been established between career development learning and the processes of personal
development planning. Career development learning can be viewed as addressing an aspect of
employability, or a set of related meta-skills.

1.8 Summary

Career development has been existed in schools for a long time with the main goals of assisting
students to reflect on their ambitions, interests, qualifications and abilities. It helps them to
understand the labor-market and education systems, and to relate this to their needs in life and to
become responsible global citizen. Comprehensive studies and guidance teach students to plan
and make their decisions about work and learning, and how to manage their career skills as well
as career development. They provide information about the labor-market and about educational
opportunities and more accessible by organizing it, systematizing it, and making it available
when and where people need it. In some countries career guidance program is organized by
having high quality staff who have been trained and have rich experience. Schools, colleges and
other institutions offer access to good life for individuals and also provide for a sustainable
development for the whole country.

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 Chapter-2
Literature review

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2.1 Introduction

This chapter will review literatures from journals, research papers, articles and books written by
authors in the related field of study. It will first discuss the Career Success in general and later,
focused on the issues of job satisfaction and organizational commitment. Apart from this, factors
influencing career success will also be discussed.

2.2 Career Success

A career is a sequence of jobs an individual holds during one’s work history (Feldman, 1996).
While success in one’s career is a natural expectation of individuals, the nature of that success
depends on what one expects from it. Indeed individuals have different definitions of career
success based on their assessment of their career prospects (Ebadan & Winstanley, 1997). Career
success includes both the psychological and work-related outcomes from work role changes
(London & Stumpf, 1982). Thus career success has been operationalized by objective and
subjective measures. Objective measures of career success pertain to those that can be observed
and verified by others (Judge et al., 1995). Several researchers have studied career success using
objective measures such as total compensation (Pfeffer & Davis-Blake, 1987; Seibert, Kraimer &
Liden, 2001; Whitely, Dougherty & Dreher, 1991; Whitely & Coetsier, 1993; Kirchmeyer,
1998), number of promotions (Wayne et al., 1999; Whitely, Dougherty & Dreher, 1991; Whitely
& Coetsier, 1993), current pay grade (Daley, 1996), and size of most recent merit increase
(Lobel & St. Clair, 1992). Subjective measures of career success (Judge et al., 1995) pertain to
the individuals’ own judgment of their career attainment. Studies on subjective career success
used measures such as career satisfaction (Martins, Eddleston & Veiga, 2002; Seibert, Kraimer
& Liden, 2001; Poole, Langan-Fox & Omodei, 1993), job satisfaction (Judge et al., 1995; Burke,
2001), advancement satisfaction (Martins, Eddleston & Veiga, 2002), and perceived career
success (Turban & Dougherty, 1994), among others.

This paper identifies factors affecting career success using both objective and subjective
measures.

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2.3 Factors affecting career success

Studies have identified several factors influencing objective career success, which can be
categorized into human capital, demographic, interpersonal processes, and organizational
(Whitely, Dougherty & Dreher, 1991; Whitely & Coetsier, 1993). Human capital factors include
experience, education, continuous work history, and tenure. Becker (1975) argued that
investments in human capital result in higher wages due to increases in productivity. Such
productivity increases may be the result of training, learning new skills, or enhancing existing
skills. Empirical studies along this line show that human capital factors indeed influence
different measures of career success. For example, education is positively related to current pay
grades (Daley, 1996). Moreover, factors such as having an MBA, longer work experience, and a
continuous work history positively influence compensation (Whitely, Dougherty & Dreher,
1991; Whitely & Coetsier, 1993; Forret & Dougherty, 2004). Work experience (Whitely,
Dougherty & Dreher, 1991; Whitely & Coetsier, 1993) and continuous history also positively
influence promotion rate (Whitely, Dougherty & Dreher, 1991; Forret & Dougherty, 2004).
Demographic factors commonly studied include gender and marital status. There are evidences
that show gender differences in compensation and other workrelated outcomes in organizations,
for example, male employees receive higher compensation (Whitely, Dougherty & Dreher, 1991;
Whitely & Coetsier, 1993; Daley, 1996; Lobel & St. Clair, 1992). However, differences in merit
increases between genders ceased to be significant when other considerations, such as career
identity salience and family responsibility, were controlled (Lobel & St. Clair, 1992). Moreover,
in a study using longitudinal research design, Shenav (1992) found that white women’s
opportunities were better compared to those of white men in the private sector. However, a
different scenario emerges when a cross-sectional design was used on the same data set. Shenav
(1992) shows that women and blacks had lower chances of promotion to managerial positions
compared to male and white samples. The finding was more congruent with results supporting
gender segregation. However, Pfeffer and DavisBlake (1987) found that the proportion of
women in the organization is negatively associated with compensation of both men and women
in both cross-sectional and longitudinal research design. Another demographic variable
commonly studied in relation to career success is marital status. Several studies show that
married employees have higher salaries and number of promotions than non-married employees
(Ng et al., 2005; Judge et al., 1995; Judge & Bretz, 1994; Pfeffer & Ross, 1982). Organizational

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factors like organization size also affect career outcomes. Whitely and Coetsier (1993) reported
that organization size positively relates to number of promotions. It is thought that larger
organizations have greater ability to pay and offer more promotion opportunities (Whitely &
Coetsier, 1993). In addition, interpersonal process like mentoring has also been found to affect
career success. Mentoring includes coaching, support, and sponsorship, which provide the
protégés the technical and interpersonal skills, and visibility opportunities that enable them to
succeed in their careers (Whitely, Dougherty & Dreher, 1991). Having a mentor positively
influences compensation (Whitely, Dougherty & Dreher, 1991; Whitely & Coetsier, 1993);
promotability (Wayne et al., 1999), and salary grades (Daley, 1996). However, the gender of the
mentor affects career outcomes. Female mentors negatively influence the protégé’s career
success (Daley, 1996), but male mentors positively influence compensation of protégés,
especially for women protégées in male-gendered industries (Ramaswami et al., 2010). The
above studies show factors affecting objective measures of success such as compensation, pay
grades, number of promotions, and promotion rates. While objective measures are important in
assessing how far an individual’s career has progressed, subjective measures are equally
important, considering that individuals have expectations from work other than compensation,
promotion, etc. Inasmuch as prospects of long-term employment are dim such that individuals
are expected to be more proactive in managing their careers, career measures of success become
more personal and subjective (Van Dam, 2008). There seems to be no consistent result showing
which variables influence subjective career success. Judge et al. (2005) found that different set of
variables predicted the two measures of subjective career success, namely, career satisfaction and
job satisfaction. Demographic and human capital variables significantly explained career
satisfaction but not job satisfaction. Motivational and organizational variables explained job
satisfaction. However, organizational success influences both job and career satisfaction. On the
other hand, Aryee, Chay and Tan (1994) found no human capital variable explaining subjective
career success. Specific individual factors found to predict subjective career success include
tenure, education, and marital status. Clark and Oswalt (1996) found a positive relationship
between education and job satisfaction, but such relationship vanished when controlled for
income levels. However, tenure is inversely related to career satisfaction (Judge et al., 1995). On
the other hand, married employees in general (Ng et al., 2005) and married women in particular
(Punnet, 2005) are more satisfied than those who are not. On the other hand, organizational

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factors affecting subjective career success include perceived organizational support in the form
of mentoring, supervisory support, developmental assignments, and role conflict and ambiguity.
Mentoring was found to be positively related to subjective career success (Joiner, Bartram &
Garreffa, 2004; Eby, Butts & Lockwood, 2003; Fagenson, 1989). Perceived supervisory support
(Tanksi & Cohen, 2001; Kirchmeyer 1998) influences career satisfaction. Training received by
individuals also influences career satisfaction (Ng et al., 2005; Wayne et al., 1999). In addition,
role conflict (Bedeian & Armenakis, 1981) and role ambiguity (Igbaria & Guimaraes, 1999) are
negatively related to job satisfaction. Studies on career success in the Philippines show that
different measures of career success have different determinants. Cash compensation is
determined positively by work experience (Supangco, 2001), tenure in organization, and
education (Supangco, 2010), and negatively by supervisory support (Supangco, 2010). Number
of years per promotion is negatively determined by number of organizations worked for while
number of promotions was determined negatively by number of organizations worked for and
positively by work experience (Supangco, 2001). On the other hand, rate of promotion was
positively determined by work experience (2010). Moreover, number of rank levels from the
company president was determined positively by organization size, and women were farther
from the top. Determinants of career satisfaction included supervisory support, perceived
organizational support, and developmental experience. In these two studies, gender objective and
subjective measures of success were invariant to gender, except for hierarchical success,
measured in terms of number of rank levels from the company president where women were still
far from the top. The general results on gender augur well for women in the Philippines and also
make the phenomenon unique and in contrast to most studies conducted in the United States and
Europe that indicate gender differences, especially in objective career success.

2.4 HRM Practices

As the world is becoming more competitive and unstable than ever before, manufacturing-based
industries are seeking to gain competitive advantage at all cost and are turning to more
innovative sources through HRM practices (Sparrow, Schuler, & Jackson, 1994). HRM practices
have been defined in several aspects. Schuler and Jackson (1987) defined HRM practices as a
system that attracts, develops, motivates, and retains employees to ensure the effective

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implementation and the survival of the organization and its members. Besides, HRM practices is
also conceptualized as a set of internally consistent policies and practices designed and
implemented to ensure that a firm’s human capital contribute to the achievement of its business
objectives (Delery & Doty, 1996). Likewise, Minbaeva (2005) viewed HRM practices a set of
practices used by organization to manage human resources through facilitating the development
of competencies that are firm specific, produce complex social relation and generate organization
knowledge to sustain competitive advantage. Against this backdrop, we concluded that HRM
practices relate to specific practices, formal policies, and philosophies that are designed to
attract, develop, motivate, and retain employees who ensure the effective functioning and
survival of the organization. Among the main approaches to develop HRM: ―universal‖ or
―best practice‖ approach (Huselid, 1995); strategic HRM practices approach (Delery & Doty,
1996); contingency approach (Dyer, 1985; Schuler, 1989); and configuration approach (Wright
& McMahan, 1992), previous studies revealed that HRM practices, which were related to
organizational innovation, mainly focused on ―universal‖ or ―best practice‖ approach. A
review of the literature demonstrates five common practices that have been consistently
associated with innovation, encompassing performance appraisal, career management, reward
system, training, and recruitment (Gupta & Singhal, 1993; Jiménez-Jiménez & Sanz-Valle, 2005;
Kydd & Oppenheim, 1990; Laursen & Foss, 2003; Shipton, Fay, West, Patterson & Birdi, 2005).

2.5 Dimensions of HRM practices

1) Managing the Human Resource Environment: Managing internal and external

environmental factors allows employees to make the greatest possible contribution to company
productivity and competitiveness. Creating a positive environment for human resources
involves:• Linking HRM practices to the company’s business objectives—that is, strategic
human resource management.• Designing work that motivates and satisfies the employee as well
as maximizes customer service, quality, and productivity.

2) Acquiring and Preparing Human Resources: Customer needs for new products or services
influence the number and type of employees businesses need to be successful. Terminations,
promotions, and retirements also influence human resource requirements. Managers need to

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predict the number and type of employees who are needed to meet customer demands for
products and services. Managers must also identify current or potential employees who can
successfully deliver products and services. This area of human resource management deals with•
Identifying human resource requirements—that is, human resource planning, recruiting
employees, and selecting employees.• Training employees to have the skills needed to perform
their jobs.

3) Assessment and Development of Human Resources: Managers need to ensure that

employees have the necessary skills to perform current and future jobs. As we discussed earlier,
because of new technology and the quality movement, many companies are redesigning work so
that it is performed by teams. As a result, managers and employees may need to develop new
skills to succeed in a team environment. Companies need to create a work environment that
supports employees’ work and nonworking activities. This area of human resource management
addresses• Measuring employees’ performance.• Preparing employees for future work roles and
identifying employees’ work interests, goals, values, and other career issues.• Creating an
employment relationship and work environment that benefits both the company and the
employee.

4) Compensating Human Resources: Besides interesting work, pay and benefits are the most
important incentives that companies can offer employees in exchange for contributing to
productivity, quality, and customer service. Also, pay and benefits are used to reward
employees’ membership in the company and attract new employees. The positive influence of
new work designs, new technology, and the quality movement on productivity can be damaged if
employees are not satisfied with the level of pay and benefits or believe pay and benefits are
unfairly distributed. This area of human resource management includes • Creating pay systems. •
Rewarding employee contributions. • Providing employees with benefits.

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2.6 Research framework

Independent variables

Most weighted attributes

• Internship

• Volunteer experience

• Extra-curricular activities

• Part time emplyment

Personal Management/skills
Role of educational Career
Learning and work exploration
institutions Development
Career building

• Career counsilling

• Inviting experts & external connection

• Career education

• Career information

Vocational education

Most weighted attributes

Internships help students gain the practical knowledge and skills that will be marketable upon
graduation. Students plan their own internships, shaping them to fit their interests, skills, and
academic backgrounds. Also some other attributes-Volunteer experience, Extra-curricular
activities- Most part-time positions on campus are advertised between September and

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 November. Vacancies may arise at any time but work on campus is popular and competition
for places is high.Work is normally basic administration, event stewarding and postering but
pay is reasonably good and departments will understand your academic demands and be
willing to be flexible Part time employment. This plays a vital role in career development.

Personal Management/skills

Information management skills The ability to synthesize facts, concepts and principles. The
ability to evaluate information against standards. Design and planning skills. The ability to
identify alternative courses of action. The ability to predict future trends and patterns. Research
and investigation skills. The ability to identify problems and needs. The ability to identify
information sources for special needs or problems. Communication skills .The ability to speak
effectively to individuals and groups. The ability to use various forms and styles of written
communication. Human relations and interpersonal skills. The ability to generate and maintain
group cooperation and support. The ability to interact effectively with peers, superiors, and
subordinates. Critical thinking skills. The ability to identify quickly and accurately the critical
issues when making a decision or solving a problem. The ability to analyze the interrelationships
of events and ideas from several perspectives. Management and administration skills. The ability
to motivate and lead people. The ability to organize people and tasks to achieve specific goals.
Valuing skills. The ability to identify one’s own values. The ability to appreciate the
contributions of art, literature, science, and technology to contemporary society. Personal/career
development and learning skills. The ability to identify one’s strengths and weaknesses. The
ability to accept and learn from criticism.

Career building

The desired outcome of a Career Development Program is to match the needs of the employee
with those of the organization. Employees must have the opportunity to identify career needs and
the organization should assist them in achieving these needs within organizational realities. A
Career Development Program does not require elaborate procedures. The essential components
are counseling and training. Career counseling provides an avenue for the employee to assess
their career needs. The training component assists employees in growth and development by

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enhancing their knowledge, skills and abilities in their present job assignments or prepares them
for future opportunities. Proficient in-service training and career specialty training can
accomplish this. Each of these components is vital to the success of the career development
initiative. Career counsilling Inviting experts & external connection. Career education, Career
information.

Vocational education: Career education is also distinct from vocational education (now known
as career and technical education), although in recent years this distinction has blurred
considerably. Public vocational education was originally established in the early 1900s to
prepare young people for the world of work. From its inception, a clear distinction was made
between vocational and academic education, with vocational education emphasizing entry-level
work skills for youth deemed non-college bound, displaying special learning needs, or otherwise
placed at risk of school failure.

Education reform initiatives (e.g., the School-to-Work Opportunities Act of 1994) and rapid
changes in the workplace over the past several decades have resulted in significant changes in
the orientation of vocational education. In fact, current secondary vocational education reflects
many of the principles and practices embodied in the career education movement. For example,
current career and technical education programs emphasize academic achievement and preparing
young people for postsecondary education and work through school-based and work-based
approaches (e.g., apprenticeship, cooperative education, work-based learning, career academies,
and programs articulated between secondary and postsecondary institutions). Additional
examples are initiatives that integrate academic and vocational curriculum and develop extensive
articulation between academic and vocational or secondary and postsecondary programs. Thus,
while similar, career education seeks to provide a career-based instructional emphasis for all
students, while vocational programs are still, for the most part, separate from general academic
curricula and targeted to a smaller segment of the student population.

2.8 Summary

Individuals need to develop new and better skills so that they are fit for promotion and reach to a
higher level in the organization. Organizations likewise need to become proactive in designing

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and implementing career development programs for their employees. It is the best thing they can
do to decrease employee turnover. Although it is employees responsibility to plan their career
but in today’s turbulent and terrifically ambiguous world of work it is the employers’
responsibility to provide them with opportunities achieve their ambitions. They need to create
that environment and culture for continuous learning and support their employees by motivating
and rewarding them. Also Employee career development cannot take place without support from
the top management. Commitment of top management is crucial. Employees also need to be
given feedback about their career development efforts. It is difficult for an employee to sustain
years of preparation to reach career goals unless they receive feedback. Career development does
not guarantee success but without it employees would not be ready for a job when the
opportunity arises.

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 Chapter 3
(Methodology)

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3.1 Introduction
The Chronicle of Higher Education and American Public Media’s Marketplace conducted a
survey of employers who hire recent college graduates in order to understand employer
perceptions of the role of colleges and universities in career preparation.

•The survey was developed, fielded and analyzed by Maguire Associates, Inc.
•The sample was developed with assistance from Experience.com. We invited 50,000 employers
to participate in this study. As a list source, Experience.com provided employer contacts who
work with them to recruit recent college graduates.

•The survey was fielded in late August and early September of 2012

3.2 research Design

Nearly seven out of ten employers surveyed indicated that colleges are doing a “good” or
“excellent” job when it comes to producing successful employees; however, more work is
required to change the minds of the 31% of respondents who gave colleges a “fair” to “poor”
rating.

•HR has the most favorable opinion of a college’s ability to produce successful employees with
72% indicating at least a “good” rating; however, Executives are more than twice as likely to
have an “excellent” rating as either HR or Managers in this survey. Managers are the hardest to
please with 34% indicating a “poor” or “fair” rating.

•Opinions on the job colleges are doing preparing graduates for work vary by industry category
with the Government/Non-profit segment giving top marks to colleges and universities (80%
with at least a “good” rating).

•The Services/Retail (39%), Health Care (35%), and Media/Communications (35%) indicated
that colleges and universities are doing a “fair” or “poor” job -- more than any other industry.

•One-third of employers in this study place more value on today’s four-year degree vs. that of
five years ago. However, those who placed less value on today’s degree nearly balanced out
those that indicated more value, resulting in only a slight increase in mean rating of the value
today vs. five years ago (3.1 mean rating out of 5 possible points).

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While industries like Government and Education, which typically require advanced degrees, see
an overall drop in value of a four-year degree from five years ago, employers from
Manufacturing (mean rating of 3.24) and Services/Retail (3.23) place a greater value than
average on today’s four-year degree, suggesting a more competitive playing field in markets
previously more accepting of non-degreed employees.

•Thirty-one percent of employers indicated that recent graduates are unprepared or very
unprepared for their job search.

•Over half of the employers indicated difficulty in finding qualified candidates for job openings.
•Among industry segments, Science/Technology and Media/Communications appear to struggle
more than other industries in finding qualified candidates receiving mean ratings of 3.75 and
3.57 (out of 5) on difficulty in finding qualified candidates.

•Additionally, these same two industry segments rated colleges and universities as “fair” to
“poor” more frequently than other industries in terms of producing successful employees.
Media/Communications also indicated, more than other industries, that students were unprepared
or very unprepared for their job search.

•According to employers in the study, graduates can prepare better by researching the
organization, followed by improving interview skills, and researching the industry. Only
Media/Communications ranked the importance of preparing a better resume above interviewing
skills, presumably because their concentration field tends to better prepare them in interviewing
skills.

What are employers looking for?

Employers place more weight on experience, particularly internships and employment during
school vs. academic credentials including GPA and college major when evaluating a recent
graduate for employment.

•All industries and hiring levels place slightly more weight on student work or internship
experiences than on academic credentials.

•Science/Technology, Services/Retail, and Media/Communications segments tilt the scale

toward experience more than other industries.

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•Weighted results show that college major is the most important academic credential to
employers; however, internships and employment during college are the top traits employers
consider in evaluating recent graduates for a position.

•College major comes in third, overall, except at Health Care organizations where it is neck and
neck with employment during college, and at organizations with fewer than 50 employees where
employers value volunteer work and extracurricular activities more, dropping college major to
fifth on the list of all traits examined in this study.

•Extracurricular activities, like professional clubs, athletics, and service, are valued more than
GPA, relevance of coursework to position, and college reputation except by Executives who
emphatically place more weight on coursework relevance and GPA, closely trailing college
major.

•An internships is the single most important credential for recent college graduates to have on
their resume in their job search among all industry segments with Media/Communications
placing the highest value on internships in comparison to other industries.

When it comes to the skills most needed by employers, job candidates are lacking most in
written and oral communication skills, adaptability and managing multiple priorities, and making
decisions and problem solving.

•Employers place the responsibility on colleges to prepare graduates in written and oral
communications and decision-making skills. Results indicate that colleges need to work harder
to produce these traits in their graduates.

•While the gap between employer need and graduate skills narrows in the
Media/Communications industry for written and oral skills, colleges have more of a challenge
developing decision-making and technical skills in students geared toward this industry.

•The need for recent graduates to adapt and to manage multiple priorities is greatest among
employers from the Business, Health, Media/Communications, and Science/Technology
segments; however, employers place less responsibility on colleges for training in these skill
areas, perhaps putting the onus more on the individual to acquire these high-demand skills.

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3.3 Data Analysis
Three out of ten employers reported that recent graduates with bachelor’s degrees make up more
than 40% of total hires over the past few years, compared to nearly half where graduates made
up less than 20% of hires.
•Recent graduates have been hired over the past few years more often at government and
education organizations, while recent graduates have made up the smallest proportion of hires at
Media/Communications companies.
•Slightly less than one-third (31%) of employers require a bachelor’s degree if a position
advertised for one. Nearly 70% of employers are open to considering non-degreed candidate who
are particularly outstanding or the right fit.
•Media/Communications and Services/Retail are more flexible regarding hiring without a
bachelor’s degree (both, 84%) opposed to Education (49%) which is required to adhere to more
strict licensure and certification requirements.
•Job candidates from flagship public colleges are most popular among employers in the study,
followed by private not-for-profit colleges (mean desirability rating of 3.87 and 3.78 out of 5).
•All three hiring roles rank flagship publics above all other types of colleges; however,
Executives prefer regional campus of a public college next, in place of private not-for-profit
colleges.
•Desirability of college type varies by market: Science/Technology employers find flagship
publics most desirable while Media/Communications employers prefer private not-for-profit
colleges.
Employers had negative associations with online colleges, rating these undesirable.
•Nationally known colleges and elite colleges run neck and neck in popularity ratings among
employers considering a candidate for employment. Science/Technology and Services/Retail are
more influenced by Elite Colleges than Nationally known but only by a slight margin.
•However, preference for regionally known colleges is not far behind nationally known or elite
colleges.
•Approximately one-third of employers who come across a candidate from a college that is
unknown to them do consider this a negative factor.
•Only 19% of employers look for specific majors and do not consider candidates without them,
while the majority – 78% will consider any major. Executives are least interested in looking for
candidates with specific majors (14%) than Managers (19%) and HR (19%).
•Employers from Science/Technology (29%) and Health Care (29%) look for specific majors
more so than other industries when considering a job candidate. Services/Retail and Business
industries are more flexible when it comes to a graduate’s major (only 7% and 12%,
respectively, requiring specific majors).

21
Colleges and universities are doing a good job according to the majority of employers;
however, there is room for improvement.

Managers are the hardest to please when it comes to their opinion of how colleges are
doing.

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Colleges and universities can do a better job producing successful employees to the
Services/Retail, Health Care, Media Communications, Science/Technology segments.

When evaluating a candidate for employment, employers place more weight on experience
over academic credentials.

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Internships and employment during college rose to the top of the list as the most heavily
weighted attributes considered by employers.

All three hiring roles agree on the top two elements of a resume.

However, HR and Managers value internships and employment during college more than
Executives.

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•Overall, extracurricular activities are valued more than GPA, relevance of coursework to
position, and college reputation except by Executives who place more weight on coursework
relevance and GPA, closely trailing college major.
Overall, employers believe a four-year college degree is worth slightly more today than five
years ago but this cannot be said for all industry segments.

Graduates are prepared for a job search according to the majority of employers in the
study, but there is room for improvement.

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Only 31% of employers indicated recent graduates are “unprepared” or “very unprepared” –
similar to how they responded to how well schools were doing in producing successful
employees.
According to employers, graduates need to do their research, both of the organization and
industry they are entering, and improve their interviewing skills.

More than half of the employees in the study have a difficult time finding qualified
graduates.

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Three out of ten employers reported that recent graduates with bachelor’s degrees make
up more than 40% of total hires over the past few years, compared to nearly half where
graduates made up less than 20% of hires.

Seven out of ten employers would still hire a candidate even without a college degree.

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The college major is important at least to some degree for all but 3% of employers
surveyed.

Only 19% of employers look for specific majors and do not consider candidates without them,
while the majority – 78% will consider any major.

3.4 Summary
All the survey question are not analyzed. But from those information we thinkColleges and
universities should seek to break down the false dichotomy of liberal arts and career
development. they are intrinsically linked. It should go beyond a vision of majors articulating to
specific careers. Majors matter to some extent, but in many cases, college major is not the
determinant of career entry. A college should approach career development as career exploration
for a great many of its students guiding and supporting students with the right mix of solid liberal
arts skills and content knowledge.

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Chapter 4
(Result)

29
4.1 Introduction
Earning a degree in today's job market allows you to apply for positions that you may not be able
to apply for without a degree. Earning a degree gives you more opportunities than a person
without a degree. I believe in this crazy job market, a degree is very valuable.

4.2 Outcome of the analysis

•For industry, the value of a degree is beneficial only when the Employee is trying to progress in
his career. We feel that the degree would support some of the analytical challenges that we find
in most current employees.
•Provides specific tools the individual will use in decision making roles. Trains in management
tools needed for career growth.
•In the current recession, according the Georgetown Center for Education and the Workforce,
those with only a high school diploma lost 5.6 million jobs. Those with a bachelor’s degree or
higher gained two million jobs. The need for a college education has never been clearer. A
college graduate is more likely to have a job, and to be paid more.
•It allows for competitive marketability and opportunity to explore potential new career options
•Opportunity to move up from entry level position faster than someone without one.
•Priceless - but to be more sensible - a degree may get you the job but not more money than the
original salary guidelines
•A college degree helps you form thought processes; it teaches you how to think. What we do
with these tools will help determine your success in today's job market
•points to candidate being open to learning and trying to set him/herself up for success .

4.3 Summary
Knowledge of subject area, better writing skills, maturity and willingness to learn, desire for
advancement and challenge A college degree is very important. However, to remain competitive
in today's market there is a need for a Master's level degree in lucrative majors that can rebuild
the job's industry in this country. Students should begin to look at the degree that they are
seeking with a global perspective.

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 Chapter 5
(Discussion)

31
Discussion and Conclusion
In almost every college or university’s vision statement, there are two related components that
constitute its mission. One calls for providing a quality education to its students, while the other
focuses on students ‘preparation for life after college. The former is well executed by many
higher education institutions as they truly are providing students with an education that expands
their perspectives, equips them to think creatively and critically, and teaches them to
communicate effectively. However, too few are adequately preparing their students for life, and
especially the life of work and careers, after graduation. The good news is that higher education
institutions are beginning to realize that the second half of the equation must be addressed. More
schools are incorporating experiential learning and “outside of the classroom “experiences to
help students transition from an academic setting to real world application. In turn, many
institutions are turning to career offices to assist students in making this transition from
classroom to career. Yet, as our attention turns towards this half of the value proposition, we
must be careful not to exclusively focus on the career office as the panacea, nor believe that first
destination results are all that matters. While important, first destination results cannot be the
sole metric used to measure an institution’s preparation of students for the world of work. We
must look beyond first destination results and strive to teach the mindset and skills required for
lifetime employability in this very dynamic and ever-changing world. Based on what we have
seen in our own lifetimes, we know that many of the future jobs of our college graduates do not
even exist today. Coupled with the fact that generational experts expect current students to have
over twenty jobs in their lifetimes, the mission of the personal and career development industry
must be to educate and equip students to strategically and successfully navigate transitions. If we
focus too heavily on short term placement and first destination results, we will mislead and fail
ourselves, our students and other constituents. Personal and career development must focus less
on first destination results and place a greater emphasis on educating and equipping students to
successfully learn this “life-giving” process and how to navigate the inevitable transitions. To
succeed, everyone on campus must take part in this movement and create a new ecosystem
designed for these outcomes. We must assume a long-term perspective and strive to teach
students to develop the mindset and skills for building a successful life and career – well beyond
their first job. While this may be a difficult message for students to accept – as many prefer to be
handed that first job - it is one that is necessary. As the Chinese proverb says, “Give a man a fish

32
and you feed him for a day. Teach a man to fish and you feed him for a lifetime.” We must
deliver on our promise and teach our students how to fish for a lifetime. It’s now time for us to
fulfill our respective missions and truly prepare the students to lead lives of meaning and
purpose– and be employable for life. We cannot afford to wait any longer – and our students
cannot afford for us to wait either.

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References

• Ali, S., Ling-Yan, Y., Button, C. and McCoy, T. (2012). Career education programming
in three diverse high schools: A critical psychology-case study research approach. Journal
of Career Development 39, 357-385.
• Association for Careers Education and Guidance (ACEG). (2012). The ACEG
Framework: A Framework for Careers and Work-related Education. Available at
http://www.thecdi.net/write/ACEG_Framework_CWRE.pdf
• Hampton, N.Z. (2006). A psychometric evaluation of the career decision self-efficacy
scale–short form in Chinese high school students. Journal of Career Development, 33(2),
142-155.
• Helme, S. (2009). Improving Career Development in Victoria for Indigenous Young
People under the Age of 19: Literature Review. Annex 3 to Sweet et. al., (2009). Making
Career Development Core Business.
• https://www.grinnell.edu/sites/default/files/documents/GrinnellCareerDevelopmentGuide
.pdf
• https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&cad=rja&uact
=8&ved=0ahUKEwia2Z
• Kastine, K. (2007) Career Education Lighthouse Schools Project 2007: Report on Good
Practice. Adelaide: Australian Principals Association.
• Hooley, T., Marriott, J. & Sampson, J.P. (2011). Fostering College and Career Readiness:
How Career Development Activities in Schools Impact on Graduation Rates and
Students’ Life Success. Derby: International Centre for Guidance Studies, University of
Derby

34
Appendix (Survey Questions)
1. How well are Colleges Doing in Producing Successful Employees?
o Excellent
o Good
o Fair
o Poor
o Neutral
2. How well are Colleges Doing in Producing Successful Employees by Industry?
o Govt/Non-Profit
o Business
o Manufacturing
o Services/Retail
o Health Care
o Media/Communications
o Science/Technology
o Education
3. Relative Balance of Experience vs. Academics
o Experience far more important
o Academics far more important
o Neutral
4. Relative Importance of Attributes in Evaluating Graduates for Hire
o College GPA
o Relevance of Coursework
o Extracurricular Activities
o Volunteer Experience
o College Major
o Employment During College
o Internships

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 o College Reputation
5. Relative Importance of Attributes in Evaluating Graduates for Hire by Hiring Role
o College GPA
o Relevance of Coursework
o Extracurricular Activities
o Volunteer Experience
o College Major
o Employment During College
o Internships
o College Reputation
6. Value of Bachelor’s Degree Today vs. Five Years Ago
o A lot more
o More
o About the same
o Less
o A lot less
7. How Well Prepared are Recent Graduates?
o Very well prepared
o Well prepared
o Prepared
o Unprepared
o Very unprepared
8. How Can Graduates Do Better?
o Research the organization more thoroughly.
o Nothing, they are prepared enough.
o Other (Please specify):
o Write a better cover letter.
o Prepare a better résumé.

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 o Research the industry more thoroughly.
o Have better interviewing skills.

9. Level of Difficulty in Finding Qualified Recent Graduates

o Very difficult
o Difficult
o Neutral
o Easy
o Very easy
10. Percentages of Hires That are Recent Graduates
o Less than 20%
o 20-39%
o 40% or more
o Neutral
11. Hire Without Bachelor’s Degree
o Yes, we look for candidates with the right fit regardless of degree.
o Yes, for a particularly outstanding candidate only.
o No, a degree is always required.
o Neutral
12. Importance of College Major
o Look for specific majors
o Value some over others
o Balance with other factors
o Not at all important
o Neutral

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