Students' perceptions toward developing generic skills at university, work placement and employment

The role of work placement in the UK university and workplace is examined in this research project. Through an appraisal of the literature, it outlines that outcomes of the work placement can be described as three fields: academic performance, generic skills and career exploration.

Engineering-based students were surveyed to determine their perceptions of the contributions that the learning contexts of university, work placement and post-graduation employment made to the development of their generic skills. All the respondents had experienced work placement as a formal part of their undergraduate studies. Findings showed that while graduates recognized the contribution university had made to their generic skills development, they greatly valued the experience of learning in the workplace during placement and subsequently in the employment. The importance of teamwork, being given responsibility, basic business skills and collaborative learning emerged as the most important factors for effective learning in the three contexts under consideration.