Recommendations: 18, 19

Recommendation 18: We recommend that all institutions should, over the medium term, identify opportunities to increase the extent to which programmes help students to become familiar with work, and help them to reflect on such experience.

Recommendation 19: We recommend that the Government, with immediate effect, works with representative employer and professional organisations to encourage employers to offer more work experience opportunities for students.

6.6 The Government agrees with the Committee that enhancing the employability of graduates is a key task for higher education and that work experience can be very valuable in helping students to develop. Whether or not on vocational courses, students should have the opportunity of work placements and the support necessary to reflect on the experience. The DfEE’s Higher Education and Employment Development Prospectus invited bids for projects in England to explore how the range of work placements might be increased, and eight initiatives are now being supported at a cost of £1.8m. DfEE is also establishing a national network centre to identify, exchange and disseminate emerging good practice on student work placement issues. The Cymru Prosper programme is continuing to increase the number of graduates employed by SMEs in Wales. 6.7 A number of the recommendations which are covered in Chapter 3 of this response - as regards key skills, clearer programme specifications and recording achievement - will also contribute significantly to improving the employability of graduates. DfEE is supporting national development projects in these and other areas to a total sum of £7.8m over the period 1998-2000 (including the projects in paras 6.5 and 6.6 above). DfEE is also running a series of feasibility studies for "Graduate Apprenticeships". These will involve employers in the design and delivery of integrated programmes of academic study plus work experience to suit the needs of particular industries.

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