Work-Placements in Higher Education: How do mature students experience them?

Date

2023-08-22

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Conference

Peer reviewed

Yes

Abstract

In a recent research report that investigated the offering of work experience and placements in higher education institutions in the UK, it became clear that the last decade has seen a diversification of types of work experience options offered to students, and an expansion throughout the sector (Atfield et al., 2021). In the particular field of education, workplace experience is now an integral element of many degrees, both in the UK and beyond (Holman and Richardson, 2020). This expansion and focus on creating opportunities for students to take a short-term placement, a full year sandwich placement or a simulated placement experience (Atfield et al., 2021) follows the longstanding narrative in employability related literature of the widespread benefits of placements (inter alia, Dalrymple et al., 2021). Indeed, literature has highlighted benefits in the development of generic skills and personal attributes (Wilton, 2012), transferable skills (Jackson, 2016), and the better access to work communities, their tools (Stanley, 2013), language and culture (Gracia, 2010). Literature has also suggested that placement experiences allow students to improved academic results (Kettis et al., 2013) and explore career choices (Mello et al., 2021). Overall, research seems almost unanimous in the positive impact that placements will have for undergraduates’ studies and future transition into work. However, one limitation in the literature just presented is the focus on undergraduates that are using placements as their first experience in the world of work. Such limitation has also been highlighted by Lavender (2020) in relation to employability definitions, and the overall focus on a skills-centered approach which is also visible in the literature on the benefits of placements (e.g., Wilton, 2012; Jackson, 2016). The clear issue in this argument is that mature students, defined by the Office for Students (2018, p.1) as “those aged 21 or over at the time of starting their course”, often enter higher education with previous professional experience, and therefore might not require or benefit from an introduction to a workplace. For example, in a recent study with Australian undergraduates, Jackson and Tomlinson (2022) reported that mature students felt they had better career networks than other students. These findings highlight the international scope of the issue and seem to reinforce the argument that placements and overall work experiences might have a different value for mature students. Embedded into a wider study on second year students’ experiences of a short-term placement within an Education Studies BA in the UK, questions on the impact to mature students soon emerged. Although the following research questions directed the wider research project, this presentation will share the findings from research question 1, with a specific focus on mature students.

  1. How do students experience the transition between university and the workplace in their short-term placements? a. What are the perceived benefits and challenges experienced by the students in the transition between university and the workplace, in short-term work-placements? b. How do students contextualize their placement experiences regarding notions of employability? c. To what extent do students develop a professional identity in their short-term placements? d. To what extent do students frame their placements as mediational transitions (i.e. “as if” experiences)?
  2. What are students’ experiences of the placement module as a mediator in the transition between university and a workplace? a. To what extent do the module’s activities support or constraint students’ transitions between university and the workplace?

Description

Keywords

Placements, Higher Education, Mature Students

Citation

Oliveira, G. (2023) Work-Placements in Higher Education: How do mature students experience them? European Conference on Educational Research, ECER. Conference at Glasgow, 22–25 August. Available at: https://eera-ecer.de/ecer-2023-glasgow

Rights

Research Institute