Career plans of non-traditional students in the University of Seville

Abstract

Graduates’ employability has become a key objective in the Bologna process. There is little research, however, on the process of transition to the labor market of non-traditional groups. The aim of this paper is to study in more depth the career plans of nontraditional students, identifying what they will do when they fi nish their studies and how they plan to gain access to the labor market. The paper is placed within the context of the Erasmus+ European project EMPLOY (Enhancing the employability of non-traditional students in higher education, Erasmus Plus Program 2015-2017), qualitative, interdisciplinary and biographical research focusing on non-traditional university students and graduates from six European countries (Sweden, Poland, United Kingdom, Ireland, Portugal and Spain). The main project aims are to understand the employability from the perspective of students and graduates, increase knowledge and understanding of the factors that promote or hinder employability, and to explore the impact of age, gender, social class, ethnicity and disability in students’ employment prospects. Six biographical in-depth interviews have been carried out with students of the University of Seville (3 females, 3 males), all of them in the last year of their undergraduate program. They were selected on the basis of their degrees to represent different areas of knowledge (from Arts and Humanities to Science and Engineering), as well as on their specifi c characteristics of non-traditional students: adult and mature students (1), with a disability (2), immigrant (1), fi rst generation (6), and learners with low economic and cultural capital (3). The interviews started with the whole picture of the personal and educational background of the participants, and then focused on their employability and career plans. The results show that for all participants the next step to take once they fi nish their current degree is to go on studying. Instead of searching for a job in the short-term, they plan to continue their university education, mostly through a masters degree, but also by improving their level of English. The strategies and action they plan to implement are surprisingly vague and imprecise, as they prioritise education instead of searching for and fi nding a job. In addition, they have neither information about nor previous experience with, the existing career services, which again means that they are not in active search of employment. Discussion focuses on the idea that these fi ndings are related to the obstacles they perceive they will encounter in the near future. Hence, the general perception is that there are no opportunities in the labor market for them. It is not a problem of being more “employable” or having better competences when searching for employment, but the simple matter of opportunities in the current Spanish market. Additionally, they mention another barrier: employers usually search for people with previous work experience and they lack it, so they will have to pass through an uncertain process of acquiring this experience before having real opportunities. A special mention must be made for students with disabilities because they highlighted the personal barriers deriving from their own disability that could hinder their professional development.