AHECS BROCHURE

AHECSPROMOTING AND ENCOURAGING EMPLOYABILITY

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www.ahecs.ie Photography: Courtesy of Gary Hoctor, [email protected]: [email protected]

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AHECS

The Association of Higher Education Careers Services (AHECS) is therepresentative association for careers advisory and placement professionals in higher education in Ireland. Its mission is to lead, support and facilitatecollaboration among higher education careers services throughout Ireland and be the recognised authority on graduate career development, learning and employability. Included among our members are 27 Universities, HigherEducation Institutes and Institutes of Technology.

CONTEXT

We are not living in easy economic times. The graduates of 2011 are facinginto one of the most difficult labour markets for many years. The children of the Celtic Tiger are now the graduates of the Credit Crunch. For thesegraduates, brought up in an era of affluence and certainty, the challenges ofmanaging their careers in an environment marked by uncertainty and changeare immense.

Notwithstanding the difficulties in the market, it is clear to AHECS thatemployers are still looking for graduates that will be the engine of Ireland’s 21st century economy. They are looking for graduates who will come up withthe next generation of products and business processes. They are looking forgraduates with knowledge but they are also looking for graduates who areinnovators, thinkers, masters in execution, and alliance builders in the worlds of business, finance, services, community and the arts.

This requires a combination of academic skills, experience and key transferableskills which will ensure the future employability of graduates throughouttheir lifetime. AHECS has identified a need to put skills on the agenda of allhigher education institutions and to embed these employability skills in theformal curriculum.

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THE EMPLOYABILITY AGENDA

The issue of employability skills has been raised in a range of reports, mostrecently by the Hunt Report and the reports from IBEC, and the ExpertGroup for Future Skills Needs. Indeed AHECS’s commercial partner surveysemployers annually on their skills needs. The Hunt Report addresses theissue of future skills for Irish graduates and states that one of the mostfundamental questions in planning for the future is “what are the right skillsfor the graduates of 2015—30 and what mix of skills should we pursue aslearning outcomes in higher education?” Hunt reinforces the AHECS viewthat the undergraduate curriculum should explicitly address the generic skillsrequirement for effective graduate engagement.

AHECS members are ideally positioned to enable students to develop theemployability skills that will allow their successful transition from educationto the world of work and to maintain their employability throughout theirworking lives. Careers Services are already engaged in helping studentsmake the transition to the working world. However a strategic change indirection in HE is essential to ensure that employability is placed at the heartof the curriculum development and of the student experience. A world classeconomy requires a world-class graduate workforce. Equipping Irish graduatesto compete requires a commitment to employability and teaching. AHECSCareer Services are ideally positioned to take the lead in empoweringgraduates to be future fit for the challenges of the 21st Century.

AHECS AWARDS

The purpose of the AHECS awards is to encourage, reward and share best-in-class practice among Higher Education career practitioners and employersin the area of employability. There are thirteen nominees this year, reflectingthe breadth and depth of employability initiatives across careers services in Ireland. The diversity of the submissions is clear, ranging from initiativesfor undergraduates, postgraduates and researchers, to international andvolunteering programmes, mentoring and career development programmes,and involving employers across the sectoral divide viz. public and private,SME and large organisations, indigenous and multinational, services andindustry. Most importantly, these quality-driven, innovative projects haveequipped students to make the transition from second to third level andfrom third and fourth level to the world of work.

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DUBLIN CITY UNIVERSITY

The Uaneen module

The Uaneen module is a unique scheme that awards academic credits to studentswho submit a portfolio showcasing the work done and learning acquired by themthrough their extra-curricular activity. DCU is the only third level institution in theRepublic of Ireland to reward extracurricular activity in such a manner and the Uaneen committee includes an independent chairperson from IBEC, The President’sOffice, The Office of Student Life, Careers Service and Academic Representation.

www.dcu.ie/uaneen/index.shtml

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DUBLIN CITY UNIVERSITY

Joint alumni/careers mentorship programmes

The Mentorship programme is a collaboration between the Careers Service and the Alumni office. This innovative creative mentorship programme enables DCU students to explore career planning, develop networks, enhance employability skills and learn from role models by partnering with DCU graduates and employers. There is both a Structured Mentorship and e-mentorship programme.

www.dcu.ie/alumni/mentoring.shtml

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DUBLIN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Creative cv guide How to make an impression in the creative industries

The creative cv guide was developed by the DIT Careers Service in collaborationwith a number of industry, academic and professional (AHECS) colleagues as acomprehensive ‘one-stop-shop’ for students and graduates in response to ongoingrequests from students for advice on the best ways to make an impression in thecreative industries. It looks at how students can enhance their employability throughthe better presentation of themselves and their work and the establishment of theirown ‘personal brand’.

www.dit.ie/campuslife/careers/finalistsvacancies

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DUBLIN INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Careers development skills programme (CDSP)

Drawing on contemporary theories of career decision-making, (incl. constructivism;systems and chaos theories) our day long ECTS accredited CDSP provides studentswith a framework for reflecting on and understanding personal career motivationsas well as practical tips, tools and techniques for implementing career decisions.CDSP programmes are incorporated into 80% of academic courses at under/postgraduate level institute-wide and are specifically tailored for each course.

www.dit.ie/careers

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TRINITY COLLEGE DUBLIN

Civic engagement initiative

The Civic Engagement project serves to address two of the most pressing needs of our society: 1. Student and graduate employability. 2. Community services under increased demand but with fewer resources.The programme involves a range of initiatives which included: developing links with community organisations, brokering volunteering and service relationships withstudents, redeveloping the Civic Engagement website, developing the Dean of Students’ Roll of Honour, a Trinity Volunteer Fair and a monthly Voluntary opportunities newsletter

www.tcd.ie/community

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TRINITY COLLEGE DUBLIN

Careers support for international students

International students face a number of unique challenges when seeking employmentin Ireland and a recent survey of TCD international students highlighted employabilityas a key issue. This initiative provides range of services for international studentsdesigned to enhance employability including an online international mentoring programme; language support; tailored workshops; specific web information; international employer visits and a newsletter.

www.tcd.ie/careers/students/international

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TRINITY COLLEGE DUBLIN

Contract researchers: thinking inside and outside the box

The Careers Advisory Service in collaboration with WiSER (Women in Science, Engineering and Research), and the Staff Development Unit at Trinity CollegeDublin designed and delivered two workshops to enhance the employability of Contract Researcher staff. The workshops focused on self-awareness to identify career options together with job hunting techniques including cvs, networking and optimum interview performance.

www.tcd.ie/careers

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TRINITY COLLEGE DUBLIN

Planning and managing your research and your career’ ECTS accredited module for PhD students

The ‘Planning and Managing your Research and Your Career’ module for researchPhD students was designed and developed by the Trinity College Careers Advisory Service and Student Learning Development. The module elements include self-study, assessments and face-to-face workshop sessions focussed on employability and research planning (career planning, effective presentations, team working, job-hunting essentials, stress management, research planning, thesis writing and viva preparation).

www.tcd.ie/Careers/downloads/plan_mng_career.pdf

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UNIVERSITY COLLEGE CORK

Food graduate development programme

The Agri-food sector is a very significant employer in Ireland being responsible for 8.5% of total employment. The FGDP funded by the Department of Agricultureand Food and is an inter-institutional programme linking all postgraduate studentsin the agri-food sector. The aim of the programme is to provide employability skillstraining which has a strong emphasis on the skills required of leaders in the agri-food sector.

www.foodpostgrad.ie

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INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, TRALEE

Steps 2 success

Steps 2 Success is a unique careers education programme developed by the Careers Office in association with IT Tralee Management and the School of Business.Participants identified their personality traits and discovered their skill set beforelearning to market themselves to employers. The programme also focused on thehidden jobs market and how to access it and local employers were involved with the initiative. The sessions culminated in each participant making a pitch to a panel of employers utilising the skills and techniques they develop throughout the programme.

www.ittralee.ie/en/informationfor/currentstudents/careersoffice/employers/steps2success

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DUNDALK INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY

Accelerating campus entrepreneurship (ACE)

The ACE Initiative is a joint collaboration of Cork Institute of Technology, Institute ofTechnology Blanchardstown, Institute of Technology Sligo and National Universityof Ireland Galway and is being led by Dundalk Institute of Technology. This projectaims, through a collaborative approach, to create entrepreneurial graduates by embedding entrepreneurship education into third level programmes and effectingorganisational change within and between the institutions.

ww2.dkit.ie/research/innovation_and_enterprise/ace

Above: Paul Kerley, founder and CEO of Norkom Technologies, Dr Cecilia Hegarty, and Denis Cummins, President, Dundalk IT.

Right: Dr Cecilia Hegarty, manager of ACE Consortium.

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UNIVERSITY COLLEGE DUBLIN

Computer science in practice/at work

This embedded 5 credit module developed in collaboration with academics and employers aims to engage 1st year students in personal and professional career development. A high level of employer input has helped students learn more aboutthe wide range of careers open to them, the labour market, the skills employers look for and to assist students in making an early career decisions. The programme included a bootcamp event, inputs on the importance of campus engagement, self-assessment, industry visits and networking events.

www.ucd.ie/vavctest/brianmedia/temp/_careers_finalcut.mov

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NUIG GALWAY

Integrating employability into the school’s undergraduate programmes

A comprehensive and ECTS credit bearing initiative which integrates employabilityinto each year of the Business School’s undergraduate programmes using creativeand innovative learning methodologies, incorporating student engagement and collaboration with careers, employers, industry professionals and community partners.A recent employability survey highlighted that 78% of participating students agreedthey had developed strong employability skills during their degree citing this initiativeas the main contributing factor.

www.nuigalway.ie/careers/staff/transferable_skills.html

Above: Mentors and Academic Staff following mentoring event.

Right: Winners of the ICE Project 2010 L — R Pádraig O Céidigh, CEO Aer Arann and Adjunct Professor NUI Galway, Zhongyi EllenRen, Patrick Farrell, Patrice Lacken & Dr. Emer Mulligan, Head of JE Cairnes School of Business & Economics.

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AHECSPROMOTING AND ENCOURAGING EMPLOYABILITY

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