Title: Struggles in becoming employable : non-traditional student narratives of the transition from higher education to working life in Sweden
Source document: Studia paedagogica. 2020, vol. 25, iss. 4, pp. [161]-182
Extent
[161]-182
-
ISSN1803-7437 (print)2336-4521 (online)
Persistent identifier (DOI): https://doi.org/10.5817/SP2020-4-8
Stable URL (handle): https://hdl.handle.net/11222.digilib/143458
Type: Article
Language
License: Not specified license
Notice: These citations are automatically created and might not follow citation rules properly.
Abstract(s)
The notion of employability has been dominating the higher education policies and strategies of the European Union and other western countries for two decades. From an employability perspective, individuals are responsible for acquiring the skills to find and move between jobs, market themselves, and effectively express their social, personal, and cultural capital. This article focuses on non-traditional students' perspectives of their transition from higher education to working life, especially on the pathways they have taken and the struggles they have experienced in becoming employable. A biographical learning perspective is used to analyse biographical interviews with five female students who were 25 years of age or older, with a non-Swedish background, studying full time. In the students' stories, four transition pathways from higher education to working life were identified: a linear, a parallel, a further education, and a changing career pathway. The five non-traditional students struggled with becoming employable and seemed to be anxious about not being good enough at Swedish; being an outsider as a student; being overqualified; and facing discrimination in the labour market. These employability struggles mainly arise due to the assumption that all graduates are young, Swedish, without children or disabilities, and competing only with their employability within an equal labour market. Thus, the notion of employability still gives little attention to non-traditional students and has negative consequences for them.
References
[1] Alheit, P., & Dausien, B. (2000). 'Biographicity' as a basic resource of lifelong learning. In P. Alheit, J. Beck, E. Kammler, H. Salling Olesen, & R. Taylor (Eds.), Lifelong learning inside and outside schools, Vol. 2 (pp. 400–422). Roskilde University.
[2] Axelsson, R-M. (2008). Formbara människor. Högre utbildning och arbete som utsnitt ur läkares och civilingenjörers levnadsbanor. [Flexible people: Higher education and work through physicians' and engineers' life-trajectories] (Linköping Studies in Behavioural Science No. 132). Linköpings universitet. http://www.diva-portal.se/smash/get/diva2:18231/COVER01.pdf
[3] Baert, S., Cockx, B., Gheyle, N., & Vandamme, C. (2015). Is there less discrimination in occupations where recruitment is difficult? ILR Review, 68(3), 467–500. https://doi.org/10.1177/0019793915570873 | DOI 10.1177/0019793915570873
[4] Ball, S. J., Reay, D., & David, M. (2002). 'Ethnic choosing': Minority ethnic students, social class and higher education choice. Race Ethnicity and Education, 5(4), 333–357. https://doi.org/10.1080/1361332022000030879 | DOI 10.1080/1361332022000030879
[5] Blommaert, L., Coenders, M., & van Tuberger, F. (2014). Discrimination of Arabic-named applicants in the Netherlands: An internet-based field experience examining different phases in online recruitment procedures. Social Forces, 92(3), 957–982. https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/sot124 | DOI 10.1093/sf/sot124
[6] Brooks, R. (2019). A critical exploration of the influences of class, gender and ethnicity on student engagement with graduate employment opportunities (Doctoral thesis, University of Huddersfield, Hudders-field, UK). Retrieved from http://eprints.hud.ac.uk/id/eprint/35130/
[7] Bron, A., & Thunborg, C. (2015). Biographical interviewing: The case of non-traditional students in higher education. In SAGE Research Methods Cases Part 1 (p.23). Sage. https://dx.doi.org/10.4135/978144627305014549309 | DOI 10.4135/978144627305014549309
[8] Bron, A., & Thunborg, C. (2017). Theorising biographical work form non-traditional students' stories in higher education. International Journal of Contemporary Sociology, 54(2), 111–127.
[9] Bursell, M. (2007). What's in a name? A field experiment test for the existence of ethnic discrimination in the hiring process. (The Stockholm University Linnaeus Center for Integration Studies (SULCIS) Working Paper No. 2007:7). https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:821429/FULLTEXT01.pdf
[10] Bye, H. H., Horverak, J. G., Sandal, G. M., Sam, D. L., & van de Vijver, F. J. (2014). Cultural fit and ethnic background in the job interview. International Journal of Cross Cultural Management, 14(1), 7–26. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470595813491237 | DOI 10.1177/1470595813491237
[11] Clarke, M. (2008). Understanding and managing employability in changing career contexts. Journal of European Industrial Training, 32(4), 258–284. https://doi.org/10.1108/03090590810871379 | DOI 10.1108/03090590810871379
[12] Edström, E. (2009, April 22). Wanting to become something: About forming identities in higher education [Paper presentation]. Third Nordic conference on adult learning: Communication, collaboration and creativity, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.
[13] Egerton, M. (2000). Monitoring contemporary student flows and characteristics: Secondary analyses using the Labour Force Survey and the general Household Survey. Journal of Royal Statistical Society, 163(1), 63–80. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-985X.00157 | DOI 10.1111/1467-985X.00157
[14] Fejes, A. (2010). Discourses on employability: Constituting the responsible citizen. Studies in Continuing Education, 32(2), 89–102. https://doi.org/10.1080/0158037X.2010.488353 | DOI 10.1080/0158037X.2010.488353
[15] Fotiadou, M. (2020). Denaturalising the discourse of competition in the graduate job market and the notion of employability: A corpus-based study of UK university websites. Critical Discourse Studies, 17(3), 260–291. https://doi.org/10.1080/17405904.2018.1546606 | DOI 10.1080/17405904.2018.1546606
[16] Fransson, G. (2006). Att se varandra i handling. En jämförande studie av kommunikativa arenor och yrkesblivande för nyblivna fänrikar och lärare [To see each other in action: A comparative study of communicative conditions and the process of becoming for commissioned officers and school teachers] (Doctoral thesis, Lärarhögskolan i Stockholm, Stockholm, SE). https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:199394/FULLTEXT01.pdf
[17] Hörschelmann, K. (2011). Theorising life transitions: Geographical perspectives. Area, 43(4), 378–383. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-4762.2011.01056.x | DOI 10.1111/j.1475-4762.2011.01056.x
[18] Hudson, F. M. (1999). The adult years: Mastering the art of self-renewal. Jossey-Bass.
[19] Johansson, K., af Segerstad, H. H., Hult, H., Dahlgren, M. A., & Dahlgren, L. O. (2008a). The two faces of political science studies – junior and senior students' thoughts about their education and their future profession. Higher Education, 55(6), 623–636. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-007-9079-z | DOI 10.1007/s10734-007-9079-z
[20] Johansson, K., Kopciewicz, L., & Dahlgren, L. O. (2008b). Learning for an unknown context: A comparative case study on some Swedish and Polish Political Science student' experiences of the transition from university to working life. Compare, 38(2), 219–231. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057920701582764 | DOI 10.1080/03057920701582764
[21] Lindberg, O. (2012). 'Let me through, I'm a Doctor!' Professional socialization in the transition from education to work (Doctoral thesis, Umeå universitet, Umeå, SE). http://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:512147/FULLTEXT01.pdf
[22] Löfgren Martinsson, M. (2008). Högre utbildning och arbete med personal- och arbetslivsfrågor – om professionalisering och utveckling av anställningsbarhet [Human Resource education and work – in terms of professionalization and employability development] (Doctoral thesis, Lunds universitet, Lund, SE). https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/ws/files/5591639/1038653.pdf
[23] Merriam, S. B. (2005). How adult life transitions foster learning and development. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 2005(108), 3–13. https://doi.org/10.1002/ace.193 | DOI 10.1002/ace.193
[24] Merrill, B., & West, L. (2009). Using biographical method in social research. SAGE.
[25] Moureau, M.-P., & Leathwood, C. (2006). Graduates' employment and the discourse of employability: A critical analysis. Journal of Education and Work, 19(4), 305–324. https://doi.org/10.1080/13639080600867083 | DOI 10.1080/13639080600867083
[26] Niesel, R., & Griebel, W. (2005). Transition competence and resiliency in educational institutions. International Journal of Transitions in Childhood, 1(8), 4–11.
[27] Nilsson, S. (2007). From higher education to professional practice. A comparative study of physicians' and engineers' learning and competence use (Linköping Studies in Behavioural Science No. 120). Linköpings universitet. http://liu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:16805/COVER01.pdf
[28] Nilsson, S. (2016). Employability, employment and the establishment of higher education graduates in the labour market. In M. Tomlinson & L. Holmes (Eds.), Graduate employability in context: Theory, Research and Debate (1st ed., pp. 65–85). Palgrave Macmillan.
[29] Nilsson, S., & Nyström, S. (2013). Adult learning, education, and the labour market in the employability regime. European Journal for Research on the Education and Learning of Adults, 4(2), 171–187. https://doi.org/10.3384/rela.2000-7426.rela9007 | DOI 10.3384/rela.2000-7426.rela9007
[30] Nyström, S. (2009). Becoming a professional: A longitudinal study of graduates' professional trajectories from HE to working life (Linköping Studies in Behavioural Science No. 140). Linköpings universitet. http://liu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:174874/FULLTEXT02.pdf
[31] Ohlsson, U. (2009). Vägen in i ett yrke: En studie av lärande och kunskapsutveckling hos nyutbildade sjuksköterskor [Career Paths – A Study of Newly Qualified Nurses' Learning and Knowledge Development ]. Örebro University.
[32] Osman, A., & Thunborg, C. (2019). The challenge of recruiting underrepresented groups – Exploring organizational recruitment practices in Sweden. Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies, 9(1), 3–18. https://doi.org/10.18291/njwls.v9i1.113085 | DOI 10.18291/njwls.v9i1.113085
[33] Pitman, T., Roberts, L., Bennett, D., & Richardson, S. (2019). An Australian study of graduate outcomes for disadvantaged students. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 43(1), 45–57. https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877X.2017.1349895 | DOI 10.1080/0309877X.2017.1349895
[34] Sargeant, M. (2001). Lifelong learning and age discrimination in employment. Education and the Law, 13(2), 141–154. https://doi.org/10.1080/09539960120068336 | DOI 10.1080/09539960120068336
[35] Thunborg, C., & Bron, A. (2017, March 23). Managing expectations – Balancing between being a good student, becoming employable or becoming the right "HR employee" [Paper presentation]. International Interdisciplinary Conference on HRM, University of Gothenburg, Sweden. https://employ.dsw.edu.pl/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Managing-expectations-Balancing-between-being-a-good-student-becoming-employable-or-becoming-the-_right-HR-employee_.pdf
[36] Thunborg, C., & Bron, A. (2018). Policies for equality and employability. Consequences for non-traditional students. In B. Merrill, A. Galimberti, A. Nizinska, & J. González-Monteagudo (Eds.), Continuity and discontinuity in learning careers: Potentials for a learning space in a changing world (pp. 125–131). Brill, Sense.
[37] Thunborg, C., & Bron, A. (2019). Being in constant transition or recurrent formation. Non-traditional graduates' life transitions before, during and after higher education in Sweden. Studies in the Education of Adults, 51(1), 36–54. https://doi.org/10.1080/02660830.2018.1523102 | DOI 10.1080/02660830.2018.1523102
[38] Tomlinson, M. (2017). Forms of graduate capital and their relationship to graduate employability. Education + Training, 59(4), 228–352. https://doi.org/10.1108/ET-05-2016-0090 | DOI 10.1108/ET-05-2016-0090
[39] Williams, S., Dodd, L. J., Steele, C., & Randall, R. (2016). A systematic review of current understandings of employability. Journal of Education and Work, 29(8), 877–901. https://doi.org/10.1080/13639080.2015.1102210 | DOI 10.1080/13639080.2015.1102210
[40] Woodfield, R. (2011). Age and first destination employment from UK universities: Are mature students disadvantaged? Studies in Higher Education, 36(4), 409–425. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075071003642431 | DOI 10.1080/03075071003642431
[2] Axelsson, R-M. (2008). Formbara människor. Högre utbildning och arbete som utsnitt ur läkares och civilingenjörers levnadsbanor. [Flexible people: Higher education and work through physicians' and engineers' life-trajectories] (Linköping Studies in Behavioural Science No. 132). Linköpings universitet. http://www.diva-portal.se/smash/get/diva2:18231/COVER01.pdf
[3] Baert, S., Cockx, B., Gheyle, N., & Vandamme, C. (2015). Is there less discrimination in occupations where recruitment is difficult? ILR Review, 68(3), 467–500. https://doi.org/10.1177/0019793915570873 | DOI 10.1177/0019793915570873
[4] Ball, S. J., Reay, D., & David, M. (2002). 'Ethnic choosing': Minority ethnic students, social class and higher education choice. Race Ethnicity and Education, 5(4), 333–357. https://doi.org/10.1080/1361332022000030879 | DOI 10.1080/1361332022000030879
[5] Blommaert, L., Coenders, M., & van Tuberger, F. (2014). Discrimination of Arabic-named applicants in the Netherlands: An internet-based field experience examining different phases in online recruitment procedures. Social Forces, 92(3), 957–982. https://doi.org/10.1093/sf/sot124 | DOI 10.1093/sf/sot124
[6] Brooks, R. (2019). A critical exploration of the influences of class, gender and ethnicity on student engagement with graduate employment opportunities (Doctoral thesis, University of Huddersfield, Hudders-field, UK). Retrieved from http://eprints.hud.ac.uk/id/eprint/35130/
[7] Bron, A., & Thunborg, C. (2015). Biographical interviewing: The case of non-traditional students in higher education. In SAGE Research Methods Cases Part 1 (p.23). Sage. https://dx.doi.org/10.4135/978144627305014549309 | DOI 10.4135/978144627305014549309
[8] Bron, A., & Thunborg, C. (2017). Theorising biographical work form non-traditional students' stories in higher education. International Journal of Contemporary Sociology, 54(2), 111–127.
[9] Bursell, M. (2007). What's in a name? A field experiment test for the existence of ethnic discrimination in the hiring process. (The Stockholm University Linnaeus Center for Integration Studies (SULCIS) Working Paper No. 2007:7). https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:821429/FULLTEXT01.pdf
[10] Bye, H. H., Horverak, J. G., Sandal, G. M., Sam, D. L., & van de Vijver, F. J. (2014). Cultural fit and ethnic background in the job interview. International Journal of Cross Cultural Management, 14(1), 7–26. https://doi.org/10.1177/1470595813491237 | DOI 10.1177/1470595813491237
[11] Clarke, M. (2008). Understanding and managing employability in changing career contexts. Journal of European Industrial Training, 32(4), 258–284. https://doi.org/10.1108/03090590810871379 | DOI 10.1108/03090590810871379
[12] Edström, E. (2009, April 22). Wanting to become something: About forming identities in higher education [Paper presentation]. Third Nordic conference on adult learning: Communication, collaboration and creativity, University of Southern Denmark, Odense, Denmark.
[13] Egerton, M. (2000). Monitoring contemporary student flows and characteristics: Secondary analyses using the Labour Force Survey and the general Household Survey. Journal of Royal Statistical Society, 163(1), 63–80. https://doi.org/10.1111/1467-985X.00157 | DOI 10.1111/1467-985X.00157
[14] Fejes, A. (2010). Discourses on employability: Constituting the responsible citizen. Studies in Continuing Education, 32(2), 89–102. https://doi.org/10.1080/0158037X.2010.488353 | DOI 10.1080/0158037X.2010.488353
[15] Fotiadou, M. (2020). Denaturalising the discourse of competition in the graduate job market and the notion of employability: A corpus-based study of UK university websites. Critical Discourse Studies, 17(3), 260–291. https://doi.org/10.1080/17405904.2018.1546606 | DOI 10.1080/17405904.2018.1546606
[16] Fransson, G. (2006). Att se varandra i handling. En jämförande studie av kommunikativa arenor och yrkesblivande för nyblivna fänrikar och lärare [To see each other in action: A comparative study of communicative conditions and the process of becoming for commissioned officers and school teachers] (Doctoral thesis, Lärarhögskolan i Stockholm, Stockholm, SE). https://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:199394/FULLTEXT01.pdf
[17] Hörschelmann, K. (2011). Theorising life transitions: Geographical perspectives. Area, 43(4), 378–383. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-4762.2011.01056.x | DOI 10.1111/j.1475-4762.2011.01056.x
[18] Hudson, F. M. (1999). The adult years: Mastering the art of self-renewal. Jossey-Bass.
[19] Johansson, K., af Segerstad, H. H., Hult, H., Dahlgren, M. A., & Dahlgren, L. O. (2008a). The two faces of political science studies – junior and senior students' thoughts about their education and their future profession. Higher Education, 55(6), 623–636. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-007-9079-z | DOI 10.1007/s10734-007-9079-z
[20] Johansson, K., Kopciewicz, L., & Dahlgren, L. O. (2008b). Learning for an unknown context: A comparative case study on some Swedish and Polish Political Science student' experiences of the transition from university to working life. Compare, 38(2), 219–231. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057920701582764 | DOI 10.1080/03057920701582764
[21] Lindberg, O. (2012). 'Let me through, I'm a Doctor!' Professional socialization in the transition from education to work (Doctoral thesis, Umeå universitet, Umeå, SE). http://www.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:512147/FULLTEXT01.pdf
[22] Löfgren Martinsson, M. (2008). Högre utbildning och arbete med personal- och arbetslivsfrågor – om professionalisering och utveckling av anställningsbarhet [Human Resource education and work – in terms of professionalization and employability development] (Doctoral thesis, Lunds universitet, Lund, SE). https://lup.lub.lu.se/search/ws/files/5591639/1038653.pdf
[23] Merriam, S. B. (2005). How adult life transitions foster learning and development. New Directions for Adult and Continuing Education, 2005(108), 3–13. https://doi.org/10.1002/ace.193 | DOI 10.1002/ace.193
[24] Merrill, B., & West, L. (2009). Using biographical method in social research. SAGE.
[25] Moureau, M.-P., & Leathwood, C. (2006). Graduates' employment and the discourse of employability: A critical analysis. Journal of Education and Work, 19(4), 305–324. https://doi.org/10.1080/13639080600867083 | DOI 10.1080/13639080600867083
[26] Niesel, R., & Griebel, W. (2005). Transition competence and resiliency in educational institutions. International Journal of Transitions in Childhood, 1(8), 4–11.
[27] Nilsson, S. (2007). From higher education to professional practice. A comparative study of physicians' and engineers' learning and competence use (Linköping Studies in Behavioural Science No. 120). Linköpings universitet. http://liu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:16805/COVER01.pdf
[28] Nilsson, S. (2016). Employability, employment and the establishment of higher education graduates in the labour market. In M. Tomlinson & L. Holmes (Eds.), Graduate employability in context: Theory, Research and Debate (1st ed., pp. 65–85). Palgrave Macmillan.
[29] Nilsson, S., & Nyström, S. (2013). Adult learning, education, and the labour market in the employability regime. European Journal for Research on the Education and Learning of Adults, 4(2), 171–187. https://doi.org/10.3384/rela.2000-7426.rela9007 | DOI 10.3384/rela.2000-7426.rela9007
[30] Nyström, S. (2009). Becoming a professional: A longitudinal study of graduates' professional trajectories from HE to working life (Linköping Studies in Behavioural Science No. 140). Linköpings universitet. http://liu.diva-portal.org/smash/get/diva2:174874/FULLTEXT02.pdf
[31] Ohlsson, U. (2009). Vägen in i ett yrke: En studie av lärande och kunskapsutveckling hos nyutbildade sjuksköterskor [Career Paths – A Study of Newly Qualified Nurses' Learning and Knowledge Development ]. Örebro University.
[32] Osman, A., & Thunborg, C. (2019). The challenge of recruiting underrepresented groups – Exploring organizational recruitment practices in Sweden. Nordic Journal of Working Life Studies, 9(1), 3–18. https://doi.org/10.18291/njwls.v9i1.113085 | DOI 10.18291/njwls.v9i1.113085
[33] Pitman, T., Roberts, L., Bennett, D., & Richardson, S. (2019). An Australian study of graduate outcomes for disadvantaged students. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 43(1), 45–57. https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877X.2017.1349895 | DOI 10.1080/0309877X.2017.1349895
[34] Sargeant, M. (2001). Lifelong learning and age discrimination in employment. Education and the Law, 13(2), 141–154. https://doi.org/10.1080/09539960120068336 | DOI 10.1080/09539960120068336
[35] Thunborg, C., & Bron, A. (2017, March 23). Managing expectations – Balancing between being a good student, becoming employable or becoming the right "HR employee" [Paper presentation]. International Interdisciplinary Conference on HRM, University of Gothenburg, Sweden. https://employ.dsw.edu.pl/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/Managing-expectations-Balancing-between-being-a-good-student-becoming-employable-or-becoming-the-_right-HR-employee_.pdf
[36] Thunborg, C., & Bron, A. (2018). Policies for equality and employability. Consequences for non-traditional students. In B. Merrill, A. Galimberti, A. Nizinska, & J. González-Monteagudo (Eds.), Continuity and discontinuity in learning careers: Potentials for a learning space in a changing world (pp. 125–131). Brill, Sense.
[37] Thunborg, C., & Bron, A. (2019). Being in constant transition or recurrent formation. Non-traditional graduates' life transitions before, during and after higher education in Sweden. Studies in the Education of Adults, 51(1), 36–54. https://doi.org/10.1080/02660830.2018.1523102 | DOI 10.1080/02660830.2018.1523102
[38] Tomlinson, M. (2017). Forms of graduate capital and their relationship to graduate employability. Education + Training, 59(4), 228–352. https://doi.org/10.1108/ET-05-2016-0090 | DOI 10.1108/ET-05-2016-0090
[39] Williams, S., Dodd, L. J., Steele, C., & Randall, R. (2016). A systematic review of current understandings of employability. Journal of Education and Work, 29(8), 877–901. https://doi.org/10.1080/13639080.2015.1102210 | DOI 10.1080/13639080.2015.1102210
[40] Woodfield, R. (2011). Age and first destination employment from UK universities: Are mature students disadvantaged? Studies in Higher Education, 36(4), 409–425. https://doi.org/10.1080/03075071003642431 | DOI 10.1080/03075071003642431