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Enhancing the international student experience through graduate employment preparedness
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Enhancing the international student experience through graduate employment preparedness
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Content
Running head: INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILTY 1
ENHANCING THE INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EXPERIENCE THROUGH GRADUATE
EMPLOYMENT PREPAREDNESS
by
Aleksandr Voninski
A Dissertation Presented to the
FACULTY OF THE USC ROSSIER SCHOOL OF EDUCATION
UNIVERSITY OF SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
In Partial Fulfillment of the
Requirements for the Degree
DOCTOR OF EDUCATION
August 2020
Copyright 2020 Aleksandr Voninski
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 2
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
I would first like to acknowledge my committee chair, Dr. Tracy Poon Tambascia and
committee members, Dr. Ruth Chung and Dr. Kathy Krop. Your guidance, support and
perspectives kept me on track throughout the research and writing process. I would also like to
acknowledge the tremendous support of the USC Rossier School of Education, particularly Dr.
Mark Robison and Dr. Sabrina Chong. I enjoyed engaging with you, learning from you and our
global travels to Hong Kong, Helsinki, Doha, and Los Angeles.
My family provided me a great source of support and strength throughout my time at
USC. My husband Brett showed great patience for all the weekends and evenings I spent
reading, researching, and writing. Thank you for keeping my head above water and allowing me
the headspace I needed to focus and finish my studies. I am deeply grateful to my father Paul and
stepmother Angela who encouraged me to pursue my doctoral studies and have pro-actively
supported my academic and professional goals and ambitions.
Amidst the chaos and health crisis of early 2020, my mother Karen passed away. I was
unable to attend her funeral, and she did not survive to see me graduate. Memories of her
tenacity, creativity and her sense of humor kept me going during the final months of
procrastination and writer’s block. I dedicate this to her memory.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 3
Table of Contents
Acknowledgements 2
List of Tables 5
Abstract 7
Stakeholder Group for the Study 24
Purpose of the Study and Questions 25
Conceptual and Methodological Framework 27
Definitions 27
Organization of the Project 29
Chapter Two: Literature Review 30
Growth of Higher Education 30
Global Growth Trends in International Education 31
Australia Growth Trends in International Education 32
International Student Expectations 35
Influencing Factors on International Student Expectations in Australia 36
Graduate Skills Preparation in Australia 38
Types of Tailored Careers Services for International Students 39
Student Satisfaction with Careers Preparation 41
Important Skills Identified by Employers 42
Defining Graduate Skills 42
The Impact of Soft Skills Deficiencies 44
The Role of Educational Institutions in Skills Development 46
Curriculum Reform 46
Industry Involvement 47
The Role of Government in Skills Development 48
Federal-level Employability Support 49
State-level Employability Support 50
City-level Employability Support 50
Knowledge and Skills 51
Motivation 54
Organizational Influences 58
Chapter Three: Methods 62
Participating Stakeholders 63
Survey Sampling Strategy and Rationale 64
Survey Sampling Criteria and Rationale 65
Interview Sampling Strategy and Rationale 66
Interview Criterion 66
Data Collection and Instrumentation 67
Surveys 67
Interviews 68
Documents 69
Data Analysis 69
Credibility and Trustworthiness 70
Ethics 72
Limitations and Delimitations 73
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 4
Chapter Four: Findings 74
Participating Stakeholders 75
Interview Participants 75
Survey Participants 76
Overview of Knowledge, Motivation and Organizational Influences 77
Knowledge Findings 78
Knowledge of Effective Skills Development Programs 78
Knowledge of How to Design and Deliver Effective Skills Development Programs 86
Skills Development Program Effectiveness 89
Knowledge Summary 92
Motivation Findings 93
Careers Advisors Have Capacity to Develop and Deliver Effective Skills Programs 94
ISB Survey 95
Quality vs Scale 98
Reflection and Feedback 102
Impact on Institutional Reputation and Attractiveness 103
Work Visas 107
Motivation Summary 110
Organization Findings 110
Coordination of Stakeholders to Address Student Dissatisfaction 111
Siloed Departments 113
Resourcing Employability Initiatives 117
Organization Summary 122
Summary of Knowledge, Motivation and Organization Influences 123
Chapter Five: Recommendations 125
Overview of Key Findings 126
Recommendations 128
Recommendation 1: Treat Employability as a Core Mission of the University 129
Recommendation 2: Undertake a Review of Employability and Skills Initiatives on
Campus 132
Recommendation 3: Move the Careers Unit from a Student Service Function to an
Embedded Function of Learning and Teaching 135
Recommendation 4: Embed Greater Consistency in Approach to Skills Development and
Employability Initiatives 138
Recommendation 5: Engage and Consult with International Students to Systematically
Address Employability Dissatisfaction Indicators 140
Limitations and Future Research 142
Conclusion 143
References 147
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 5
LIST OF TABLES
Table 1 Actual International Student Enrolments to Australia 2003 to 2018 32
Table 2 Projected International Student Enrolments to Australia to 2025 33
Table 3 International Source Market Enrolment Trends to Australia 2015 – 2025 34
Table 4 Overseas Student Enrolments to Australian universities by State 2003-2018 35
Table 5 Nine Key Strategies to Positively Impact Graduate Employability 39
Table 6 Most Important Selection Criteria When Recruiting Graduates 43
Table 7 Student Expectations on University Skills Development 44
Table 8 Assumed Knowledge Influences 54
Table 9 Assumed Motivation Influences 58
Table 10 Assumed Organizational Influences 61
Table 11 Interview Participants (n = 9) 76
Table 12 Assumed KMO Influences 77
Table 13 Assumed Knowledge Influences 78
Table 14 Factual Knowledge (K-F) Inquiry Framework 79
Table 15 Top Skills Gaps Identified by Surveyed Careers Advisors 80
Table 16 Assessed Competencies by Employers 81
Table 17 Procedural Knowledge (K-P) Inquiry Framework 87
Table 18 Development of Identified Skills Gaps by Careers and Faculties 88
Table 19 Confirmed and Validated Motivation Influences 94
Table 20 Self-Efficacy and Motivation (M-SE) Inquiry Framework 95
Table 21 ISB Participation 96
Table 22 Motivation to Address ISB Survey Underperformance 97
Table 23 The Importance of Skills Development Initiative Components 101
Table 24 How Design and Content of Employability Initiatives are Informed 101
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 6
Table 25 Utility Value Motivation (M-V) Inquiry Framework 104
Table 26 Institutional Performance in Graduate Outcomes Rankings 105
Table 27 International Student Expectations During and After Studies 105
Table 28 Confirmed and Validated Organization Influences 111
Table 29 Organizational Cultural Setting (O-CS) Inquiry Framework 112
Table 30 Organizational Cultural Model (O-CM) Inquiry Framework 118
Table 31 Initiatives that Have Impact on International Student Skills Development 118
Table 32 Resourcing for Employability and Skill Initiatives 120
Table 33 Validated Influences and Recommendations 127
Table 34 Evaluation Plan for Recommendation 1 132
Table 35 Evaluation Plan for Recommendation 2 134
Table 36 Evaluation Plan for Recommendation 3 137
Table 37 Evaluation Plan for Recommendation 4 139
Table 38 Evaluation Plan for Recommendation 5 142
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 7
ABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to identify knowledge, motivation and organizational
needs for an Australian public university to address employer expectations and improve upon
student satisfaction indicators. Graduate employability is an increasingly important issue for
universities and international students in Australia. Australia is a global top three destination for
international students seeking a study abroad experience, which relies heavily on international
student fee income to support the public university system. International student satisfaction with
their graduate skills development and employment prospects is under pressure. Dissatisfaction
amongst international students has the potential to influence their propensity to recommend
Australia as a quality study destination. The Australian public university system, which educates
and enrolls the majority of international degree-seeking students onshore, is under pressure to
provide relevant and tangible skills development programs for their large international cohorts.
Increased enrollments, under investment in student-facing services and siloed skills development
within and outside of the curriculum have created inconsistencies in institutional responses to
international student dissatisfaction. The study confirmed organizational needs for elevating the
importance of skills development and employability into institutional strategic plans.
Recommendations focused on ensuring greater transparency and consistency in skills
development occur across relevant student service units and within Faculties and Schools.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 8
CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Higher education enrolments have grown dramatically across the globe from less than
100 million in 2000 to nearly 250 million 20 years later, with forecasts of nearly 600 million
enrolments by 2040 (Calderon, 2018). As developing nations’ economies expand, demand for
education increases, with capacity constraints continuing to drive students to seek opportunities
internationally. The number of students studying abroad has quadrupled since 1990, with pre-
COVID growth estimates surpassing eight million international enrolments in 2025 (QS
Intelligence Unit, 2017). Similar growth trends have been witnessed in Australia, with
international enrolments across the higher education sector growing by over 12% each year in
2017, 2018 and 2019 (Australian Department of Education, 2019). By 2025, nearly 950,000
international students are forecast to choose Australia as their education destination, which
equates to an additional 300,000 international students over a 10-year period (Austrade, 2016).
Whilst the impact that COVID will have on international enrolment growth in the medium term
remains unclear, Australia will likely continue to produce a large number of international
graduates each year from its universities and vocational colleges.
Growth in international student education to Australia is not without its challenges and
issues. A decade of sustained double-digit international enrolment growth is creating student
service resourcing constraints and challenges for Australian universities. Many of these
challenges have acutely impacted Australia’s elite universities, known as the Group of Eight
(Go8), which are considered Australia’s leading research-intensive universities (Go8, 2019).
Between 2012 and 2016, the Go8 experienced the strongest growth in international enrolments in
the Australian higher education sector at 56%, as compared to the next tier of universities at 41%
growth over the same period (ICEF, 2018).
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 9
Student service resourcing challenges are particularly evident in graduate careers and
employment units in universities. Australian universities are overwhelmingly public-funded
universities, with 37 out of 40 universities directly supported by the federal government
(Universities Australia, 2018). According to the higher education peak body Universities
Australia, the Federal Government has reduced funding to public universities over the last
decade by A$3.9bn and plans for a further A$3.7bn in cuts to higher education institutions that
will compromise universities’ abilities to skill students for workforce challenges ahead
(Universities Australia, 2017). As a result of declines in funding from the Federal Government,
Australian universities are recruiting an increasing number of international students to bridge
funding gaps, given those fees are not capped and are self-regulated by universities.
Revenue derived from university student fees across the States of New South Wales
(NSW), Victoria (VIC) and Queensland (QLD) have grown significantly in recent years, with the
auditor generals of each State cautioning their over-reliance on international student fee income
(Bolton, 2019). In 2019, institutions across these three States enrolled 84% of all international
students in higher education courses and degrees (Australian Department of Education, 2020),
pointing to a significant concentration of international fee revenue from a national perspective.
Revenue derived from student fees at universities in Australia’s most populous state, NSW, grew
from 46% to 54% as a share of total revenue over a five year period to 2018, whilst revenue
derived from public funding sources has decreased from 40% to 33% over the same period
(NSW Auditor General, 2019). International student fee revenue generated by Australia’s public
universities is increasingly important to university budgets. The NSW Auditor General report
(2019) states that international student fee revenue and domestic student fee revenue represented
30% and 23% respectively of total revenue, despite international students representing a third of
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 10
student enrolments in NSW, with similar trends reported in VIC (Victoria Auditor General,
2019).
The cost of operating public universities is negating student service enhancements and
investments to date. Employee salaries, scholarships and overall operating expenditure are
outpacing operating revenue with operating costs per student head increasing by 6.5% in 2018
(NSW Auditor General, 2019). In addition to increasing operating costs, worsening student to
staff ratios provide further evidence that reduced funding from the Federal Government is having
an impact on student services. Growth in non-academic staffing, which includes student services
has not kept pace with growth in student enrolments, with student to non-academic staff ratios
falling steadily over a five-year period to 2017 (Department of Education, 2018). Career-
readiness and skills development deficits across international student cohorts are likely a result
of student services funding failing to keep pace with significant enrolment growth. Essentially,
student service capacity and reach are strained whilst student service effectiveness is constrained
by ever increasing student enrolments, resulting in variability across satisfaction indicators as
student expectations are not being met. This issue has impact on both domestic and international
student cohorts.
The disparity and misalignment between student expectations, in particular those of
international students with university service delivery, are creating tension with business and
industry, where demand for graduates with robust communication skills and job-readiness is
evident (Robles, 2012). A Deloitte report on international education and the global economy,
commissioned by the Australian Trade Commission (Austrade), highlighted the changing
workforce needs of the global economy, with demand to remain strong for medium and high
skilled workers as industries of the future require a workforce with an evolving skillset
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 11
(Austrade, 2016). Capacity constraints of developing countries to sufficiently meet these
evolving demands will continue to influence students to seek their education abroad, further
increasing expectations regarding the skillsets they will develop during their studies. Left
unaddressed, a disparity in international student expectation regarding their return on investment
(ROI) in education could become an issue for some universities and destination countries.
This disparity was highlighted in the 2018 International Student Barometer (i-graduate,
2018), where international student satisfaction rates across Australia’s elite universities were
lower than the global average, with gaps evident in employability satisfaction (75.8% v 79.4%)
and careers advice satisfaction (69.1% vs 71.2%). “Employability satisfaction” refers to learning
in the classroom that will help the student get a good job, and “careers advice satisfaction” refers
to relevant information received about careers relevant to their field of study (i-graduate, 2014).
This highlighted satisfaction gap demonstrates a unique challenge faced by Australia’s higher
education institutions, where large numbers of international students have been admitted, but
investment in careers-related student services have not grown in parallel. This dissatisfaction
may impact international students’ propensity to recommend their institution to future
prospective students (i-graduate, 2018) as they may believe that their expectations have not been
met. Australia’s overall attractiveness as a destination of choice for international education could
be in danger if an increasing number of international students are dissatisfied with graduate
outcomes and the education investment they have made.
Background of the Problem
Graduate job-readiness is not a new phenomenon. However, this phenomenon has
surfaced as an important issue as the needs of employers and industry have evolved over the last
two decades. Graduates, irrespective of their local or international background, share many of the
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 12
same skills deficits upon entering the workforce, however, the needs of international student
graduates are more apparent due to barriers related to language and cultural background (Nilsson
& Ripmeester, 2016). Evidence points towards the challenge of Australian university careers
offices in supporting international student cohorts, with services for international students of
non-native English backgrounds representing over 55% of tailored careers services (Andrewartha
& Harvey, 2017). However, in spite of these tailored services, international student satisfaction
in relation to careers outcomes remains lower than their local student counterparts (Nilsson &
Ripmeester, 2016).
Australian universities are struggling to scale up the provision of skills-preparation for
their diverse student cohorts. The vast majority of Australian universities (37 out of 40) are
publicly-funded, and due to education-sector changes by the government, university enrolments
have grown significantly from 800,000 to 1.5 million over the last 15 years, with one-third of
this growth attributable solely to international enrolments (Universities Australia, 2018). Growth
in higher education enrolments across universities has come at the expense of vocational and
technical education (VET) enrolments, as the Federal Government has lifted caps on university
enrolment quotas, disrupting the distribution of post-secondary enrolments (Singhal, 2018).
Whilst overall student enrolments across universities have nearly doubled, non-academic support
positions across university services has not grown at a commensurate pace, with staffing across
student services trailing at less than a third of the growth rate of student enrolments over the
same period of time (Australian Department of Education, 2018). This growing disparity in staff
to student ratios may have downstream impact on the ability of staff to adequately guide and
nurture student development.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 13
Growing student to staff ratio disparities are likely a direct result of increased student
enrolments coupled with funding cuts to the higher education sector. Federal Government
contributions to public universities have been cut by nearly A$4bn (USD$2.8bn) over the last
decade whilst operating costs have increased (Universities Australia, 2017), negating revenue
gains and opportunities for universities to significantly re-invest in student services. The Federal
Government has imposed a freeze on new funding to the higher education sector, effectively
forcing universities to accept a 15% loss in publicly-funded contributions to cover the costs of
educating domestic students (Conifer, 2018), further driving universities to seek revenue sources
elsewhere. Revenue derived from international student fees are an attractive source of funds for
universities to bridge funding gaps and this attractiveness is creating risk for universities that are
relying heavily on this funding source (NSW Auditor General, 2019), with international student
source markets considered less reliable due to variable and uncontrollable external factors
(Victoria Auditor General, 2019). There is growing concern that universities are using
international students as ‘cash cows’ to bridge funding gaps (Burton-Bradley, 2018), with
international students themselves having set expectations related to services and learning
outcomes given the higher fees they are charged compared to domestic students.
Many students have an expectation that they will be adequately prepared for employment
upon graduation. If there are skills that are not fully developed or acquired in the classroom,
graduating students assume that the employer will help them develop the necessary skills,
including the soft skills that are important as their jobs evolve and their careers progress (Myton,
2018). International students have typically acquired the requisite technical, analytical and ‘hard
skills’, which some research suggests may be due to a focus on rote learning, standardized test-
taking preparation, and parental pressure to perform well inside the classroom (Blackmore,
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 14
Gribble, & Rahimi, 2015). International students are by their nature heterogeneous and diverse,
and this assertion is not necessarily applicable to all international cohorts. Despite acquiring
adequate technical skills, Blackmore et al. (2015) contend that in-classroom performance does
not always translate into adequate professional skills preparation. International cohorts
experience difficulties in meaningful engagement with reflection-focused assessment processes
inside and outside the classroom (Prokofieva, Jackling, & Natoli, 2015), resulting in a lack of
requisite soft skills and social capital as new recruits in the professional world.
Soft skills are further developed as part of students’ enhanced cultural capital (Bourdieu,
1986) and social capital (Coleman, 1988). This has become more important as the nature of
work, the impact of technology, the global connectivity of companies and the expectations of
new industries requires students, both local and international, to adapt (Miller, 2012). Cultural
capital refers to knowledge, skills and education that have a positive impact on social mobility,
whereas social capital refers to the gains an individual can make through social relationships and
social skills (Bourdieu, 1986). There are a variety of critical skills that employers are seeking
from today’s graduates (Bloomberg Next-Workday, 2018), including team-working skills,
critical thinking, complex problem-solving, agility, adaptability, communication, and ethical
judgement. These are not critical skills that are universally prescribed learning outcomes of
academic courses, which have traditionally focused on the hard-skills or technical knowledge to
demonstrate competency.
Since Coleman (1988) and Bourdieu’s (1996) notions of social capital and cultural capital
were defined, there have been recent refinements of what human capital and capabilities mean to
employers and industry, and how human capital are developed through the connections and
networks that are part of social capital theories. One such example is the American Management
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 15
Association (AMA), which is focused on promoting the importance of core skills and
competencies. The AMA refers to these as the “4 C’s”: Critical thinking, Collaboration,
Communication and Creativity (AMA, 2010). Another example is found in the term “21
st
Century Skills” (Hodge & Lear, 2011), skills which are grounded in professionalism, strong oral
communication, a sense of social responsibility and advanced reading comprehension. Surveying
by the AMA regarding the “4 C’s” indicates that these are skills employers believe to be
fundamental for the modern workplace, and ones that student graduates must develop. Both
examples can be seen as skills fostered through increased context exposure and acquired as
social and cultural capital.
Regardless of the terminology used to describe the professional skills in demand by
employers, soft skills deficits appear to be impacting graduating students’ employability
(Jackson, 2017), with confidence of university graduates across both local and international
cohorts waning (Deloitte, 2018). The Deloitte survey measured the attitudes of over 10,000
members of the Millennial generation across 36 countries. Millennials, also referred to as Gen Y,
refers to the generation that came of age at the turn of the millennium (Pew Research Center,
2019), whereas Gen Z generally refers to the generation born after the millennium. Less than a
quarter of Millennial respondents stated that the knowledge, skills and experience they currently
have or use in their jobs was derived from school or university, with half (49%) of all
respondents stating that their employers are not helping to prepare them for the challenges and
changes of the workplace. The survey further uncovered that eight in ten Millennials believed
that continuous professional development, on-the-job training, and more formal training
provided by employers are important to assist in their workplace performance.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 16
The apparent disconnect between relevant professional skills developed at university
versus those developed in the workplace has created an impetus for greater integration of
learning outcomes to benefit students pre- and post-graduation. The traditional notion of
generalized internships has been replaced by more targeted Work Integrated Learning and Work
Integrated Education opportunities, commonly referred to as WIL, which are becoming an
important collaborative tool in the arsenal of career-readiness interventions by universities and
employers (Tran & Soejatminah, 2016). Tran et al. (2016) contend that universities are
increasingly seeking a distinctive and attractive practice-based learning curriculum that will
attract and retain international enrolments, with growth of WIL across Australian universities
directly correlated to the changing campus demographics impacted by the growth in international
enrolments. Effectively, universities want to ensure that international students graduate with
global competencies (Gamble, 2010) and relevant skills required by multinational organizations,
as well as ensure that international students themselves feel satisfied with their return on
investment in education.
International students have doubts and are growing concerned about the return on
investment they have made pursuing an education in Australia, and this is attracting the focus
and attention of universities (Wade, 2018). The International Student Barometer (ISB) shows
declining student satisfaction rates across employability and careers preparation (i-graduate,
2018), which has the potential to create perception issues and reputational damage of institutions.
The increasing focus of university attention on WIL opportunities to address these student
satisfaction concerns faces challenges of capacity and scalability, with international student
participation rates still too low (Gribble, Blackmore, & Rahimi, 2015) to have meaningful
impact. Gribble et al. (2015) contend that meeting the increasing demand for WIL amongst
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 17
international students will require a layered and multipronged approach, necessitating close
cooperation between students, universities, employers as well as government. Given the breadth
of stakeholders required to address these issues, the importance of carefully addressing this
complex problem should not be underestimated.
Importance of Addressing the Problem
All students, local and international, want a positive and meaningful student experience,
therefore, addressing this issue from the student perspective is important. International students
in particular seek a demonstrable return on their investment of time, energy, and cost in relation
to an overseas education. Managing international student expectations, from the time of initial
enrolment through to graduation, is important so that career-readiness preparation and targeted
interventions can lead to realistic outcomes. The transition from university to employment is
complex and fraught with issues for international students given the high expectation that
education automatically leads to positive graduate outcomes, employment, and a decent wage
(Gribble, Blackmore, & Rahimi, 2015). These expectations must be honestly, systematically, and
continuously addressed throughout the lifecycle of the student journey.
Acutely aware of their overseas profile and image, Australian universities actively
promote employability rankings and positive graduate outcomes to prospective international
students. Popular world university rankings services, such as those produced by Quacquarelli
Symonds (QS) and the UK Times Higher Education (THE), may be distorting the employability
picture. There is a growing commercial market for ranking universities based on employer
surveys and various graduate employability success metrics; this in turn influences prospective
students and parents on university choice, whilst placing universities on a competitive footing in
the rankings arena (Wade, 2018). Universities, however, have not adequately invested in student
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 18
careers services. It should be noted that the graduate outcomes rankings the universities promote,
such as QS and THE, are more influenced by local, not international student employment
success.
This problem of practice is important to address as the disparity and misalignment
between international student expectations and university service delivery is growing. Declining
student satisfaction is not confined to international students alone as there is variability across
domestic student satisfaction rates at Australian universities in learning outcomes and skills
development (QILT, 2019). Domestic student and international student needs and expectations
have both parallels and differences. Given there are unique and specific needs and expectations
related to international students, this problem of practice focuses specifically on services and
skills interventions related to this cohort.
Dissatisfaction with career-readiness and skills development may impact student
retention, graduate satisfaction, and Australian universities’ ability to effectively promote
themselves to future full-fee paying international students, whose enrolments are of critical
importance to university operating budgets (Wade, 2018). As the third largest export industry,
international education is significant to the Australian economy, representing A$37.6bn
(USD$25bn) in annual export revenue (Austrade, 2019), with Australia poised to surpass the UK
as the world’s second most popular study abroad destination in 2019 (Coughlan, 2018). In 2014–
15, it was estimated that international education contributed to 130,744 full time (FTE) jobs in
Australia (Austrade, 2016). Given the financial benefits and soft-power diplomacy international
education brings to Australia (Austrade, 2019), improving upon international student satisfaction
rates appears both logical and prudent.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 19
Organizational Context and Mission
Australian universities are predominantly government-funded public institutions, which
include university coalitions across research-focused, technology-focused, innovative
universities and regional/rural university groups. These groups are known as the Group of Eight
(Go8), the Australian Technology Network (ATN), Innovative Research Universities (IRU) and
the Regional Universities Network (RUN) which collectively incorporate 26 out of 37 public
universities in Australia. Amongst these university groupings, the Go8 comprise the nation’s
elite coalition of leading research universities. These eight institutions dominate Australian
competitive research and grant funding, comfortably sit within the Top 100 of institutions across
various world rankings indices and have traditionally been the destination institutions of choice
for both local and international students seeking higher education in Australia (Go8, 2018). The
18 universities within the ATN, IRU and RUN university coalitions have been steadily
increasing their international reach, competitiveness, and attractiveness, with several moving up
global ranking indices year by year. For the purposes of this study, and given the sensitivity of
qualitative responses received, the name of the university has been de-identified and replaced
with the pseudonym University of East Australia (UEA).
UEA is a large, publicly funded research university in Australia with 40,000 students.
The university is recognized as highly internationalized in the region, hosting in excess of 10,000
international students from 100 countries, representing over 20% of the entire student body.
UEA’s mission is to be an international university of the Asia-Pacific region, a global leader in
change and innovation, positively impacting the lives of people and communities at home and
abroad. The university’s strategy is underpinned by four key pillars: Academic distinction that
inspires students with an immersive, quality learning experience; Research impact that cultivates
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 20
an environment to produce critical research and ground-breaking advancements; Global
engagement that enhances the university profile with global perspectives and exchanges; and
Social inclusivity, that embeds a culture of equity, diversity, inclusivity and respect across the
institution. In 2021, the University will reach the half-way mark of a six-year strategy across
research initiatives, education enhancements and student support systems.
Organizational Performance Status
The organizational performance problem that underpins this study is the satisfaction
international students have indicated surrounding the career readiness, professional skills
preparation and relevant work experience they receive whilst enrolled at university. UEA’s
strategy and mission are to deliver an outstanding student experience, which the university
measures through annual surveys and external benchmarks including the International Student
Barometer (ISB), the QILT Student Experience Survey (SES) and Graduate Outcomes Survey
(GOS) amongst others. In the 2018 ISB, UEA international student satisfaction rates in key
employability-related areas were approximately 5% below the national average and ranked in the
bottom half of all Australian universities, with satisfaction in careers advice received (68%),
satisfaction in employability (73%), and satisfaction in work experience (64%) underperforming
against national averages. Parallel performance gap results also appear in the 2019 SES, where
UEA ranks below the national average of all Australian universities in student experience, with
satisfaction in skills development and student support for undergraduates and postgraduates
trailing the national average by several percentage points.
It is a stated goal of the university within the Academic distinction strategy pillar that it
will deliver an exceptional student learning experience. Recent survey results do not align with
the stated goal of the university and show that negative student sentiment is not only apparent,
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 21
but the performance gap compared to other university student satisfaction benchmarks is
increasing. Furthermore, there is potential for reputational damage to the university given it
actively promotes its ‘positive graduate outcomes’, which may impact on the propensity for
international students to recommend UEA to future students. Minor fluctuations in international
student enrolments have the potential to create significant budgetary impact given that revenue
derived from international tuition fees to the university are in excess of A$300m (USD$205m)
per annum.
Organizational Performance Goal
UEA seeks to deliver an exceptional student experience by offering support services that
underpin high levels of student satisfaction, producing graduates that are in-demand and
prepared for future opportunities and challenges. Specifically, by 2024, UEA will improve
international student satisfaction rates by approximately 5% across careers advice, employability,
and work experience indicators to surpass national student satisfaction rates. The President and
the UEA Executive Committee recognize that the student experience is paramount to the success
of the six-year Strategic plan, with the university nearing the 2021 half-way point of evaluating
the progress of its stated goals. Annual surveys and external benchmarks are used by the
university to assess and measure improvement. International student satisfaction in careers
advice (68%), employability (73%), and work experience (64%) as measured by the annual
International Student Barometer (ISB), should increase by approximately 5% to surpass
nationwide international student satisfaction rates, and the university will move out of the bottom
half of universities in student experience satisfaction in the Student Experience Survey (SES). In
2021, the university will need to evaluate the steps it is taking to address underlying performance
issues in order to ensure that it can demonstrably achieve its stated goals by 2024.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 22
Description of Stakeholder Groups
There are two stakeholder groups involved in achieving relevant organizational
performance goals, one of which is internal to the organization and one which is external. The
primary and most critical stakeholder group is the Careers & Development (CD) unit, which is
the internal stakeholder group of focus for this study. The CD unit does collaborate with other
administrative units such as Student Services on certain domestic and international student
experience initiatives, but CD is the primary unit to undertake design, delivery and
operationalization of skills and employment-related initiatives Whilst international students are
the recipients and beneficiaries of employment initiatives and other student experience
initiatives, they are not the focus stakeholder group for this study because their needs and
expectations are accessible through a variety of available data and document sources. Existing
data, surveys, journal articles and reports based on international students and their needs will be
used to support and provide context for this study.
The CD unit of the university is the critical stakeholder group for this study as it is the
primary employability resource center on campus for all students. This unit hosts careers and job
fairs, interview skills workshops, resume writing consultation, and student mentorships. In
addition, the CD unit manages dedicated international student focused career-related events and
skills development programs. This unit is part of the larger Vice President (Education) division
which is tasked with improving face to face, online learning, and teaching outcomes for all
students across all Faculties, Schools and departments. It is responsible for implementing the
new online learning platforms and teaching resources, as well as facilitating work integrated
learning (WIL) opportunities for Faculties and employers. There are nine (9) individuals to be
interviewed within the CD unit.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 23
The second stakeholder group for this study are external to the university and are careers
advisors at large across the Australian higher education landscape. Some of these advisors are
members of the National Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (NAGCAS) and/or
the International Education Association of Australia (IEAA) Employability special interest
group, amongst other professional associations. These university careers advisors will be
surveyed as part of this study to provide a deeper understanding of what relevant investment and
interventions are being made for international student skills development across Australia. The
survey results from this external stakeholder group will allow for greater understanding of skills
development for international students across the higher education sector, which will inform this
improvement study and provide depth and context for recommendations to be made.
International students, which comprise more than 20% of the total student body, are the
recipients and beneficiaries of student experience initiatives, but are not a stakeholder group in
focus for this study. International students are surveyed annually regarding their student
experience and learning outcomes, and great attention is given to the ISB and QILT-SES results.
Managing the expectations of this diverse and heterogenous student cohort and delivering
effective careers-preparation to them is central to this study. First-year international students are
an important group within the broader international student population as early intervention
strategies may have a positive impact on their student journey and pre-career preparedness.
Stakeholders’ Performance Goals
UEA has embarked on a six-year strategy to deliver an exceptional student experience by
offering support services that underpin high levels of international student satisfaction, producing
graduates that are in-demand and prepared for the opportunities and challenges of the workplace.
The purpose of this study is to understand the administrative resourcing and support needed by
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 24
the end of 2021, the half-way point of its six-year strategy, in order to ensure the overarching
performance goals are met.
Organizational Mission
UEA aspires to be a leading university in the Asia-Pacific, transforming lives through education
excellence and research impact.
Organizational Performance Goal
By 2024, UEA will improve international student satisfaction rates by approximately 5% across
careers advice, employability, and work experience indicators to surpass national student
satisfaction rates.
Key Internal Organizational Stakeholder Group
Careers & Development (CD) Unit By late-2021, scalable careers preparation and
work integrated learning opportunities
designed to exceed international student
expectations will be implemented.
Stakeholder Group for the Study
Whilst the combined efforts and contributions of diverse stakeholders such as academics,
administrators, students and employers will contribute to the achievement of the overall
organizational goal of improved student satisfaction in graduate employment preparedness, those
efforts undertaken by the Careers & Development unit will have the greatest impact. This unit
operationally implements work integrated learning and professional skills development training
for international students and has the most direct contact with the international student cohort in
the context of employability preparedness. Effective implementation and scaling of student-
oriented employability programs and opportunities by the CD unit may have the greatest direct
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 25
impact on improving international student satisfaction rates and meeting the performance goal of
approximately 5% improvement across relevant indicators by 2024.
In order to achieve goals that have been set by the university under its six-year strategy to
2024, a review of international student-facing services related to employability will occur. The
CD unit employs 12 full-time and part-time careers advisors, with domestic and international
student career advising combined. Understanding the fundamental causes of international
student dissatisfaction with employability, an assessment of current outreach activities, and a
review of the resourcing and capabilities likely required to meet short and medium-term goals
will be essential components of this study. This review will assist in the identification of the
knowledge, motivation, and organizational factors and what needs to be implemented to improve
upon current performance.
Purpose of the Study and Questions
The purpose of this improvement study is to conduct a gap analysis that will examine the
fundamental causes of the organizational problem, namely how the university can improve
international student skills development and employability preparation and improve upon
international student satisfaction rates by 5%. Whilst a complete gap analysis would focus on all
relevant UEA stakeholders including academics, administrative units and students, for practical
purposes the stakeholder to be focused on for this analysis resides within the Careers &
Development unit of the university. The analysis will focus on this unit’s knowledge and skills,
motivation, and organizational influences. To begin, a list of possible or assumed influences will
be generated and examined systematically to focus on actual or validated causes. The key
questions that will guide this study are outlined below.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 26
1. What is the knowledge and motivation of university careers advisors in relation to
improving employability satisfaction indicators through effective skills development
programs?
2. What are the policies, organizational structures, and resourcing requirements to
adequately address the delivery of employability related initiatives for international
students on campus?
Careers & Development (CD) knowledge and motivation in relation to the university’s
six-year goals will be analyzed to determine if the overarching goals of the university are aligned
with key performance measures for the unit. The university seeks to exceed identified student
satisfaction rates across key careers-oriented indicators by 2024, and in order to achieve this,
international student satisfaction rates would need to improve by approximately 5% across
multiple indicators. This study will assist in determining if there is a mandate for CD to affect
change in a meaningful way that will have a positive impact on students and campus goals.
Understanding the interaction between the university’s organizational culture, structure
and context, and the knowledge and motivation of CD in relation to careers-oriented preparation
for international students, is critical to this study. The adequate resourcing of structurally inter-
connected stakeholder groups on campus and understanding whether there are aspects of
structures and organizational culture that might impede the success of improving student
satisfaction will be explored. The recommended knowledge and skills, motivation, and
organizational solutions to be implemented to address international student dissatisfaction and
enhance service delivery campus-wide will be explored. Furthermore, the purpose of this project
will include how the university can drive improvements and ensure there is a logical
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 27
convergence of cross-campus stakeholder activities, policies, solutions, and resources that will
sustainably meet and exceed organizational goals.
Conceptual and Methodological Framework
A gap analysis (Clark & Estes, 2008) was used in this international student employability
dissertation. A gap analysis is a systematic, analytical method that helps to identify the gap
between actual and preferred performance levels and clarifies the organizational goals to be
implemented within the conceptional framework. The methodological framework is a qualitative
case study with descriptive statistics (Salkind, 2016). Assumed knowledge, motivation and
organizational (KMO) influences that are barriers to achieving the goals of the organization will
be carefully identified and methodically researched.
These assumed KMO influences on performance will be assessed by using surveys,
document analysis, interviews, literature review and content analysis. Research-based solutions
will be recommended and evaluated comprehensively and methodically. Existing survey
instruments such as the International Student Barometer (ISB), QILT Student Experience Survey
(SES), QILT Graduate Outcomes Survey (GOS) and the Australian Universities International
Directors Forum (AUIDF) university benchmark survey will be leveraged and used to inform
current state issues and inform the gap analysis. Interviews, staff surveys and internal focus
groups incorporating key university administrative functions and stakeholders, will be employed
as a fundamental component of the research paper.
Definitions
Australia Universities International Directors Forum (AUIDF): An Australian higher
education committee supported by all public Australian universities and tasked with coordinating
industry activities and benchmarking on international student related support and services.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 28
Group of Eight Universities (Go8): A coalition of Australia’s eight oldest and most
prestigious universities, including the Australia National University, University of New South
Wales University of Sydney, Melbourne University, Monash University, University of
Queensland, University of Adelaide, and University of Western Australia.
Australian Technology Network (ATN): A coalition of Australia’s four leading
technology-focused universities, including Curtin University, University of South Australia,
RMIT University, and University of Technology Sydney.
Innovative Research Universities (IRU): A coalition of seven universities committed to
excellence in teaching and research, including Charles Darwin University, Flinders University,
Griffith University, James Cook University, La Trobe University, Murdoch University, Western
Sydney University.
Regional University Network (RUN): A coalition of seven universities focused on tertiary
education and regional development, including CQ University, Federation University Australia,
Southern Cross University, University of New England, University of Southern Queensland,
University of the Sunshine Coast, Charles Sturt University.
International Student Barometer (ISB): The largest annual global international student
survey with 130,000+ respondents, covering 90 indicators across Learning, Living, Support, and
Arrival satisfaction areas, administered by i-graduate. It is paid service administered by a large
private for-profit solutions provider. On average three-quarters of Australian universities
participate in the survey on a bi-annual basis.
Student Experience Survey (SES): Australia’s largest annual student survey covering all
public and private universities, covering Student Experience, Skills Development and Learner
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 29
Engagement, administered by the Social Research Centre and funded by the Australian
Department of Education.
Graduate Outcomes Survey (GOS): Australia’s largest annual graduate survey covering
all public and private universities, covering graduate employment rates by discipline and by
academic level, administered by the Social Research Centre and funded by the Australian
Department of Education.
Organization of the Project
A total of five chapters are used to organize this dissertation. This chapter provided the
reader with key concepts and terminology commonly found in a discussion about international
student satisfaction indicators and issues in relation to careers preparation. The organization’s
mission, goals and stakeholders as well as the initial concepts of gap analysis were introduced.
Chapter Two provides a review of current literature surrounding the scope of the study. Topics of
skills development, employability, careers advice, work experience and student services
resourcing will be addressed. Chapter Three details the assumed needs and presents methodology
for data collection of interview and survey participants. In Chapter Four, the data and results are
assessed and analyzed. Chapter Five provides solutions, based on data and literature, for closing
the identified gaps as well as recommendations for implementation and an evaluation plan for the
stated solutions.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 30
CHAPTER TWO: LITERATURE REVIEW
International education has experienced significant growth in recent years, with
international students seeking opportunities abroad to further their education, acquire greater
proficiency in a second language, and to attain the skills and qualifications for future
employment. There is, however, a growing level of dissatisfaction amongst employers
surrounding the career-readiness, advice, and skills preparation that students receive whilst
enrolled at university in Australia (Myton, 2018). Dissatisfaction has been most acute at large
public universities which were rated by their international students as having the lowest
satisfaction in the country in career preparation and work experience gained (i-graduate, 2018).
Employers are concerned with their inability to recruit graduates with the requisite skills,
universities are worried about reputational damage amongst graduates, and international students
are dissatisfied with their education investment (Wade, 2018). In this literature review, the
misalignment in student expectations of employers’ needs and the skills deficiencies identified
by employers of international graduates of Australian universities will be reviewed in depth.
Growth of Higher Education
Higher education enrolments have grown dramatically across the globe over the last 20
years. From less than 100 million in 2000 to nearly 250 million 20 years later and with forecasts
of nearly 600 million enrolments by 2040 (Calderon, 2018), growth in opportunities for students
seeking a post-secondary education have been phenomenal. Growth in education capacity in
countries around the world, the usage of English as a popular medium of instruction, increased
opportunities for cross-border scholarly mobility and the usage of technology in distance
education have all contributed to the globalization of higher education in the 21
st
century
(Altbach & Knight, 2007).
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 31
Global Growth Trends in International Education
Cross-border education and student mobility are not a new phenomenon, with scholars,
philosophers and students playing a critical role in the dissemination of ideas, knowledge and of
civilization over the last millennium (Guruz, 2008). Education can be seen as a soft power that
is exported, as mobile students return to their home country with depth of knowledge as well as
breadth of diverse ideas (Shanti, 2014). The notion of ‘humanist intellectuals’ refers to students
that develop global mindsets through the acquisition of education and scholarly research abroad,
while borders and differences are reduced as a result of student mobility when ideas are
absorbed, shared and disseminated (Shanti, 2014).
Growth rates for international education have witnessed a dramatic rise, with global
student mobility referred to as the 21
st
Century Silk Road (Bhandari & Blumenthal, 2011). This
growth in international education and mobility has scholars currently debating whether or not the
world is witnessing a golden age of international education (Fischer, 2019). The number of
students studying abroad has quadrupled since 1990 from 1.2 million, with pre-COVID growth
estimates set to surpass eight million international enrolments by 2025 (University of Oxford,
2017). A key element of this growth has been the movement of students from developing to
developed countries, seeking an education abroad, particularly from East and South Asia (IIE,
2018). As developing nations’ economies expand, demand for education increases, with capacity
constraints from classroom availability to adequately trained teachers continuing to drive
students to seek opportunities abroad.
These global growth trends in international education and education abroad are occurring
around the world, with the US, UK, Australia, and Canada the largest recipients and beneficiaries
of inbound international student mobility (Bhandari & Blumenthal, 2011). Governments and
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 32
higher education institutions are committed to the internationalization of their student bodies
(Otten, 2003). Governments value the soft power and institutions value the diversity and
international perspectives these students bring to campuses, which also improve intercultural
learning and competencies of local students (Otten, 2003). The Australian government
recognizes the importance of internationalization and international student mobility and has
established funding mechanisms, programs and opportunities to encourage both outbound and
inbound student mobility flows (Australian Department of Education and Training, 2016).
Australia Growth Trends in International Education
Australia has experienced significant growth in international students and student
mobility to its universities, with enrolments growing by 12% in 2019 (Australian Department of
Education, 2019). International education is the largest service export and third largest industry
for Australia, surpassing the tourism industry and contributing A$37.6bn (USD$25bn) to the
national economy on an annual basis (Austrade, 2019). Australia was anticipated to surpass the
United Kingdom in 2020 as the world’s second most popular destination for international
students (Coughlan, 2018) before COVID disrupted international student flows. The table below
shows actual enrolments of international students to Australia by sector over a 15-year period.
Table 1
Actual International Student Enrolments to Australia 2003 to 2018
Sector 2003 2006 2009 2012 2015 2018
Higher Education (HE) 146,398 185,872 226,129 230,345 271,664 399,078
Vocational Education (VET) 45,987 67,164 208,305 144,288 168,301 244,287
Schools 26,946 24,470 27,348 18,510 20,524 26,801
English (ELICOS) 62,992 78,332 139,269 94,971 144,153 156,369
Non-Award 25,613 25,555 30,938 25,105 37,589 49,864
Total 307,936 381,393 631,989 513,219 642,231 876,399
Note. Adapted from “International Student Data 2018,” Australian Department of Education
research data. https://internationaleducation.gov.au/research/International-Student-
Data/Pages/InternationalStudentData2018.aspx
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 33
Pre-COVID growth trends forecast nearly 950,000 international students to choose
Australia as their education destination by 2025, which equates to an additional 300,000
international students over a 10-year period (Austrade, 2016). These growth trends demonstrate
that Australia will continue to produce a significant volume of international students who
graduate each year from its universities due to low attrition rates (TEQSA, 2017) and positive
international student visa policies. These are graduates who will require skills to enhance their
employability and relevant career preparation as they enter the workforce either onshore in
Australia or abroad. The table below shows official Australian government pre-COVID
projections of international student enrolments leading to 2025.
Table 2
Projected International Student Enrolments to Australia to 2025
Sector 2015 2025
Higher Education (HE) 275,000 420,000
Vocational Education (VET) 165,000 259,000
K-12 (Schools) 20,000 27,000
English Preparation (ELICOS) 148,000 187,000
Other 38,000 48,000
Total 647,000 941,000
Note. Adapted from “Growth and Opportunity in Australian International Education,” Australian
Trade Commission, 2016
International enrolments from East and South East Asia and the Sub-Continent are
driving growth in the higher education sector in Australia. China, India, Nepal, Malaysia and
Vietnam, are the five leading source markets of international students to Australian universities
(Australian Department of Education, 2019). Pre-COVID enrolment growth from these top five
source countries was expected to continue to 2025, representing the largest concentration of
international students in Australia. China and India are the dominant source countries to
Australia due to their population size and growing economies. For the greater part of the last
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 34
decade, the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom have also received a significant
proportion of their international students from China and India (Edwards, 2019). The table below
demonstrates the top five source markets of international enrolments to the Australian higher
education sector and pre-COVID projections to 2025.
Table 3
International Source Market Enrolment Trends to Australia 2015 – 2025
Source
Market
2015 2020 2025 Annual
Growth Rate
2025 Higher Ed
Sector Forecast
HE Sector
Enrolment %
China 166,600 213,600 233,500 3.5% 145,900 63%
India 72,100 95,300 112,400 4.5% 58,100 52%
Vietnam 33,600 45,600 52,400 4.5% 23,000 44%
Nepal 21,600 33,200 41,800 6.8% 23,900 57%
Malaysia 23,700 32,000 35,700 4.2% 20,800 58%
Note. Adapted from “Growth and Opportunity in Australian International Education,” Australian
Trade Commission, 2016.
Universities across Victoria (VIC) and New South Wales (NSW) have experienced the
strongest growth in international enrolments to their universities over the last decade and their
growth has outpaced all other States and Territories. Growth was concentrated in VIC and NSW,
which host over half of all Australian public universities. Significant growth in enrolments to
Australia occurred as a result of student visa reforms in 2012 which introduced streamlined visa
processing and greater pathways to permanent residency for university graduates (Parliament of
Australia, 2016). The table below shows international student enrolment growth across all
Australian states and territories.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 35
Table 4
Overseas Student Enrolments to Australian universities by State 2003-2018
State 2003 2006 2009 2012 2015 2018
NSW 49,053 67,305 78,534 80,298 92,032 143,834
VIC 46,549 56,744 69,502 68,936 91,794 140,914
QLD 22,379 26,089 33,741 35,175 39,350 51,171
WA 16,239 17,627 20,199 18,758 18,584 22,192
SA 6,749 11,362 14,879 15,189 16,312 20,704
ACT 3,735 4,191 5,902 7,864 8,702 12,941
TAS 1,487 2,330 2,938 3,309 3,599 5,816
NT 207 224 434 765 1,261 1,506
Total 146,398 185,872 226,129 230,345 271,664 399,078
Note. Adapted from “International Student Data 2018,” Australian Department of Education
research data. https://internationaleducation.gov.au/research/International-Student-
Data/Pages/InternationalStudentData2018.aspx
International Student Expectations
International student expectations have evolved over the last two decades and are
influenced by several factors. QS Enrolment Solutions (2019) conducted a global survey of over
77,000 prospective international applicants who intended to study abroad for a degree, which
included nearly 30,000 prospective students intending to study specifically in Australia. The
survey highlighted that the most important factor influencing an international student’s
destination institution and academic program is the likelihood that it will lead them to their
chosen career (61%), with a high graduate employment rate (38%) also rated highly (QSES,
2019). The QS report also found that when considering their future career, prospective
international students were most focused on gaining an international experience (65%) and
acquiring new skills (64%) (QSES, 2019).
University support services, such as Careers advice services, rank in the top three of
most important support services (61%) and prospective students rate highly institutions with a
high graduate employment rate (60%) (QSES, 2019). The survey results point to university
rankings and subject rankings remaining an important influencing factor for prospective students,
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 36
but a shift away from brand towards the quality of the student experience is occurring. University
rankings providers such as Quacquarelli Symonds (QS), the UK Times Higher Education
Supplement (THE), US News and World Report, as well as the Shanghai Rankings (ARWU) are
the most prevalent. Two of these ranking providers, QS and THE, also produce employability
rankings which appear to be having an impact on international student expectations on their
destination institution of choice.
Influencing Factors on International Student Expectations in Australia
Graduate employability rankings of universities have become an increasingly popular
tool in the marketing arsenal of Australian institutions. Annual graduate employability rankings,
led by QS and THE, have influenced international student decision making. Employability
rankings, however, may have the unintended consequence of distorting the picture as well as
influencing prospective students to choose one institution over another based on perceived
employability outcomes. The methodology of each ranking can differ, with variable weightings
on employer reputation, alumni outcomes, employer partnerships and connections, and graduate
employment rates which may change year on year (QS Graduate Employability Rankings, 2020).
As an example, the 2020 QS Graduate Employability Rankings rated eight Australian
public universities in the world’s top 100, and two were ranked in the top 10 for employability
(QS, 2020). Whilst Australian university results are laudable, weightings on employer surveys
and industry research partnerships may favor certain types of institutions and do not provide
nuanced information on employability by discipline. Universities could potentially be accused of
disingenuity for an over-emphasis on select employability results as QS and THE metrics are
influenced more by domestic and local student outcomes, without providing distinctions for
results of international graduates. Therefore, international student expectations will be artificially
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 37
inflated by their perceptions of graduate employability of specific universities in Australia.
Universities in Australia may need to exercise greater caution on their over-reliance on rankings
and metrics to attract prospective students, which may be deceptively inflating the actual
employability of graduating international cohorts.
The Australian government has recognized the issue with these rankings and metrics and
has increased the transparency of critical information readily available to students, parents,
universities and employers. The Australian Department of Education surveys nearly 700,000
university students, local and international, on their student experience, graduate satisfaction,
graduate employment, as well as employer satisfaction through the annual Quality Indicators in
Learning and Teaching survey (QILT, 2019). In 2019, the QILT Student Experience Survey
(SES) reported a 42.6% overall response rate, with over 250,000 responses, of which 18% of
undergraduate and 52% of postgraduate respondents self-identified as international students
(QILT, 2019), signifying the wide range of representation in the dataset. The data from these
surveys have been recently aggregated by the government and made publicly accessible in an
interactive web-based format, known as CompareED, allowing prospective international students
to make an informed choice of their intended university and field of study by comparing the
graduate outcomes and satisfaction ratings across all universities and most academic disciplines
in Australia (ComparED, 2020). The QILT data has identified that international students are less
likely to rate their overall student experience as positively as domestic students, with both
undergraduate and postgraduate international satisfaction indicators averaging several points
below their domestic students counterparts (QILT, 2019). QILT allows employers to track and
compare the outcomes of graduate cohorts in specific disciplines across all universities and
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 38
technical colleges and it applies both top-down and bottom-up pressure on universities to
improve their performance, resourcing and motivation.
However, a recent 2018 International Student Experience survey of over 28,000
prospective international students intending to study in Australia found that less than a quarter
were aware that the QILT Student Experience or Graduate Outcomes data even existed
(Renowden, 2018). Prospective international students appear more influenced by the robust and
pervasive marketing of commercial rankings services, supported by university public relations
and social media messaging than comparative employment data by the government. This creates
a challenge for how to address this knowledge gap and whether international students have the
motivation to seek out alternative sources of employability information. This is a challenge for
university marketing teams and points to potential shortcomings in fully informing prospective
students on relevant student experience and graduate outcomes indicators.
Graduate Skills Preparation in Australia
Graduate skills preparation program deficiencies have impact on a multitude of diverse
student cohorts. University careers offices are aware of this issue and are attempting to target
these cohorts in need of more robust career-readiness services (Andrewartha & Harvey, 2017).
However, careers advisors’ efforts in isolation cannot address all aspects of this complex
problem. A recent survey of Australian university careers counsellors highlighted the challenge
of servicing a variety of stakeholder groups, such as students from non-English speaking
backgrounds (predominately international students); students with disabilities;
Indigenous/Aboriginal student groups; students of low socio-economic status (SES); students
from remote/rural locations; and female students in STEM subjects (Andrewartha & Harvey,
2017). The report on the survey highlighted that careers-oriented services for students from non-
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 39
English speaking backgrounds constituted a disproportionate amount (55%) of the tailored
services offered by careers offices as compared to all other tailored-cohort services.
Types of Tailored Careers Services for International Students
All universities in Australia have some form of a careers unit offering careers and
employment services dedicated to their student cohorts. Whilst typically located within a
centralized student services portfolio, some universities have devolved careers and employability
functions embedded in Faculties and Schools. Careers services have been established to assist
both undergraduate and postgraduate students and tailored services for specific student cohorts
are often created to meet a specific demand. Tailored careers services for international students
varies by institution and may include different approaches depending on the size of the
international student cohort on campus and the types of programs being offered. Some
international research suggests there are nine key strategies that careers services can implement
to positively impact graduate employability (Kinash, Crane, Schulz, Dowling, & Knight, 2014).
Table 5
Nine Key Strategies to Positively Impact Graduate Employability
1 Work experience, internships
and work integrated learning
4 Entrepreneurship modules in the
curriculum
7 Capstone projects in final year
courses
2 Careers advice and
employability skills
development
5 Employability from the employer
perspective communicated to
students and educators
8 Graduate portfolio
development and records of
achievement
3 Closer university and employer
links
6 Mentorship networks with
employed graduates
9 Online networking and job
search skills
Note. Adapted from Improving graduate employability: Strategies from three universities
presentation at the Ireland Conference on Education (2014).
The most labor-intensive approach to employability support to students involves one-on-
one types of counselling with a careers advisor, and due to demand, these counselling sessions
are normally booked in advance and have a time limit (Bista & Foster, 2016). An international
student might use this time to ask general questions or the careers advisor may introduce services
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 40
that are available online and offline, where the advisor may encourage the student to complete
specific tasks prior to the next counselling session. Services that careers advisors encourage
international students to leverage can include workshops and information sessions on resume
writing, LinkedIn, student visa employment rights as well as pointing students towards part-time
job boards. Universities may facilitate introductions to employers by hosting careers fairs on
campus, some which are tailored to international students and may include offshore employers.
Skills development (SD) programs for international students are convened during the
semester to provide international students with facilitated and guided mock interviews, effective
communication techniques and professional etiquette in the workplace, as well as short-term
placements in administrative offices on campus. SD programs may be more effective where a
mentorship is in place which allows for current students to engage and network with successfully
employed graduates (Kinash, Crane, Schulz, Dowling, & Knight, 2014). Demonstrating
connectivity, relevance and real-world success stories may be an important factor in achieving
better outcomes in graduate employability preparation and improving student satisfaction.
Internships, industry training and work integrated learning (WIL) are the tailored services
that are receiving increasing attention from both students and careers services (Jackson, 2017). In
the Australian context, internships are typically paid work placements for students in
professional and administrative work environments, with length of internships variable
depending on the needs of the employer. Industry training generally refers to work placements
which students must complete before or during their final year of study to meet graduation
requirements for an accredited degree, typically in Engineering and Science fields, and for a
prescribed period by the respective accrediting bodies. WIL are work placements where credit
may be granted for the work experience and are effectively unpaid internships in lieu of course
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 41
credit. WIL normally runs for a prescribed period of time to meet a specific number of hours to
meet course credit equivalency requirements.
Student Satisfaction with Careers Preparation
Despite the increased focus and investment in tailored services to date for students of
non-English speaking backgrounds, international student satisfaction in relation to careers
outcomes remains low (Nilsson & Ripmeester, 2016). What is becoming apparent is the growing
misalignment between resources and efforts directed at this student cohort, and the low impact
these efforts are having on improving satisfaction rates, with some students avoiding campus
careers services altogether (Fadulu, 2018). International students are increasingly dissatisfied
with the career preparation they are receiving, largely due to the lack of practicality and real-
world applicability of the lessons they learn in the classroom (i-graduate, 2018). This disconnect
shows that there is insufficient return on the time, effort and resources invested by universities
and that a more targeted and nuanced approach is warranted to address these graduate skills
deficiencies. International students are under-represented in WIL activities and research
suggests that the quality of their WIL experience is lower than that of local students, due in part
to a lack of support and effective preparation (Jackson, 2017). Employers, industry, and
universities, not to mention the students themselves, are dissatisfied with this result.
Dissatisfaction in careers preparation was highlighted in the 2018 International Student
Barometer (i-graduate, 2018), where international student satisfaction rates across Australia’s
elite universities were lower than the global average, with gaps evident in employability
satisfaction (75.8% v 79.4%) and careers advice satisfaction (69.1% vs 71.2%). These specific
indicators referred to career-relevant learning that occurs in the classroom as well as relevant
information received about careers relevant to their field of study outside the classroom (i-
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 42
graduate, 2014). QILT also reports that Australia has ranked below its American, British and
Canadian counterparts for several years in a row in relation to student satisfaction with their
overall education experience (QILT, 2019). This satisfaction gap in student support and the
learning experience demonstrates a unique challenge faced by Australia’s university careers
services, where services that are made available are not meeting the expectations of a growing
international student body.
Important Skills Identified by Employers
Employers and industry are also calling for a different approach. In a recent report on
innovation in employability for international students, the Australian government implored
education providers to more closely engage with employers to understand their needs and
expectations and to ensure that the higher education system remains relevant and competitive
(Austrade, 2019). Whilst universities are grappling with the student service issues previously
highlighted, employers have discovered that graduates are not equipped with the fundamental
skills to meet the needs of today’s work environments (Andrews & Higson, 2008) In particular,
there are critical gaps related to ‘soft skills’ (Hodge & Lear, 2011) and how they are building
social capital (Coleman, 1988) that recent graduates are lacking as they enter the workforce.
Identified skills gaps are prevalent across both international and domestic student cohorts;
however international students have greater skills gaps across problem-solving, teamwork,
communication, adaptability, and interpersonal skills (QS Intelligence Unit, 2018).
Defining Graduate Skills
There are a number of critical soft skills that employers are seeking from today’s
graduates (Bloomberg Next-Workday, 2018), including team-working skills, critical thinking,
complex problem solving, agility, adaptability, and ethical judgement. The Bloomberg report
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 43
concludes that “business and academia are failing to develop a skillset that has been identified as
one of the most important for success” (Bloomberg Next-Workday, 2018, p. 3). Furthermore,
whilst integrity and courtesy have always ranked as critical skills in the social world, positivity,
flexibility, and resilience are now emerging as soft skills that executives deem important in
today’s workplace (Robles, 2012). In a survey conducted on behalf of the New South Wales
State government, communication skills, teamwork, problem-solving, critical thinking and time
management were highlighted as the most critical skills by international students enrolled at
institutions across the State (StudyNSW, 2019).
The Graduate Outlook survey points towards less emphasis on academic results and
technical skills and more emphasis towards emotional intelligence, communication, and
interpersonal skills. Australian employers have highlighted the skills they believe are most
critical for success as students transition to the workforce. The table below identifies the most
important skills selection criteria when recruiting graduates in Australia by employers
participating in the 2015 Graduate Outlook survey (Graduate Careers Australia, 2015).
Table 6
Most Important Selection Criteria When Recruiting Graduates
Selection Criteria %
Interpersonal and communication skills 58.3
Cultural alignment / values fit 34.3
Emotional intelligence (including self-awareness, self-regulation, self-motivation) 26.2
Reasoning and problem-solving skills 22.6
Academic results 19.6
Work experience 19.1
Technical skills 14.4
Demonstrated leadership 13.1
Extracurricular involvement (e.g. clubs and societies) 7.4
Community / volunteer service 1.6
Note. Adapted from “Graduate Outlook 2015”, Graduate Careers Australia, Copyright 2016 by
Graduate Careers Australia
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 44
There are specific skills that international students expect universities will provide them
to enable their employability. These skills range from problem-solving, to communication to
leadership skills. The QS Global Employer Survey (2019) indicated a disconnect on the
importance and value of teamwork, with 75% of students respondents believing that it is a highly
valued skill from an employer point of view, but only 66% of students were confident that
teamwork is effectively taught by their university (QSES, 2019). The table below identifies the
skills that international students expect to acquire while attending their university.
Table 7
Student Expectations on University Skills Development
Skills Development Expectations %
Problem-solving skills 76
Communication skills 72
Leadership skills 71
Technical skills 69
Ability to work in a team 66
Creativity 64
Organizational skills 62
Flexibility / adaptability 58
Data skills 49
Commercial awareness 42
Note. Adapted from QS International Student Survey 2019 – Australia edition. Copyright 2019
Quacquarelli Symonds Ltd.
The Impact of Soft Skills Deficiencies
There is a cost borne by employers, individuals, and government due to soft skills
deficiencies and under-development (Leitch, 2006). Graduates have an expectation that
employers will help them develop the necessary skills, including soft skills, they believe are
important as their jobs evolve and their careers progress (Myton, 2018). Students acquire hard
skills such as technical, computational and relevant competencies from the curriculum in
university, but may be unprepared with the requisite soft skills and social capital as new recruits
in the professional world. According to a 2018 survey focused on the Millennial generation and
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 45
employment, covering over 12,000 graduates across 6 different countries, Deloitte identified
some trends regarding the expectations of graduates. Confidence of graduates is waning, their
expectations are fluctuating, and their propensity to leave an employer after just two years is
increasing (Deloitte, 2018).
There is a cost to replacing and retraining new hires for any employer. The Deloitte 2018
report also identified that the expectations new recruits have on greater flexibility in the
workplace are creating a mismatch for employers, particularly those who are grappling with
adapting to agile ways of working in a new digital era. The expectation gap between graduates
and employers can be attributed to a lack of coordination between education and industry. There
is misalignment and dissatisfaction between universities, their graduates, and employers with
minimal prospect for overarching coordination or leadership to stitch the stakeholders together to
tackle the apparent issues at hand (Bloomberg Next-Workday, 2018). The Bloomberg report
contends that given the soft skills and social capital deficits that have been identified, universities
should not wait to collaborate, because employers and industry need to solve for the skills gaps
with immediate effect.
This mismatch in university and employer collaboration can have a cost in productivity to
the economy as well. For employers hiring entry-level workers, new employees must be able to
work in teams, solve problems, think critically, and possess a basic level of self-management
skills (Villarreal, Montoyo, & Duncan, 2018). Two large organizations, Australia Post and
PriceWaterhouseCoopers (PwC), are amongst those experimenting with the establishment of
their own academies and apprenticeships to pro-actively bridge skills gaps, irrespective if they
hire high school or university graduates (Wales, 2018).
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 46
There is an economic imperative for universities to listen to employers and industry and
according to some commentators, the onus should be put squarely on universities to invest in
developing professional skills amongst students earlier in their academic journey (Wales, 2018).
Therefore, focused efforts and better resourcing by universities could be considered as a more
near-term, viable and effective solution to this issue. In parallel, international students would
benefit from being better informed and take responsibility for the breadth of their knowledge,
social skills and capabilities needed in order to be an attractive candidate for today’s employers.
The Role of Educational Institutions in Skills Development
A misalignment of industry needs and the effective skills development and capacity-
building programs within colleges and universities appears to exist. Unless this misalignment is
addressed, international students will continue to be inadequately prepared to enter the
workforce. Undoubtedly there will arise some shifting of blame over the cause in relation to and
solutions for soft skills deficiency and whether schools, universities or employers have
individual or collective responsibility. Whilst debate over where individual or collective
responsibility lies in relation to this issue, the focus of this study centers on the interventions and
actions taken within a university context, and how the design and delivery of relevant skills
development (SD) programs can improve international student satisfaction indicators. This study
will also explore how organizational resourcing can meet and exceed international student
expectations in relation to employability skills attainment.
Curriculum Reform
Curriculum deficiencies have been identified by the International Student Barometer
(ISB). Career-readiness satisfaction and employability satisfaction in Australia are lower than the
global average, with satisfaction indicators amongst international students enrolled at elite Go8
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 47
institutions lower than the Australian national average (i-graduate, 2018). According to ISB
methodology, these two satisfaction indicators are in fact more related to learning and curriculum
factors than with student-related services (i-graduate, 2014), meaning international student
dissatisfaction stems from inadequacies in the curriculum and is likely exacerbated by
underfunded student service initiatives. However, in-depth curriculum reform is a complicated
issue for institutions, therefore curriculum reform could be considered a long-term goal given the
complexities and academic stakeholder engagement involved in such endeavors. Some argue that
the requirements of industry are changing so significantly that even flexible educations systems
cannot adequately respond fast enough, as curricula would need to be updated more rapidly
(Wales, 2018). Careers units therefore need to have a better understanding of their institutions’
curriculum deficiencies that have been identified by international students to better inform
tailored career services and support initiatives for better responsiveness.
Industry Involvement
The Australian government suggests universities should work with industry to embed
employability and work-ready skills within formal qualifications (Austrade, 2019). Universities
already run a variety of interventions for international student employability such as interview
skills and cv writing workshops, information seminars, as well as careers fairs. Whilst these
initiatives are all useful, WIL programs and industry placements are considered the most useful
in assisting students with their career trajectory by scaffolding meaningful and relevant and work
opportunities (Tran & Soejatminah, 2016). Gaining employability skills requires a multifaceted
approach by education institutions, with multiple means of assessment such as qualitative and
reflective approaches, as well as collaborative industry engagement on creating relevant content
for the curriculum (Austrade, 2019). Universities appear to be well placed to design effective
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 48
learning in conjunction with industry so that content can be tailored and scaled, but this will
require universities to focus less on degrees and more on micro-credentials and just-in-time
learning components (Wales, 2018).
The potential for institutions to implement employability skills and early intervention
programs for newly enrolled students requires greater efforts by institutions at an earlier stage.
As well, universities need to work more closely with employers to inform the content of their
career-readiness programs and work collaboratively to fill this apparent skills void in order to
improve international student graduate satisfaction. The growth in work integrated learning
(WIL) projects are a positive indicator that coordination is improving, but the scalability of these
projects remains a challenge (Pham, Saito, Bao, & Chowdhury, 2018). Collective and individual
stakeholder efforts should greatly assist all universities to better manage international student
expectations and enhance graduate outcomes to bridge identified skills gaps (Wales, 2018).
The Role of Government in Skills Development
The vast majority of universities in Australia, 37 out of 40, are publicly funded
universities (Universities Australia, 2018), therefore government entities at the local, State and
Federal levels take an active interest in vocational and higher education institutions. As the third
largest export industry, international education is significant to the Australian economy,
representing A$37.6bn (USD$25bn) in annual export revenue (Austrade, 2019). The
international education industry supports economic growth, from jobs, housing, retail, as well as
tourism. It is in the Government’s interest to therefore pro-actively protect the international
education industry and foster further growth and provide value to institutions and international
students.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 49
Federal-level Employability Support
In 2016, the Australian government released its National Strategy for International
Education 2025, to bring a sharper focus for all industry stakeholders on the government’s
planned initiatives to position, grow and support Australia’s role as a leading destination for
international students. Inter-governmental department cooperation has supported the creation of
this strategy which included the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, the Department of
Immigration and the Department of Education and Training. Post-study work rights were granted
to international students completing a degree in Australia to encourage graduates to apply their
knowledge and skills, gain work experience, improve Australia’s connectivity with the region
and provide a transparent pathway to permanent residency for qualified graduates. The National
Strategy developed action points for improving the student experience, encouraging better links
with business and industry, as well as building innovative education and training services to meet
student and employer needs (Australian Department of Education and Training, 2016).
The Australian Trade and Investment Commission (Austrade) invests significant
resources to help profile, promote and nurture the international education industry, with
dedicated education-industry specialists based on and offshore. Austrade is positioning the
industry to focus on the quality of the student experience, and in early 2019 released an
Innovation in Employability report for the industry. The report is intended to highlight the role of
institutions, employers and the government in improving international student employability
with a focus on the barriers, innovative approaches, and international alumni success stories
(Austrade, 2019). Of direct relevance to this study is the investment that all state governments
are contributing towards fostering a rich ecosystem for industry and institutions to collaborate.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 50
State-level Employability Support
StudyNSW and Study Queensland are two examples of State government-funded
international education promotion arms which take the lead in co-funding employability
initiatives for the benefit of international students and their institutions. Initiatives have been
created to encourage international students to enroll in structured, extra-curricular programs
designed to develop an entrepreneurial mindset. Students work alongside entrepreneurs, industry
experts and mentors to develop the skills required for startups businesses (Austrade, 2019). Both
StudyNSW and Study Queensland have invested in creating industry supported WIL programs,
multi-day skills workshops, as well as online employability skills training for international
students, with the express purpose of building capabilities such as teamwork, communication,
problem-solving and creative thinking. In 2019, StudyNSW established the NSW International
Student Business Charter, bringing together companies to commit to WIL opportunities with
profiles of all host employers to raise awareness of the benefits of hiring international students
for work placements (StudyNSW, 2019) , whilst the Queensland Student Advisory Panel
(QSAP) was established to give international students a voice in the implementation and
operation of its 10 year-strategy (Study Queensland, 2020).
City-level Employability Support
The cities of Sydney, Melbourne and Perth have identified international education as
priorities in their respective strategic plans, with each having incorporated international student
engagement in the economic development strategies and respective education action plans. Each
of these cities define their role as enabling industry and government partners to create an
environment for their respective international education sectors to grow and diversify by
welcoming students, ensuring their wellbeing and providing meaningful work-integrated learning
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 51
opportunities (City of Sydney, 2018). In Melbourne, the City plans to generate vocational and
industry placements, internships, as well as strengthening ties with local communities and ethnic
diasporas where international students can develop employability skills and has also created an
action plan of immediate, medium and long-term goals specifically addressing work integrated
learning (Study Melbourne, 2016). The City of Perth enhances the employability prospects for
international students living in the area and has led the creation of web resources for students,
institutions, and employers with its ProsPER employability initiative (Study Perth, 2020). These
initiatives demonstrate the relative importance that government at the federal, state and city
levels place on the employability and skills development of international students, and the
recognition that government can foster positive dialogue and collaboration between industry and
education institutions.
The literature reviewed provides context as to the breadth of the skills development
issues surrounding international student employability. Skills development interventions and
investments are occurring at the institution level, by employers and at various levels of
government. There are a variety of influences that can be neatly separated into knowledge,
motivation and organizational areas, referred to as the KMO framework (Clark & Estes, 2008).
This framework will guide a deeper understanding of influencing factors of international student
employability and skills development.
Knowledge, Motivation and Organizational Influences
Knowledge and Skills
For this study, literature that is reviewed will focus on knowledge-related influences that
are pertinent to university-based careers advisors in Australia. Knowledge-related influences are
critical for the UEA Careers & Development (CD) unit’s goals and objectives, which are
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 52
centered on their mandate to develop and deliver effective, compelling, and scalable skills
development programs for international students on campus. In order to improve international
student engagement with and satisfaction derived from these skills development programs,
critical knowledge-related influences within the CD unit must first be detailed and explained in
order to identify both assets and gaps. The Anderson and Krathwohl (2001) framework will be
used to explore knowledge in a comprehensive manner. Knowledge influences include major
types such as factual, conceptual, procedural, and metacognitive, of which a review of
conceptual and procedural knowledge influence types relevant to the university and CD are
explained in greater depth below.
Knowledge of Effective Skills Development Programs for International Students
Clark and Estes define ‘training’ as any situation where individuals must acquire “how
to” knowledge and skills, which can be high-impact learning in a variety of contexts, both within
and outside of the classroom. For this study, the knowledge and skills of careers advisors
regarding effective skills development program content is important. Skills training and
development programs created by careers advisors should be compelling and have a relative ease
of delivery, so that it may reach a defined saturation point of learners to be effective (Clark &
Estes, 2008). The core elements and components across skills development (SD) programs,
whether offered centrally through the CD or by the Faculty, should be complementary and have a
level of consistency that meets overarching university goals and objectives to reach a broad, non-
homogenous cohort of international students. CD advisors should have depth and breadth of
knowledge in relation to relevant and useful learning components that are present in SD
programs delivered by other institutions and skills development programs considered successful
in the higher education sector.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 53
A thorough understanding and examination of careers advisors’ knowledge and skills
related to effective components of SD programs is important for several reasons. Due to their
unique cultural and educational backgrounds that have influenced their learning techniques and
communication styles, the design and delivery of SD programs for international students are
different from what CD currently offers to its domestic student cohorts. The International
Association of Education Australia (IEAA) maintains information about existing SD programs
developed by individual institutions and university consortiums (IEAA, 2019) which can provide
CD with a basis for understanding similar types of programs available across the education
sector. Components of successful SD programs include practical work-based scenarios focused
on problem-solving, teamwork, and effective workplace communication.
Ability to Develop and Deliver Effective Programs for International Students
To be effective, SD programs for international students should have compelling, relevant
and engaging content. However, before the content can be created, the instructional objective
should be clear. Beyond what was absorbed by the learner, effective instructional objective
points towards how the knowledge will be used (Mayer, 2011) and learning objectives can be
used by CD as a standard against which to interpret and evaluate performance. When designing
SD content, CD advisors should understand the how – how international students will learn and
apply the content, how the content will be delivered to provide scale, and how the effectiveness
of SD programs will be evaluated and modified. Knowing how to help students learn is known as
the ‘science of instruction’ (Rueda, 2011), and if applied to this problem of practice, should
guide the CD unit to address how SD programs are optimally delivered to international students.
Rueda contends that learning that is singularly focused on the ‘what and the how’, but not the
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 54
‘why and the when’ will not lead to an optimal instructional design or effective delivery of
learning programs (Rueda, 2011).
Revising and rethinking inaccurate knowledge (Ambrose, Bridges, DiPietro, Lovett, &
Norman, 2010), is a strategy that careers advisors can employ when considering international
student skills development. Ambrose et al. (2010) continue that providing the ‘big picture’ of key
concepts and relevant interrelationships can help students understand how disparate pieces of
learning fit together. Building connections amongst pieces of knowledge, such as in relation to
graduate employability and soft skills, will allow international students to more effectively
develop and flexibly absorb knowledge for problem solving through content developed by the
university and the CD unit. Table 8 below presents two assumed knowledge influences.
Table 8
Assumed Knowledge Influences
Assumed Knowledge Influence (2) Knowledge Influence
Type
K1 Knowledge of effective skills development programs for international
students
Declarative (Conceptual)
K2 Ability to develop and deliver effective skills programs for
international students
Procedural
Motivation
In addition to identified declarative and procedural knowledge influences, motivation is a
key influence on performance. Motivation is personal and activating, is energizing as it fosters
persistence, and is directed at accomplishing a goal (Mayer, 2011). Team confidence and
individuals’ ability to achieve performance goals as well as their drive to persist and succeed are
key components of motivation (Clark & Estes, 2008) and ultimately, performance. A
commitment to both quality and quantity of output are integral to motivational constructs such as
expectancy value, attributions, self-efficacy, and goal-orientation (Rueda, 2011). For the
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 55
purposes of focusing on the most relevant motivational constructs in relation to career
counsellors and international student employability, this study will focus on utility value and
self-efficacy.
The Value of Institutional Reputation and International Attractiveness
The value that individuals and teams place on organizational outcomes is important.
Expectancy value theory, or specifically, the construct of utility value, can be viewed as the
perceived usefulness of an activity or goal (Eccles, 2000). The level of motivation that critical
stakeholders demonstrate is important. It is through their actions that they can improve the
organization’s capability and capacity to enhance institutional reputation and international
attractiveness. The degree to which a task or assignment is considered useful in the context of
one’s individual or team goals is considered an extrinsic or utility value, particularly where the
benefits of engaging in the task outweigh the cost (Dembo & Seli, 2016) to the organization.
Expectancy value theory has application with how careers advisors in a university context
deliver skills development programs for international students. CD advisors should value the
development and delivery of SD programs that enhance international student employability as
important for overall reputation and international attractiveness of the university. Across careers
advice, employability, and work experience indicators, international student satisfaction at UEA
is below the national average (i-graduate, 2018), which could potentially impact on the
university’s ability to attract future international students. Furthermore, international student
dissatisfaction with employability has the potential to impact rankings indicators (QS
Employability, 2018).
International rankings have influence on the profile and attractiveness of institutions in
the eyes of prospective students and their parents. International education has surpassed tourism
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 56
to become Australia’s 3
rd
largest export industry, contributing A$37.6bn (USD$25bn) to the
national economy annually (Australian Department of Education, 2019). Revenue derived from
international student fees is of critical importance to this university’s operating budget generating
in excess of A$300m (USD$205m) of annual revenue and growing. As the university’s six-year
strategy seeks to grow international revenue and specifically emphasizes the criticality of the
student experience, the value derived from student-facing services that have a positive impact on
meaningfully enhancing international student satisfaction becomes apparent. Therefore, this
study will explore the degree to which CD advisors perceive their role in developing and
delivering SD programs for international students as critical for the reputation of the university.
Self-Efficacy of University Careers Advisors
In order for the CD unit to deliver relevant employability-skills programs, the careers
advisors should feel they have the confidence and capacity to succeed at developing effective SD
programs for international students. Bandura (1997) defines self-efficacy as an individual’s
belief of their capacity and capability to positively influence an action, and that their actions will
enable them to reach a defined objective. Specifically, an underlying notion of self-efficacy is
that “successful performance replaces symbolically based experiences as the principal vehicle of
change.” (Bandura, 1997, p. 191). Self-efficacy is important as it is a predictor of persistence and
mental effort which careers advisors will need to apply to the effective development of skills
development programs for international students.
The CD unit should develop effective, rather than just symbolic SD programs, which act
as ‘a principal vehicle of change’ in the employability and skills attainment of international
students. Careers advisors should have a high level of self-confidence regarding their ability to
affect and influence positive learning outcomes through the SD programs with which they are
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 57
charged. In certain situations, self-efficacy can be associated with career maturity, and a lack of
maturity can have impact on educational and employability outcomes (Gordon, 2006). The
learning outcomes of SD participants and more generally of international students are indeed
important, therefore the focus here lies specifically on the effectiveness of SD programs and the
capacity of careers advisors to design, develop and deliver effective programing. To that end, the
self-efficacy of international students and SD participants themselves is not a focus of this study.
Opportunities and forums created by careers advisors for international students’ self-reflectivity
and their metacognitive development will be further explored based on findings of data from this
study.
A high-level self-efficacy should positively influence motivation (Pajeres, 2006),
therefore individual careers advisors and the broader CD unit should have the confidence to
continuously improve the development of content that meets international student employability,
‘graduate attribute development’ (Barrie, 2012), as well as graduate skills expectations.
Comprehending international student expectations (Nilsson & Ripmeester, 2016) from a broad,
external perspective is important. A thorough understanding of student satisfaction indicators (i-
graduate, 2018) (QILT, 2019) of international cohorts on campus should be a cornerstone of the
CD unit’s commitment to engaging in continuous improvement and improve their ability to
develop and deliver more effective SD programs. Applying the lens of Pintrich (2003), the CD
unit should develop SD programs underpinned by a deep understanding of how employability
skills learning and training are useful for students’ lives (Pintrich, 2003). As well, the CD unit
annually evaluates SD program participant satisfaction, enabling careers advisors to confidently
incorporate feedback and to improve their own understanding of relevant content and effective
delivery. To increase their self-efficacy, the CD unit should set near-term, concrete, and
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 58
challenging goals (Pajeres, 2006) to increase the delivery and capacity of SD programs accessed
by international students on campus.
Table 9 below presents two assumed motivation influences. These specific motivation
constructs provide context as to the variety of assumed motivation influences that can be
explored in the context of the CD unit’s design and development of effective SD programs for
international students.
Table 9
Assumed Motivation Influences
Assumed Motivation Influences (2) Motivation
Influence Type
M1 Careers advisors need to perceive the development and delivery of skills programs
that enhance employability for international students as having value and are
important for institutional reputation and international attractiveness
Utility Value
M2 Careers advisors should feel they have the capacity to succeed at developing and
delivering effective skills programs for international students
Self-Efficacy
Organizational Influences
In addition to the identified knowledge and motivational influences, organizational
settings and influences have a role in determining individual and team effectiveness and success
at achieving stated goals and objectives. Organizational influences can be placed into two
specific categories, specifically cultural settings and cultural models (Gallimore & Goldenberg,
2001). Applying the lens of Clark and Estes, cultural models are the largely invisible attitudes
within an organization, which might be manifested in organizational values of transparency,
collegiality, and a culture of information sharing, for example. Cultural settings, on the other
hand, are distinguishable, defined manifestations of cultural models (Clark & Estes, 2008) that
are apparent across a multitude of organizational settings. Applied to this study, the CD unit is
indeed influenced and guided by cultural settings and cultural models of the university at large.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 59
Institution-Wide Prioritization of Employability Skills
Some organizations attempt to foster a culture which instills positive beliefs, where
expectations are set, and promising practices are encouraged (Clark & Estes, 2008). Where team
confidence, organizational trust, collaboration, and positive values are instilled, the benefit is a
more motivated organization that is persistent at its work tasks (Clark & Estes, 2008). To achieve
this level of value in one’s quality of work, organizations attempt to instill a work culture where
individuals are valued and overarching organizational goals are transparent and relevant, albeit
with variable results. For CD advisors to succeed in developing effective skills programs, the
university administration and faculty need to emphasize the importance of employability, career
readiness and soft skills development for international students enrolled at the university and
prioritize them accordingly.
Large universities generally have complex organizational structures and long-term
processes to guide strategic planning. UEA is nearing the half-way point of the six-year strategy
leading to 2024, within which a stated goal is to deliver an exceptional student experience by
offering support services that underpin high levels of international student satisfaction. The
university needs to ensure a positive culture of administrative and faculty support exists to enable
priority is provided to support of student employability-related endeavors. As UEA aims to
produce graduates who are in-demand and prepared for the opportunities and challenges of the
workplace, the criticality of graduate skills attainment should be recognized through a positive
and supporting organizational cultural setting that stems from the top down and directly
addresses organizational gaps, within CD as well as across other administrative units.
Institutional Resourcing of Student Careers and Employability Initiatives
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 60
The aforementioned six-year goals of the university are ambitious, however realization of
ambition will require a reassessment of resource prioritization. Student careers and employability
initiatives face challenges in realizing overarching objectives if resourcing, covering staffing and
programmatic initiatives, is not systematically addressed. Since mid-2018, the university has
established a new position within the CD unit, an International Careers Manager position,
bringing the student-facing positions to 12 full-time and part-time careers advisors. The current
semester-length SD program directly services 200 international students per annum. International
students have opportunities to attend periodically held careers workshops and seminars at
different points throughout the year, open to all students. With an enrolment of over 10,000
international students, of which 3,000 graduate each year, the current SD program and annual
cycle of careers workshops have challenges of scale in their delivery. This study will explore the
careers advisors perception of what further programmatic initiatives and investment needs to be
made to reach a greater audience of international students.
Institution-Wide Action Plan to Address International Student Satisfaction
It is a stated goal of the university that it will deliver an exceptional student experience.
An institution-wide effort to address identified indicators of student dissatisfaction may
constitute a first-order priority for the university following the release of the 2018 International
Student Barometer (ISB) results. One-fifth of all international students on campus responded to
the ISB survey, with careers advice, employability, and work experience trending 5% below the
national satisfaction average (i-graduate, 2018).
Further adding to the importance of addressing student satisfaction indicators, the
Australian Department of Education’s 2019 national Student Experience Survey (SES) results
rated UEA in the bottom half of all universities for an undergraduate Student Experience, with
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 61
underperformance across both Skills Development and Student Support indicators (QILT, 2019).
The survey also found postgraduate satisfaction underperforming against the national average in
the same identified indicators. This consistent pattern of underperformance across several survey
instruments points to the need for an institution-wide action plan to address international student
satisfaction. As well, the experience of careers advisors and the degree to which they believe
international student dissatisfaction is prioritized. Table 10 below presents three assumed
organizational influences. These specific organizational categories provide context as to the
variety of assumed organizational influences that can be explored in the context of the university,
Faculties and the CD unit.
Table 10
Assumed Organizational Influences
Assumed Organizational Influences (3) Organizational Influence Type
O1 The university needs to prioritize the importance of employability
skills
Cultural Model
O2 The university needs to adequately resource student careers and
employability
Cultural Setting
O3 The university needs to coordinate stakeholders on an agreed
framework to address identified indicators of student dissatisfaction
Cultural Setting
The nine identified influences across knowledge, motivation and organization (KMO)
were applied in a consistent and transparent manner for this study. These influences provide a
foundation for the mixed methods approach applied and will guide the qualitative and
quantitative research components to this study. The methods by which the KMO framework and
influences were applied are outlined in greater detail in the following chapter.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 62
CHAPTER THREE: METHODS
The purpose of this study is to understand the development and delivery of effective
skills development (SD) programs for international students enrolled in an Australian university
context. This chapter will focus on the design of graduate skills attainment, how SD programs
are developed and what underlying issues career advisors are experiencing in SD program
delivery. Across careers advice, employability, and work experience indicators, international
student satisfaction at the University of East Australia (UEA), the institution of focus for this
study, is below the national average (i-graduate, 2018). The disparity between student
satisfaction and institutional performance could potentially impact on the university’s ability to
attract future international students. At UEA, the Careers & Development (CD) unit’s goal is to
develop and deliver effective, compelling and scalable skills development programs for
international students on campus.
A mixed-methods approach (Creswell & Creswell, 2018), incorporating quantitative
(closed-ended) and qualitative (open-ended) elements, will be utilized to assist in the
understanding of how the development and delivery of SD programs enhance the international
student experience and can potentially be improved. Creswell et al. (2018) contend that a mixed-
methods approach design should incorporate a mixture of two or more methods of research
analysis and that this blending of data sources provides for a greater understanding of the
problem in focus (Creswell & Creswell, 2018). University-based careers advisors are the key
stakeholder in focus and a broader population of careers advisors will be surveyed for a national
view, followed by interviews with a subset of surveyed careers advisors who are employed at
UEA. This mixed-methods approach will follow standard and established guidelines for this
approach to research, applying adequate sampling for effective data collection and analysis,
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 63
integration of the design analysis through the merging of data, and a sequential approach of
quantitative data collection followed by qualitative data collection (Johnson et al., 2007).
The following research questions guide a mixed-methods approach to this study:
1. What is the knowledge and motivation of university careers advisors in relation to
improving employability satisfaction indicators through effective skills development
programs?
2. What are the policies, organizational structures and resourcing requirements to
adequately address the delivery of employability related initiatives for international
students on campus?
Participating Stakeholders
The stakeholder population in focus are graduate careers professionals in Australian
universities who interact with international students and directly support their employability and
skills development. There is one internal stakeholder group within the University and one
external stakeholder group. Qualitative data was collected from internal stakeholders only, whilst
Quantitative data was collected from both internal and external stakeholders. Focus and attention
for qualitative data collection in this study centered on the Careers & Development (CD) unit
within the University of East Australia (UEA), specifically the professionals employed within
this unit who are a critical interface between the university and its international students. There
are twelve (12) graduate careers advisors (employed full-time and part-time) within the CD unit
that support a university community of 40,000 students and an international student population in
excess of 10,000. These careers advisors work with both domestic and international students and
are tasked with administering the UEA Skills Development for Future Leaders program and
relevant careers workshops and employability seminars. The design, delivery and scale of these
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 64
CD programs constituted a focus for the research design and analysis as they provide a rich
understanding of the issues and opportunities surrounding the development and delivery of
scalable skills development programs for international students at an Australian university. CD
advisors were also be part of the quantitative data collection for this study.
The second stakeholder group in focus are external to the University and were only
included in the quantitative data collection portion of this study. This stakeholder group consists
of graduate careers professionals employed at other Australian universities. Many of these
careers professionals are members of relevant industry associations such as the National
Association of Graduate Careers Advisory Services (NAGCAS) and/or the International
Education Association of Australia (IEAA) Employability special interest group. NAGCAS is
the peak industry association in Australia that provides resources, professional development and
networking for graduate careers advisors nationwide. IEAA is the peak international industry
association in Australia that provides resources, professional development and networking for a
wide spectrum of international education industry professionals. careers professionals and
members of the aforementioned associations were contacted in order to leverage their
professional networks for chain sampling of graduate careers advisors and professionals with
insights into graduate careers services for international students. NAGCAS is not solely focused
on international student employability matters, therefore this stakeholder group could not form
the only source of external survey respondents.
Survey Sampling Strategy and Rationale
A random, cross-sectional survey sampling strategy was utilized for the careers industry
professionals survey. The conceptual framework, problem statement and purpose of study
(Merriam & Tisdell, 2016) were communicated to survey participants to provide context and
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 65
rationale to the study. The stakeholder population for the survey were graduate careers
professionals employed within Australian universities who interact with international students
and directly support their employability and skills development. The primary purpose of this
survey was to provide greater context to the research questions posed in order to determine how
graduate skills initiatives for international students are developed, delivered and resourced across
the Australian university context, and how graduate careers professionals address relevant
underperformance indicators in the International Student Barometer. For the purpose of this
survey, responses were collected from 57 graduate careers professionals out of approximately
480 identified careers professionals. Careers professionals were identified from individual
university websites as well as members of relevant careers associations, to achieve greater than a
10% response threshold for the survey. The surveying occurred in late 2019 and early 2020. The
survey occurred after the qualitative data collection and stakeholder interviews at UEA. At a
procedural level, this mixed-methods approach will allow for a more thorough understanding of
the research questions and allow for an evaluation of program development, experimental
intervention and outcome effectiveness (Creswell & Creswell, 2018).
Survey Sampling Criteria and Rationale
Survey participants were graduate careers advisors employed within Australian
universities. Participants self-identified as having provided careers advisory services to
international students in an education setting within the last two years. Participants may be
members of relevant industry associations such as the National Association of Graduate Careers
Advisory Services (NAGCAS), and/or the International Education Association of Australia
(IEAA), however association membership was not a specified criterion for the survey. Careers
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 66
advisors at UEA were also invited to participate in the survey. UEA is the institution of focus for
this research and employs twelve (12) careers advisors that interact with international students.
Interview Sampling Strategy and Rationale
Participants for qualitative data collection and interviews were graduate careers
professionals sourced from the University of East Australia (UEA), a large public university in
Australia with a substantial international student population. All interview participants were
careers advisors employed by the UEA Careers Development (CD) unit. In total, there were
twelve (12) careers advisors identified within the CD unit employed on either a full-time or part-
time basis. Only full-time team members were interviewed. The study was discussed with the
CD unit manager and the CD careers advisors were interviewed individually. This was the
primary stakeholder group for the qualitative aspects of the study and as all full-time CD careers
advisors were interviewed, this was considered a census sample. Engaging with the CD unit is
critical as it is a focal point of the conceptual framework regarding how the development and
delivery of graduate employability skills programs on an Australian university campus have had
impact and which areas require further effort, resourcing, focus or improvement. The interviews
took place in the Fall of 2019. Interviews were semi-structured, face to face and took place on
campus at UEA. Interviews were recorded for transcription purposes and interviewees were de-
identified. UEA’s Human Ethics Research approval for ‘Negligible Risk Research’ was not
required for the purposes of this research.
Interview Criterion
Interview participants were full-time Careers & Development (CD) advisors employed by
the University of East Australia (UEA), a large, public university in Australia, with a substantial
international student population. All of the interviewees were graduate careers professionals that
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 67
work with both domestic and international student cohorts, as careers advising is for the most
part, streamlined and unseparated by nationality at public universities in Australia. The goal was
to interview nine (9) full-time careers advisors, which was achieved.
Data Collection and Instrumentation
Instrumentation in the form of surveys, face to face interviews and document analysis
were used to examine assumed knowledge, motivation and organizational issues relevant to the
two primary research questions. A mixed-methods integration to data collection should
incorporate two or more sources of data that will be integrated, merged and embedded (Creswell
& Creswell, 2018). Applying a mixed-methods approach guides this study as it seeks to
understand the knowledge and motivation of university careers advisors on how to improve
international student employability satisfaction. Furthermore, this study seeks to understand the
procedures, resourcing and organizational structures required to effectively address delivery of
employability-related initiatives for international students in an Australian university.
Surveys
An online survey was administered to Australian university career advisors through
Qualtrics and the sole language of delivery was in English. The survey covered knowledge,
motivation and organizational influences relevant to graduate skills development and delivery for
international students enrolled in universities across Australia. The survey comprised of 15
questions that had specific relevance to the problem of practice and KMO influences. No
demographic questions were asked. The survey was anonymous, and respondents could not be
individually identified. The survey instrument utilized 6-point Likert scales, multiple choice and
ranking responses. There was one open ended, free text survey response option that was designed
to complement the qualitative data collection as part of this study.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 68
The survey instrument was sent to Australian university careers advisors including
identified UEA CD advisors. A greater than 10% survey response was sought, from 480
identified university-based careers advisors across this select cohort of Australian public
universities. Responses were calculated and analyzed through Qualtrics, with a backup copy
stored in a secured location. To ensure validity and reliability, the survey instrument was
approved prior to release by the dissertation Chair and with USC IRB approval regarding the
approach and types of respondents. A subject matter expert in Australian graduate employability,
who is not amongst those surveyed was asked to review the pilot survey prior to release to ensure
‘face validity’ (Robinson & Leonard, 2019), so that any issues surrounding survey respondents
not understanding the survey were minimized. As the survey was anonymous, it was not possible
to separate the UEA survey responses from the external industry careers advisors’ responses.
In lieu of an incentive provided directly to survey respondents, a donation was made to
the Council of International Students Australia (CISA). CISA is the leading national association
representing international students’ interests in Australia and is recognized by every Australian
university as well as the International Education Association of Australia (IEAA). CISA is a not-
for-profit organization that focuses on international student well-being and international student
work rights in Australia. Survey respondents were provided the opportunity to be notified of the
donation made to CISA if they opted-in by providing their email address at the end of the survey.
Interviews
UEA careers advisors were interviewed on campus in a semi-structured approach. The
goal was to interview nine (9) full-time careers advisors at UEA, which was achieved. Interviews
occurred once for each careers advisor and were held for no more than 45 minutes. All
interviews were formal, face to face and recorded with participant consent. Transcripts of the
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 69
recordings were kept secure and used for transcribing purposes with individual identities of the
individual participants remaining confidential with pseudonyms applied. Questions asked were
approved by the dissertation Chair and the approach received USC IRB approval in August
2019. UEA Human Ethics Research approval was not required. Interview questions were directly
relevant to the primary research questions of this study and addressed knowledge, motivation and
organizational issues. Interviews occurred prior to the survey release.
Documents
Documents reviewed included both publicly available documents as well as documents
that required permission of the University. The documents provided background information and
context and are not considered a primary instrument for this study. One document used, the
International Student Barometer (ISB), is a survey conducted annually on campus and across
Australian universities with over 25,000 respondents. The UEA-specific ISB datasets as well as
national ISB trends on international student satisfaction indicators were used to inform the
interview questions. The Australian government Quality Indicators in Learning and Teaching
(QILT) Student Experience Survey (SES) and Graduate Outcomes Survey (GOS) datasets were
leveraged as they are publicly available and include national and UEA-specific datasets.
Permission was sought for any documentation and datasets that were not publicly available and
all document sources have been appropriately cited.
Data Analysis
This study utilized a gap analysis model proposed by Clark and Estes (2008), which
explores knowledge, motivation and organizational influencing factors. This study applies a
mixed methods approach, where both quantitative and qualitative assessments have been
undertaken. The purpose for applying a mixed methods approach was to better understand and
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 70
answer the research questions relevant to improving international student satisfaction with
graduate employability preparedness. A descriptive statistical analysis of survey results was
undertaken once responses had been received and the response threshold had been achieved. A
Likert scale (6-point scale) was used for the ordinal scales of measurement and analysis on
counts and percentages was calculated.
Data analysis commenced as relevant data was collected from interviews. Data
completeness and accuracy was checked, and incomplete data was removed from the analysis.
Following each interview, detailed memos were written, including observational comments and
initial conclusions where relevant to the research questions. All interviews were subsequently
transcribed and coded, using open coding, empirical codes and a priori codes. Coding is
considered a critical component of effective data analysis (Corbin & Strauss, 2008), therefore a
systematic process was utilized and subsequently aggregated into axial codes that assisted in the
identification of pattern codes.
Credibility and Trustworthiness
To ensure credibility of the quantitative and qualitative data collection and instruments, a
disclosure regarding the purpose of the study and intent of the research prefaced the survey and
the interviews. Disclosure and intent are vital as deception can occur if the intent of the
researcher is different from what was communicated during the data collection (Creswell &
Creswell, 2018). All interview and survey participants were given an opportunity to review the
Information Sheet and explained the process of how their interviews were recorded and
information stored. To ensure data from this study was reliable a variety of steps were taken. The
validation of data between surveys and interviews was based on existing and reliable
instruments, and confidentiality and anonymity have been assured. Interview and survey
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 71
questions were field tested with an Australian graduate employment subject matter expert who
was not included as a participant in the data collection. Documents leveraged and utilized for
analysis have been kept confidential if they are not publicly available documents.
Access to interview and survey participants was made possible by the role of the
researcher, having worked in the international education sector for over two decades. My current
role as a consultant to higher education institutions and previous roles of working in university
strategy, international student recruitment, admissions and marketing positions across multiple
public universities in Australia has provided a breadth of education sector and industry contacts.
As well, my former role as a senior executive team member of two Australian education industry
associations provided a depth of understanding across international student service and
resourcing issues, increasing my credibility and access to interview participants. In addition,
there were no individuals part of the quantitative or qualitative data collection that have reported
directly to the researcher in current or previous employment.
The purpose of this research aligns with the priorities of research participants in an
international student careers advising context, and they have identified with the research benefits
(Creswell & Creswell, 2018). Leveraging internal data with external datasets and triangulating
survey results with interview feedback assisted with ensuring that there was adequate
engagement from within and outside of the university to address the research questions.
Identities of survey respondents and interview participants remain confidential and an audit trail
of documents and secured transcripts was retained.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 72
Ethics
Undertaking qualitative and quantitative research requires significant preparation,
beneficence, respect, justice, as well as careful and methodical analysis of results. The validity
and reliability of research is ultimately dependent on the research and the ethical frameworks
they employ (Merriam & Tisdell, 2016) An ethical approach to research is critical lest the results
lose credibility, reliability and validity. It is also important to consider intended and unintended
bias and methods to minimize bias through pilot surveys and peer review. Informed consent of
interview participants was required, USC IRB approval was sought, and it was determined that
UEA Human Ethics Research was not required. At the individual level, informed consent
involved honestly relaying the purpose and intent of the research study, how the information was
to be used, the intended audience of the research, and how confidentiality would be applied to
the responses. Securing agreement by the research participant in writing was not necessary under
USC IRB requirements, but an information sheet was provided. Informed consent builds trust in
the purpose of the interview and reinforces credibility of the purpose of the research and how the
interview responses supported the overall study.
Participation in the survey and the interviews for this research study were voluntary. At
no point should any participant feel locked in, pressured or unable to withdraw consent or be
unable to withdraw without penalty (Rubin & Rubin, 2012). This principle applied to both the
survey and the interviews conducted for this study and was covered in the introduction to this
research either verbally or in writing as required. Confidentiality of the data, whether written or
recorded, is a critical component of any research project (Glesne, 2011), particularly if the
information could impact or adversely affect the research participant in the eyes of the
university, or be identifiable such that it may pose legal or prosecutorial evidence against the
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 73
participant. The recording of interviews with career advisors from the CD unit involved consent,
and the recordings have been held in confidence and securely stored. Recorded interview
participants for this study were coded to maintain their anonymity.
Limitations and Delimitations
The purpose of this study aligns with the goals of the CD unit and the university as an
organization. A KMO framework was applied to this study which might be seen as a limitation.
All interview participants were careers advisors from the same university, which may be
considered a limitation. As well, truthfulness of survey responses could have implications on
data collected and inferences made, however, the volume of survey responses collected limit this
issue. Applying a mixed methods approach to address the research questions has allowed for
knowledge, motivation and organizational influences to be addressed and triangulated.
Fundamentally, the purpose of this study was to understand how careers advisors can
improve upon employability satisfaction indicators through effective skills development
programs and to determine the resourcing requirements that the university should undertake to
ensure these initiatives are effective. Qualitative research components focused on careers
advisors in a university setting, whilst the quantitative research focused on careers advisors from
across the higher education sector that work with international students. The results of these
research components have been detailed in the following chapter.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 74
CHAPTER FOUR: FINDINGS
The purpose of this study is to better understand how the experiences of international
students studying abroad can be improved through effective graduate employment and targeted
skills preparation programs. As outlined in Chapters 1 and 2, there is a widening gap related to
student expectations of service delivery and education outcomes. Funding and resourcing for
university services are shrinking whilst enrolments are growing, impacting the student
experience. The gap between expectations and service delivery is increasing the rate of
dissatisfaction amongst international students, which in turn could have a negative impact on the
attractiveness of Australia as a study destination. International education is the third largest
sector of the Australian economy and any disruption to this sector could have a significant
impact to universities and related industries.
Two key research questions (RQ) were developed as part of this study. The first research
question (RQ1) covers the need to more thoroughly understand the knowledge and motivation of
university careers advisors in relation to improving employability satisfaction indicators through
effective skills development programs. The second research question (RQ2) is focused on
defining the procedures, organizational structures and resourcing required to adequately address
the delivery of employability related initiatives for international students on campus. Both of
these research questions are supported and addressed through targeted questions of interview and
survey participants.
RQ1: What is the knowledge and motivation of university careers advisors in relation to
improving employability satisfaction indicators through effective skills development
programs?
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 75
RQ2: What are the procedures, organizational structures and resourcing required to
adequately address the delivery of employability related initiatives for international
students?
Participating Stakeholders
Stakeholders for this mixed methods study included both interview and survey
participants. All participants were career advisors, work integrated learning (WIL) facilitators, or
student service specialists in a higher education setting across Australian institutions.
Pseudonyms have been applied to interview participants and survey participants’ institutions
have been de-identified to maintain confidentiality.
Interview Participants
A total of nine participants (n=9) were interviewed from the University of East Australia
(UEA) to gain qualitative depth and perspectives on the challenges and opportunities faced by
careers advisors in a single university setting. All interview participants were full-time
employees of the Careers unit at UEA and all worked at the institution in the Careers unit for
over a year. There was a total of 12 staff within the Careers unit, and the three staff not
interviewed were part-time staff members and unable to participate. All interview participants
had experience supporting both local and international student skills development and
employability. Interview participants included the Manager, Assistant Manager, Program
Development Officer, Senior Careers Advisor and five Careers Advisors. The gender breakdown
of the interview participants was six females and three males. Interview participants have been
de-identified and are labelled with pseudonyms.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 76
Table 11
Interview Participants (n = 9)
Pseudonym Position Gender Age Range
Amy Manager Female 40-49
Brian Assistant Manager Male 30-39
Carol Program Development Officer Female 40-49
David Senior Careers Advisor Male 30-39
Ellen Careers Advisor Female 20-29
Frank Careers Advisor Male 20-29
Georgina Careers Advisor Female 20-29
Harper Careers Advisor Female 30-39
Indira Careers Advisor Female 20-29
Survey Participants
The survey was distributed to thirty (30) public institutions nationwide, representing
seventy-five percent (75%) of all public higher education institutions in Australia. Fifty-seven
(57) anonymous survey responses were received from self-identified career advisors and career
development participants across these 30 institutions. Based on careers associations membership
and university website directories, 480 university-based careers advisors were identified. Fifty-
seven total responses provides this survey with an approximate twelve percent (12%) industry
response rate. All survey participants positively identified themselves as having experience in
providing careers development support to international students in an education setting. The
fifteen (15) question survey was primarily based on a six (6) point Likert scale, and included
multiple-choice questions and a limited number of open-ended questions. The anonymous survey
did not record institution, position or gender. Interviewed participants were also invited to
respond to the survey. Due to the anonymity of the survey, it cannot be confirmed that all
interview participants completed the survey, therefore no survey response comparisons between
UEA and external careers advisors are made.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 77
Overview of Knowledge, Motivation and Organizational Influences
There are seven (7) identified Knowledge, Motivational and Organizational (KMO)
influences aligned with this study. The KMO model provides structure and context within an
organizational gap analysis study (Clark & Estes, 2008). For the purposes of this study, two
identified influences are Knowledge related, covering Factual (K-F) and Procedural (K-P)
influence categories, whilst two are Motivational covering Self-Efficacy (M-SE) and Utility
Value (M-V) influence categories. An additional three influences are Organizational that cover
Cultural Setting (O-CS) and Cultural Model (O-CM) influence categories. Combined, these
seven influences provided the foundation for interview and survey participant engagement.
Table 12
Assumed KMO Influences
Category Assumed KMO Influences
Factual K-F Knowledge of effective skills development programs
Procedural
K-P Knowledge of how to design and deliver effective skills development programs to
international students
Self-
Efficacy
M-SE Careers advisors should feel they have the capacity to succeed at developing and
delivering effective skills development programs for international students
Utility
Value
M-V Careers advisors need to perceive the development and delivery of skills
programs that enhance employability for international students as having value
and are important for institutional reputation and international attractiveness
Cultural
Setting
O-CS The university needs to prioritize the importance of employability skills
Cultural
Model
O-CM The university needs to adequately resource student careers and employability
initiatives
Cultural
Setting
O-CS The university needs to coordinate stakeholders on an agreed framework to
address identified indicators of student dissatisfaction
The following sections will separately review the Knowledge, Motivation and Organizational
findings and detail which KMO influences were validated. For the purposes of this study, a
validated influence should be interpreted as a high area of need for the individual careers advisor
or to the institution at large.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 78
Knowledge Findings
Two assumed Knowledge influences were identified as areas of need by interview
participants. Careers advisors need to have knowledge of effective skills development programs
for international students and need to have knowledge of how to design and deliver on these
programs. UEA careers advisors’ knowledge across effective program development, design and
delivery was evident. Amongst surveyed participants, there was a depth of knowledge of
effective skills development programs across the higher education sector in Australia as well as
relevant and effective programs abroad. Interview participants demonstrated a depth of
knowledge of critical design elements and effective delivery mechanisms for skills development
programs for international students. The following table and section provide context as to how
both of these assumed Knowledge influences were validated, or identified as a high area of need,
through responses to factual and procedural Knowledge inquiry questions.
Table 13
Assumed Knowledge Influences
Category Assumed Knowledge Influence Confirmed /
Validated
Un-Confirmed/
Not Validated
Factual K-F Knowledge of effective skills development
programs
√
Procedural K-P Knowledge of how to design and deliver
effective skills development programs to
international students
√
Knowledge of Effective Skills Development Programs
Participants demonstrated a depth of understanding regarding the underlying issues that
have impact on the development of skills that support international student employability and the
skills gaps that are apparent. They were able to define employability explicitly and were
consistent in views regarding the development of capabilities that enhance applied knowledge.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 79
Participants viewed confidence as an important milestone amongst international students, and
this confidence unlocks the capability to navigate options for career-readiness. Careers advisors
viewed themselves as preparing students for a lifelong journey, as skills are developed iteratively
over time through exposure to new situations, tasks and opportunities. As well, careers advisors
were well versed regarding relevant and effective skills development programs and trends
occurring on and offshore. The framework that was applied to participant inquiry is provided
below, followed by an in-depth analysis of qualitative and quantitative feedback relevant to
Knowledge influences.
Table 14
Factual Knowledge (K-F) Inquiry Framework
Factual Knowledge Questions Interview Survey
How do you define employability? √
Can you provide examples of what you believe are employability gaps of
international students?
√
How do you assist international students to overcome employability-related
knowledge gaps?
√
Describe what important elements of a successful employability program for
international students might include, from the perspective of an international
student?
√
Describe what important elements of a successful employability program for
international students might include, from the perspective of an employer?
√
What types of effective employability programs do you know in other Australian
universities?
√
Define some of the skills gaps of international students at your institution. √
Survey participants were asked to define up to three critical skills gaps of international
students at their institution. Twenty different skills were listed by survey participants in free text
format. Communication, interpersonal skills, workplace relations and intercultural skills,
teamwork and networking were the most prevalent of all identified skills gaps. Further skills
gaps included resilience, leadership, critical thinking and emotional intelligence amongst others.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 80
Table 15
Top Skills Gaps Identified by Surveyed Careers Advisors
Skills (rank 1-10) Count Skills (rank 11-20) Count
Communication 40 Job searching & professional skills 3
Interpersonal skills 24 Reasoning 2
Workplace relations & intercultural skills 19 Self-management 1
Teamwork 13 Work experience 1
Networking 12 Conflict resolution 1
Resilience 9 Initiative 1
Leadership 5 Independence 1
Critical thinking 5 Body language 1
Emotional intelligence 3 Negotiation 1
Self-awareness 3 Employability 1
These skills have become increasingly important as the nature of work, the impact of
technology, the global connectivity of companies and the expectations of new industries requires
students, both local and international, to adapt (Miller, 2012). These soft skills should be
considered part of students’ enhanced cultural capital (Bourdieu, 1986) and social capital
(Coleman, 1988) as well. Cultural capital refers to the knowledge, skills and education that have
a positive impact on social mobility, whereas social capital refers to the gains an individual can
make through social relationships and social skills (Bourdieu, 1986).
These identified skills gaps parallel closely with the most important competencies that
employers assess during their recruitment process. These competencies were identified in the
2020 Australian Association of Graduate Employers (AAGE) survey. The national survey of
employers identified communication skills, teamwork and interpersonal skills as the most critical
competencies they assess of student graduates (AAGE, 2020). Comparing what surveyed careers
advisors view as skills gaps against competencies that employers assess helps to confirm the
Factual Knowledge of careers advisors on this issue.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 81
Table 16
Assessed Competencies by Employers
Competency Very
Important
Quite
Important
Not Very
important
Not
Assessed
Communication skills 88% 12% - -
Teamwork 73% 22% - -
Interpersonal skills 72% 24% 5% -
Initiative and enterprise 35% 49% 7% 8%
Resilience 38% 44% - 15%
Emotional intelligence 33% 50% - 14%
Planning and organizing 29% 52% 8% 11%
Understanding of our organization 23% 50% 26% -
Self-Management 20% 52% 14% 14%
Leadership 24% 43% 17% 16%
University grades 7% 41% 28% 24%
Commercial awareness 15% 32% 20% 34%
Technology 13% 32% 20% 34%
Relevant work experience 8% 25% 44% 23%
Note: Assessed competencies with less than five percent (5%) response not shown. Adapted
from the 2020 Australian Association of Graduate Employers Survey (AAGE).
Greater depth to Factual Knowledge was assessed as part of the qualitative research
component, which covered nine interview participants. Interview participants emphasized that
employability is not the same as employment. Amy and Brian acknowledged that the terms
‘employment’ and ‘employability’ are often used interchangeably, when in fact these two terms
are distinct and separate. They expressed frustration on the incorrect usage of the terms and that
conflation of this terminology should be avoided. David believed that employability is the ability
of an individual to add value to a project or to an organization, and it is their ability to know how
to learn and apply specific skills. As an example, an individual could be employed but not add
value to their current role or have sufficient employability for another role. Therefore, knowing
something versus the ability to apply learning and absorb new knowledge is fundamentally
different. Amy, Brian and David viewed employment as knowing something, whereas
employability as knowing how to learn something.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 82
Half of the interview participants emphasized that there is no such thing as
“employability skills,” there are skills that support employability and these skills and capabilities
are developed over time. While lists of skills and competencies in demand are readily available
(AAGE, 2020) an individual’s capabilities may depend on unique circumstances. For
international students, Ellen believed the context and method in which they learn and the cultural
attributes and background they bring can all have impact on their development of skills that
enable employability. Ellen further believed that international and domestic student cohorts have
skills deficits that intersect as well as skills deficits that are unique, meaning that skills
development programs must be geared towards specific cohort attributes.
For international student cohorts, identified employability gaps are largely centered on
communication, intercultural and interpersonal capability deficits, and this is supported by
aforementioned AAGE employer competencies as well as identified skills gaps by participants
themselves. Of these identified skills gaps, communication and language were the capabilities
deemed most critical by eight out of nine interview participants. Without adequate
communication skills, international students may start their journey towards employment with a
critical deficiency. Rueda (2011) contends that knowing how to help students learn is the
‘science of instruction’ and this should be applied to how skills programs are designed and
delivered to improve the efficacy of skills development. Learning that is singularly focused on
the ‘what and the how’, but not the ‘why and the when’ will not lead to an optimal instructional
design or effective delivery of learning programs (Rueda, 2011).
Amy, Carol and Ellen said that that international students are failing at the initial
interview stage due to their inability to articulate and adequately explain their employable
attributes. As well, intercultural gaps exist which are largely centered on international students’
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 83
inability to understand nuances of Australian workplace context. Half of interviewed participants
agreed the international cohort is more often found to be shy, overly modest, unable to engage in
small talk or adapt to local humor, and they tend to have an overly fixed view on workplace
hierarchies. Whilst not explicitly acknowledged by interview participants in this context, it is
worth noting that the university’s international student body largely hail from East Asia where
traditional Confucian principles of familial, societal and workplace hierarchies are ingrained
deeply within the culture. Carol identified interpersonal skills gaps such as body language as
needing greater emphasis.
We spend our entire time breaking down a variety of barriers. This is where interpersonal
skills and cross-cultural communication is key. Body language is a gap and it’s hard, as
domestic students can have this issue as well. Not being confident, nervous conduct, lack
of eye contact, not talking to people square on. People will respond to you better. We
prioritize verbal communication, not body communication. These are skills gaps that
need addressing as well, skills not taught or developed in standard classroom settings.
Employers and international students have different points of view regarding the
expected outcomes that skills development programs should provide. From an international
student point of view, a level of reassurance or certainty that they are developing the necessary
skills in a correct way is considered important. Careers advisors believed there is an attitude from
many students that they deserve a return on their investment (ROI) and that graduating from a
good university will automatically translate into employment opportunities. Interviewed
participants Carol, Harper and Indira strongly objected to the pre-conceived notion from students
that their institution can guarantee them employment post-graduation. Employment cannot be
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 84
guaranteed, however the development of specific skills for greater employability can be
guaranteed if an institution is committed.
Three interview participants, Carol, David and Indira, noted that students appear overly
focused on gaining a certificate or recognition showing they have completed components of a
skills development program, are not necessarily as concerned with the content that will be
delivered. There was value placed on documentary evidence that extra-curricular skills
development had occurred, with students believing this is what employers wanted to see. These
careers advisors, however, understand that employers do not care for such certificates or
secondary testamurs. They see things from an employer’s point of view as well, that skills
development programs in a university setting should emphasize tangible and practical workplace
skills that translate more practically for employers’ needs.
Nearly all of the careers advisors interviewed agreed that once international student
expectations on guaranteed employment are brought into a more realistic focus, students will
state that they want to develop skills and capabilities they cannot gain in the classroom. Seven of
the interviewed participants agreed that interpersonal skills such as interviewing, small talk and
networking are developed and honed outside the classroom setting. They noted that students who
forced themselves to think critically, articulate concepts more creatively, and not provide
formulaic answers to questions were all skills that international students want to develop.
Ambrose et al. (2010) contend that when students’ goals influence their learning behaviors, it is
relevant to understand where their goals differ from the goals prescribed to them (Ambrose,
Bridges, DiPietro, Lovett, & Norman, 2010). Brian summarized the issue of interpersonal skills
development by stating:
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 85
They want opportunities to put into practice what they're learning. They want
opportunities to network and mingle. From a skills development program angle, students
enjoy practicing networking and interviewing. Small talk is difficult for international
students. Interpersonal skills are things they can’t learn from a book. They can't be
taught; it needs to be developed.
Part-Time Work
Interview participant Ellen noted that many international students in Australia enter
workplaces with minimal experience as they were not encouraged to take up a part-time job in
their home country before they arrived. Part-time work for students is not valued or encouraged
by parents and this is a cultural difference that exacerbates identified skills gaps. Ellen further
identified that this issue is prevalent in many East and South-east Asian countries where parents
of middle class and aspirational demographics may focus more on rote learning and after school
tutorials instead of differentiating their child’s skills development beyond the classroom setting.
Ellen further explained her views on this area:
There's an assumption from international students they can just be told what to do and
they'll be on the road to success, and that's really where we have a difference between
domestic and international students as domestic students know they can't just be told, for
the most part. So often we get the attitude of 'just tell me what I need to do, and I'll do it'.
It’s not rote learning, its learning over time and an iterative process of personal
development overlaid with experiential learning and self-reflection and articulating what
has been gained and what has yet to be learned.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 86
Part-time work may be considered less valuable and not appropriate prior to arrival in
Australia, even if those experiences are developing a broader skill set for their children. Amy
viewed part-time work experiences as integral to developing customer service basics, confidence
and multi-taking abilities prior to attempting office-based work:
For the most part, employers felt students needed a stepping-stone before WIL. Most
Aussies get a part time job post high school, but that's not valued overseas in the same
way. Most internationals are not encouraged to work part-time like that. Learning
workplace skills is so critical. Work ethics, customer service, thinking on their feet,
multi-tasking, following instructions. These are all attributes and capabilities employers
are looking for.
Knowledge of How to Design and Deliver Effective Skills Development Programs
Understanding how learning works in this context will assist careers advisors design
quality programs that accurately identifies skills in need and promotes intended learning
outcomes, which has been described as the ‘science of learning’ (Mayer, 2011). How careers
advisors develop, and design employability programs should be weighed against how said
programs are delivered and the student cohorts they reach. Careers advisors have a depth of
understanding on how these programs are best delivered across complex university structures.
Careers advisors noted that feedback from student participants of employability program is
useful and incorporated in an iterative approach to improve the effectiveness of program
delivery. There was consensus amongst participants that the design and delivery of skills
development programs are both important, as quality and scale must both be considered by both
administrators and academics involved. The procedural knowledge questions for this study that
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 87
were applied to participant inquiry are provided below, followed by an in-depth analysis of
qualitative and quantitative feedback relevant to Knowledge influences.
Table 17
Procedural Knowledge (K-P) Inquiry Framework
Procedural Knowledge Questions Interview Survey
What are your thoughts on in-class skills development and employability at
this university?
√
How does the design of employability programs address international skills
deficiencies?
√
If feedback from participants of on-campus employability programs have been
provided to careers advisers, what has been useful feedback that has been
incorporated?
√
What barriers exist to international student participation in the current
employability program?
√
How confident are you that your institution’s current employability skills
development initiatives address these issues effectively?
√
What is more important – the design and content, or the delivery and reach of
employability initiatives?
√
The majority (89%) of survey participants (n=51) believed that the Careers team at their
institutions are addressing the development of skills development adequately. However, no
survey participants “Strongly Agree” that their skills development initiatives are effective. Fifty-
eight percent (58%) of survey participants (n = 33) held a negative view of the adequacy of skills
development taking place within Schools and Faculties. Therefore, a significantly higher
proportion of survey respondents believed that central careers teams address identified skills
gaps more effectively over Faculties and Schools. This difference would be due to the generalist
nature of the skills gaps identified, which are not discipline-specific gaps that Faculties are
tasked to address.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 88
Table 18
Development of Identified Skills Gaps by Careers and Faculties
Question: Of the
skills gaps identified
by my institution…
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree Slightly
Disagree
Slightly
Agree
Agree Strongly
Agree
Mean n=
The Careers team
address the
development of these
skills adequately
1.75%
1
1.75%
1
7.02%
4
59.65%
34
29.82%
17
0%
0
4.14 57
Faculties address the
development of these
skills adequately
1.75%
1
22.81%
13
33.33%
19
36.84%
21
5.26%
3
0%
0
3.21 57
Four interview participants, Brian, Carol, David, and Frank expressed their frustration at
the disconnect between central careers services and Faculty-based academic services. In-class
skills development and curriculum design occur largely in isolation of the broader goals of
careers services, with minimal connection to identified skills gaps of international students.
These interviewed participants believed they were in a difficult position as they provide a service
to students that is inherently a teaching and learning function yet is perceived by some academics
as a lower priority service or of limited value. Harmonization between this type of student
service and the curriculum is difficult as organizational siloes exist with differing agendas and
goals that have developed over time. More in-depth reporting on organizational siloes and
internal cultural barriers will be addressed later in the Organizational results and findings section.
Ultimately, the majority of interview participants (seven) expressed a desire for greater
coordination and to embed skills development in the curriculum with more consistency in
outcomes for students. There was acknowledgement that the spectrum of disciplines offered by
institutions will have different results for unique student cohorts, with Business, Engineering,
Humanities and Medical students all receiving varied forms of practical skills based on the
unique attributes of their fields of study. This is particularly relevant for students in engineering
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 89
where industrial training, and health-related fields where clinical based training, are the norm. In
these disciplines, students have greater opportunities to apply knowledge and develop
capabilities as part of their studies, whereas students in humanities will likely have less
opportunities for compulsory application of knowledge in a professional setting before they
graduate.
Skills Development Program Effectiveness
Interview participants acknowledged that the effectiveness of a skills program will
depend on what the target and goal of said program was. Amy, Carol and Indira believed that if
success is defined by the number of students that undertake the program, then scale and delivery
should be the focus of program developers. However, if success is defined by the specific skills
that were delivered to a defined cohort of students, then the quality and content of the program
are more critical than the reach. Amy summarized the dilemma that Careers units typically face.
Careers officers are often told by Academics and senior executives that they should not
fiddle with or touch the curriculum and it’s a very difficult position to be in as Careers is
both a service to students but inherently it’s a learning and teaching and education
development role. If we are siloed from the curriculum then our service is a patch and
cannot be harmonized with what is occurring in class which is a lost opportunity.
Half of the interviewed careers advisors believed that skills programs are most relevant
when programs are targeted and academics are involved in the development of program content
or when there are mechanisms for a School or academic department to actively promote the
program, which aligns with the science of learning (Mayer, 2011). Employability initiatives at
UEA, however, occur largely in isolation of teaching and education, and there is
acknowledgement regarding their limited effectiveness. These participants desired greater
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 90
connecting of the dots pertaining to skills program development, the quality and content, the
delivery mechanisms, and the scale of student uptake. Some participants believed they are all
relevant and interconnected. Amy summarized the frustrations of careers advisors in creating
effective skills development programs, “The level of cooperation between Careers and Faculties
should be greater than it is.”
Opportunities for Self-Reflectivity
Student self-assessment and self-reflection were mentioned by five of the interview
participants as being a critical component of skills development programming. Although student
self-reflection did not rank as highly as quality or scale amongst survey participants (see
previous Table 22), its importance was more apparent amongst interview participants. From a
feedback perspective, understanding how international students viewed the relevance and impact
of their employability instruction, particularly their motivation to learn and metacognitive control
(Mayer, 2011), allows careers advisors to fine-tune aspects of their skills programs in an iterative
manner to ensure students remain motivated to learn.
David and Georgina saw a further, if not more important aspect of self-assessment and
self-reflection, with the opportunity for international students to critically evaluate and articulate
their own experience in small group settings. They saw this as a core component of any skills
development program or work integrated education initiative, and that these should always
include a mandatory post-experience session. Georgina believed this type of session forces
students to reflect, assess, evaluate, and consider how they grew and developed as a result of the
experience.
We have modules that students can sign up for that are followed up with self-reflection.
They require students to self-reflect multiple times which allows students to learn from
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 91
their experience on campus, be it a WIL experience, volunteering, participating in the SD
program, assisting with Orientation week on campus, tutoring, being in a choir - whatever
students were involved in, and then reflect and allow them to consider how the
experience impacted them.
The ability for international students to articulate their experiences in a clear and succinct
manner will address what employers are seeking from international students, namely
communication skills and greater confidence. Amy and Indira noted that there is frustration
amongst employers that students tend to have under-developed communication and critical
reasoning skills and these frustrations could be eased with students improving their ability to
self-reflect, articulate their experiences and think critically about their actions. By critically
assessing their own strengths and weaknesses in a safe environment with other students who
have also undertaken a work integrated education experience or employability initiative allows
students to develop their ability to talk about themselves and their experiences in a constructive
and supportive environment. Amy and Indira believed that students learning from each other
through shared experience builds networks and can foster a level of resilience amongst students
which are skills that can potentially translate into stronger interview skills and an ability to adapt
to workplace challenges.
Indira believed that finding the time to assess student feedback can be a challenge. A key
barrier that was identified by some interview participants to getting greater volumes of students
engaged in work integrated experiences and post-experience reflective and assessment exercises
largely comes down to resources and staffing. Over half of the interview participants noted that
there is limited bandwidth within their teams to design and deliver end-to-end skills development
programs for a majority of students at their institutions. Student to student support staff ratios
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 92
across Australian public universities are proving to be a significant obstacle given the significant
growth in enrolments experienced in recent years. Whilst official careers advisor to student ratios
are not published, Frank summarized his frustrations:
[It] would be fascinating to see other university ratios. I get so angry as international
students deserve more, as they pay so much. You need at least one person working with
employers and a few people working on programs and program development. Ideally, we
need someone working with Alumni on feedback and prospective students as well on
early intervention and profiling our services. That is a real tricky thing - the marketing
and promotion and then the student support side.
Six of the interview participants noted that they could scale programs more efficiently
and include post-experience reflective and assessment opportunities if there was greater
involvement with academics. Where work integrated experiences are part of the course
curriculum, supported by the School and have shared commitment and involvement with
academics, greater opportunities exist to provide a more wholistic end-to-end program. These
careers advisors believed that working more closely with academic colleagues adds greater
legitimacy to the skills development from the viewpoint of the School as well as from the student
perspective.
Knowledge Summary
Interview participants demonstrated a depth of knowledge of what constituted an
effective skills development program and both interview and survey participants were aware of
critical design elements and effective delivery mechanisms for skills development programs for
international students. The knowledge demonstrated by interviewed and surveyed careers
advisors provides this study with validation that they possess breadth and depth of skills
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 93
development programming knowledge and understand the critical skills required by students and
employers. Mayer (2011) contends that applying attribute treatment interaction (ATI) to
instructional design for different groups of learners can be effective (Mayer, 2011), and this
notion has relevance to skills development design for international cohorts. Emergent areas
uncovered as part of this study included the critical nature of self-reflective and self-assessment
opportunities for international students’ post-skills experience in order to improve their critical
thinking and communication skills. Moreover, skills initiatives that have academic input and
support and that are harmonized with content and the curriculum in a discipline-specific setting
have more relevance and impact for international students. Collective ownership of skills results
across careers services and academic departments is deemed critical to scaling delivery of quality
programs.
Motivation Findings
Two assumed Motivation influences were identified as part of this study, and both were
validated and confirmed as high areas of need by interview and survey participants. There was
agreement amongst interview participants that the skills development programs that were
designed and delivered on campus had a positive impact on the international student experience.
Careers advisors viewed their roles as a critical supporting component across the lifecycle of
student enrolment and their capacity and motivation to innovate are viewed as critical to
implementing effective skills development programs. This study found that careers advisors have
high levels of self-efficacy and comprehend the utility value of the skills development initiatives
they deliver. Through the lens of ‘goal-directed practice’ (Ambrose et al., 2010), careers advisors
can orient programs to fulfil the needs of students. There were a variety of opinions on how their
capacity to succeed could be improved, yet their willingness to adapt and try new ways of
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 94
reaching students was evident. There was a depth of understanding that the skills development
programs delivered needed to be perceived by students and employers as having value. Whilst
careers advisors were not directly involved in raising institutional attractiveness overseas, they
understand that graduate success in employment and greater student confidence in their own
employability improves the reputation of the institution both on and offshore. The following
table and section provide context as to how these assumed Motivation influences were validated
and confirmed as important through interview and survey participant responses.
Table 19
Confirmed and Validated Motivation Influences
Category Assumed Motivation Influence Confirmed /
Validated
Un-Confirmed/
Not Validated
Self -
Efficacy
M-SE Careers advisors should feel they have the capacity to
succeed at developing and delivering effective skills
programs for international students
√
Utility
Value
M-V Careers advisors need to perceive the development and
delivery of skills programs that enhance employability
for international students as having value and are
important for institutional reputation and international
attractiveness
√
Careers Advisors Have Capacity to Develop and Deliver Effective Skills Programs
In designing, developing, and delivering effective employability initiatives, careers
advisors largely felt they possessed the capacity to succeed. This study found that careers
advisors are motivated and see themselves as part of an innovative group of educators and
service professionals. Interview and survey participants share good practice principles and case
studies of what initiatives are working across the higher education landscape and this motivates
careers advisors to continuously improve on service delivery to both domestic and international
student cohorts. Bandura (1997) defines self-efficacy as an individual’s belief of their capacity
and capability to positively influence an action, and that their actions will enable them to be a
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 95
principal vehicle of change (Bandura, 1997). In the context of careers advisors, their self-efficacy
is important as they need to demonstrate persistency in the development and refinement of
effective skills development programs for international students and demonstrate persistency in
their efforts to work across their organizational boundaries.
Organizational siloes and lack of senior-level and executive support from university
administration appear to be factors that impact individual and team capacity to succeed.
Organizational issues will be addressed in greater depth in the Organizational Results and
Findings section. Questions for this study that were applied to participant inquiry are provided
below, followed by an in-depth analysis of qualitative and quantitative feedback relevant to
Motivation influences related to the self-efficacy of careers advisors at UEA and across the
industry.
Table 20
Self-Efficacy and Motivation (M-SE) Inquiry Framework
Self-Efficacy Motivation Questions Interview Survey
What aspect is more important for international student employability initiatives–
the design and content or the delivery and reach of the program?
√
How are careers advisors encouraged to innovate, if at all? √
What is more important – the design and content, or the delivery and reach of
employability initiatives?
√
My institution’s employability skills development programs for international
students can be scaled up or down each semester to provide opportunities based
on student demand.
√
My institution’s employability skills development programs for international
students are a success.
√
At my institution, International Student Barometer (ISB) underperformance is
systematically addressed
√
ISB Survey
International student feedback is important to a variety of stakeholders on campus, not
just careers advisors. The i-graduate International Student Barometer (ISB) is a global student
survey that compares expectation and perceptions of three million international students enrolled
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 96
in higher education institutions around the world (i-graduate, 2020). The ISB survey is widely
used across Australian universities to track international student satisfaction and as an education
industry-wide feedback mechanism, and students are normally surveyed on a bi-annual basis.
Survey participants for this research study (n=57) were asked if their institution had participated
in the ISB at some point in the last two years and nearly 90% responded in the affirmative.
Table 21
ISB Participation
Question: My institution has participated in the ISB survey at some point in
the last two years.
Responses
(n=57)
Yes 89.47%
51
No 7.02%
4
Unsure 3.51%
2
Universities are motivated to regularly undertake the ISB survey and to engage with
international students. Ninety-one percent (91%) of survey participants for this research ‘slightly
agree’, ‘agree’ or ‘strongly agree’ that international student employability is a priority at their
institution. However, survey participants appear less confident that their institutions are
effectively tackling issues arising from the ISB. Sixty-two percent (62%) of survey participants
have a negative opinion on whether their institution systematically addresses under-performance
factors in the ISB. As well, a 16% drop off in responses (48/57) was recorded when survey
respondents were asked whether ISB under-performance was systematically addressed by their
institution. This points to a lack of confidence amongst respondents about whether an institution-
wide response exists. There may be a disconnect between institutional goals and the motivation
and capacity to succeed at implementing effective mechanisms to correct systemic issues.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 97
Table 22
Motivation to Address ISB Survey Underperformance
Question: At my
institution…
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree Slightly
Disagree
Slightly
Agree
Agree Strongly
Agree
SD n=
ISB under-performance
is systematically
addressed
4.17%
2
12.50%
6
45.83%
22
31.25%
15
4.17%
2
2.08%
1
.95 48
International student
employability is a
priority
0%
0
1.79%
1
7.14%
4
7.14%
4
67.86%
38
16.07%
9
.82 56
Interview participants were asked how student feedback from surveys is incorporated and
acted upon. Careers advisors were more positive about their ability to systemically address issues
and opportunities they had control over. The ISB survey is a snapshot in time that covers all
facets of university satisfaction, whereas feedback received shortly before, during or after an
initiative is more immediate and has more relevance to the Careers unit. On the topic of
surveying students, Brian reflected on the type of feedback that occurs.
It’s always very timely looking at evaluating feedback shortly after a program or session.
There's never been pre and post feedback however to look at perceptions before a
program and then link that to what they gained afterwards. Typically, it has been a simple
survey post event and it’s been shared with facilitator. It certainly helps with running the
next event and we find the students fairly responsive. With ISB data, we share this data
with the broader team and focus on what internationals see as important. Of course, its
shared with the Faculty.
Carol agreed that feedback is important but stated that it needs to come from not just one source,
but multiple sources and stakeholders for careers advisors to understand and act upon.
[Program] design should be responsive and based on data, input and feedback from
employers, as well as ISB, QILT, and students themselves. At the moment however, its
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 98
somewhat reactive and maybe I'd refer to it as staged design or informed design. Needs to
have some clear learning outcomes and needs to have post-evaluation opportunities to
self-reflect. I would argue that we could be a leader as I don't believe most universities do
post-evals. We want to see success breed success.
Quality vs Scale
Acknowledging the different stages of learning, the variety of outcomes and the demands
of the curriculum needs to be taken into account when designing and delivering skills
development programs for students. Georgina believed this meant that there is no ‘one size fits
all’ approach to skills development and highlights the necessity and criticality of careers services
to work in tandem with academics in a coordinated results-oriented approach. Whilst a generic
and basic understanding of skills for employability can be shared at an earlier stage in the
lifecycle of an international student, requisite skills development must be contextualized and
relevant to students based on their field of study and their likely field of employment. In practical
terms, Georgina further explained that this means what a Law student may need in the skills
development arena is going to be different to that of a Veterinary student. There will be skills
needs that are complementary across all disciplines, but eventually diverge for different cohorts.
Rueda (2011) contends that educational leaders should consider all of the aspects of
learning that students need to know that are relevant inside and outside of the classroom setting,
which will positively guide the design of instructional programs (Rueda, 2011). Cognitive
approaches to learning, as outlined by Anderson & Krathwohl (2001) can be viewed with four
types of knowledge lenses, Factual; Conceptual; Procedural; and Metacognitive (Anderson &
Krathwohl, 2001). Each of these approaches to learning can have relevance to international
students during their skills acquisition and learning journey.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 99
Apart from the quality and design of skills programs, the delivery of programs is also of
critical importance. Both survey and interview participants were divided over which aspect, the
quality or the reach, of a skills program for employability was most important. Half of the
interview participants believed that without a well-designed skills program underpinned by
quality and relevance, students will not acquire the requisite skills or may be disengaged with the
program. Equally, the other half of participants see high-quality skills initiative as ineffective if
appropriate delivery mechanisms to students are not implemented. Namely, if there are not
enough students that participate and take-up a program at scale, then a program will deliver
limited results. Carol’s point of view was grounded in the need for quality content and design of
initiatives to underpin all programming activities. She saw that scale can be created later on by
moving content online.
Lots of interesting stuff is being done online and students want that, so I suppose the
design of programs that leans more towards scale is effective. Students are taking these
up in big numbers. But is it what they really want? Will it prepare them for the workplace
if you gave them face to face vs online tools? That brings us back to quality and design.
If you don't have good quality content, there's no point scaling it.
Conversely, David sees scale and delivery as a critical factor in the end to end process of
quality program design. Scale needs to be considered otherwise well-designed skills programs
end up being elite as they are too competitive to get into. The inability of students to access these
programs due to limited places may discourage participation if prospective participants feel
excluded. David explained his point of view in further detail by stating:
I think it’s a bit of both - quality and scale are both needed. Reach and accessibility in
learning is important in whatever you do, but this means it has to be delivered to enough
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 100
people to be effective. Having only a limited number of students being able to participate
in certain programs really is a resourcing issue on the part of universities. So many
projects right now have a finite limit of participants and this means that it becomes an
elite program which is difficult to get into which causes disappointment and it may mean
we lose people that we want to engage with as they don't see that there is a chance for
them to engage. It can be hugely disincentivizing to them if they keep losing out on
opportunities due to a lack of places.
Survey participants were asked to rate the importance of the following components of skills
development initiatives. Fifty-six (56) survey respondents answered this question. A relatively
even distribution of importance was placed on three different components of skills development
initiatives: Design, Quality and Content; Delivery, Scope and Participation; and Tailored Faculty
support. The fourth component, ‘Post-Experience Reflective Opportunities for Participants’, was
not ranked as highly as the aforementioned three options. The purpose of this question was to
understand what careers advisors viewed as the most important element to create a successful
skill development initiative. The survey result demonstrated that there is no ‘one size fits all’
approach to skills development initiatives and that the perspectives of the program administrator
influences perceived importance of program components. Delivery, Scope and Participation
outweighed Design, Quality and Content and received the most 1
st
and 2nd ranked votes (36 vs
31) demonstrating that Scale is considered slightly more important than Quality.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 101
Table 23
The Importance of Skills Development Initiative Components
Question: Please rank the importance of the following
components of skills development initiatives…
1st
Rank
2nd
Rank
3rd
Rank
4th
Rank
SD n=
Delivery, Scope and Participation 33.93%
19
30.36%
17
16.07%
9
19.64%
11
1.11 56
Design, Quality and Content 32.14%
18
23.21%
13
37.50%
21
7.14%
4
0.97 56
Tailored support by Faculty/Discipline 30.36%
17
30.36%
17
19.64%
11
19.64%
11
1.10 56
Post-experience reflective opportunities for participants 3.57%
2
16.07%
9
26.79%
15
53.57%
30
0.86 56
Survey participants were asked to identify which stakeholder informs the design and
content of employability initiatives, be it input from Academics or feedback from international
students. Over 82% of those surveyed confirmed that student feedback ‘often’ or ‘always’
informs design and content. This compares to less than 30% of participants who felt that input
from academics informs the content of employability initiatives. To compound matters, just over
a quarter (26.3%) of survey respondents claim input from academics ‘seldom’ or ‘rarely’ inform
content of employability initiatives. This points towards a potential siloed nature of universities,
which will be explored later in the Organization section of this chapter.
Table 24
How Design and Content of Employability Initiatives are Informed
Question: At my institution, the
design and content of
employability initiatives are
informed by…
Never Rarely Seldom Sometimes Often Always SD n=
Input from Faculties and
academics
0%
0
3.51%
2
22.81%
13
43.86%
25
21.05%
12
8.77%
5
0.96 57
International student feedback 1.75%
1
0%
0
1.75%
1
14.04%
8
61.40%
35
21.05%
12
0.70 57
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 102
Reflection and Feedback
Interview participants had a positive view regarding the relevance of self-reflective
activities for international students as an important component in the design and delivery of
effective skills development programs. Self-reflectivity helps reinforce students’ motivation to
learn and their metacognitive control (Mayer, 2011). David noted the usefulness of feedback
received:
Feedback is useful, but it’s finding time to go through it all. Students have a surprising
amount of things to say but it’s hard to meet all of their needs. That's why self-reflection
is important as it puts it back on to them. Feedback in general is that international
students are grateful for all opportunities that come their way.
Carol had a similar view to David regarding student feedback and expanded on the need
to listen to a wider group of stakeholders across the university. She said,
We do surveys, and it tells us when things go awry. But the peer focus groups and 1:1
conversations are better. Listening to other groups across the university to understand
what they're seeing and feeling and hearing and link that back to what we do is useful but
takes commitment and tracking mechanisms.
Interview and survey participants reported that they have the ability and motivation to
make initiatives a success in the areas that careers units have control over, given the complex
siloes within universities. This encourages careers advisors to innovate and think creatively.
Careers advisors agreed that they must innovate to deliver on student and employer expectations,
but ambition requires resources and initiatives should yield tangible results. Frank re-iterated the
constraints careers advisors face. “[We] can innovate within the confines of what is achievable.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 103
Innovation tends to occur incrementally. There's not enough staff or time or resources to do
radically innovative things.”
Careers advisors reported through the interview and survey data that there is a shared
commitment to continuously improve on skills initiatives. Employability initiatives are unlikely
to be sustainable if they are niche and only serve a minority of student interests. Interview
participants believe that initiatives with limited access will be viewed as elite programs that fail
to reach a critical mass of students in need of skills development. Therefore, the design and
delivery of skills initiatives for international students should be engaging, relevant and relatable
to a broad enough spectrum of the student population and contextualized to specific disciplines
as required.
Impact on Institutional Reputation and Attractiveness
This study found interview and survey participants in general agreement that the
development and delivery of skills programs for international students has value. The value of
these initiatives can positively influence the student experience, but also have a longer-term
impact on institutional reputation and international attractiveness. International student
satisfaction is important as student propensity to recommend an institution can influence the
institution’s ability to attract future international students. University rankings, from US News,
Quacquarelli Symonds (QS) to Times Higher Education (THE) are increasingly used as
important measuring tools by prospective students and parents. These rankings indices also offer
graduate employability rankings, which institutions are leveraging to promote their reputation
and attractiveness. The questions below were those posed to interview and survey participants as
part of this study into utility value and motivation of careers advisors.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 104
Table 25
Utility Value Motivation (M-V) Inquiry Framework
Utility Value Motivation Questions Interview Survey
How do work limitations during study, post study work rights and the
expectations of employers impact the international student experience?
√
My institution’s employability skills development programs for international
students are a success.
√
At my institution, International Student Barometer (ISB) underperformance is
systematically addressed
√
At my institution, international student employability is a priority √
My institution’s performance in graduate outcomes rankings provides
prospective international students with an accurate picture of my institution
√
My institution’s performance in graduate outcomes rankings is actively used
for marketing and recruitment purposes
√
Survey participants were asked to reflect on their institution’s performance in graduate
outcomes rankings, such as the aforementioned QS and THE employability rankings. There was
significant agreement across those surveyed (n=46) that their institution actively use these
rankings for marketing and recruitment purposes, with ninety-five percent (95%) in the
affirmative. However, there was a more negative view on whether these rankings provided
prospective international students with an accurate picture of the institution. Seventy-five percent
(75%) of survey respondents (n=44) believed that these graduate employment rankings do not
provide prospective students with enough detail or proper context to make an informed decision.
In fact, over ninety-seven percent (97%) of survey participants (n=44) viewed these rankings as
reflecting local, not international student graduate success.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 105
Table 26
Institutional Performance in Graduate Outcomes Rankings
Question: My institution’s
performance in graduate
outcomes rankings (e.g.
QS/THE employability
rankings)
Strongly
Disagree
Disagree Slightly
Disagree
Slightly
Agree
Agree Strongly
Agree
SD n=
Is actively used for marketing
and recruitment purposes
2.17%
1
0%
0
2.17%
1
32.61%
15
43.48%
20
19.57%
9
0.94 46
Provides prospective
international students with an
accurate picture
11.36%
5
20.45%
9
43.18%
19
25%
11
0%
0
0%
0
0.84 44
Reflects local, not international
graduate success
2.27%
1
0%
0
0%
0
40.91%
18
40.91%
18
15.91%
7
0.90 46
Graduate employment rankings influence the expectations of international students
before and after they have enrolled at their institution. Survey participants were asked how they
view international student expectations of these factors during and after their studies; Eighty-
seven percent (87%) of survey responses (n=50) rated student expectations of the skills
development they will receive during their studies as ‘high’ or ‘very high’, and 96% of survey
responses (n=54) believed that international student expectations of their career prospects upon
graduation were ‘high’ or very high.’
Table 27
International Student Expectations During and After Studies
Question: International
student expectations…
Very
Low
Low Below
Average
Above
Average
High Very
High
SD n=
Of the skills development they
will receive during their studies
are
0%
0
0%
0
3.51%
2
8.77%
5
54.39%
31
33.33%
19
1.30 57
Of the career prospects upon
graduation are
0%
0
0%
0
1.79%
1
1.79%
1
44.64%
25
51.79%
29
0.90 56
The challenge of managing expectations of international students was echoed by
interview participants. Ellen stated, “Student expectations can be very mismatched. ‘I graduated
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 106
from X and this means I should go to Y for work because I paid Z fees’. Tuition keeps going up,
but services are not growing. This is a real disconnect.” Amy, the Careers unit manager, saw
several layers to the issue of student expectations.
With regards to international students, this is also a complicated area as there is an
assumption that we can fix the employability of international students when, in fact, work
rights, sense of belonging, student experience, and the local expectations of employers
are all critical factors.
Brian believed that international students themselves bore some level of responsibility for
understanding what services were available and leveraging those opportunities for their benefit
earlier in their academic journey on campus.
Getting them to see us earlier on is a barrier as students get busy once the semester gets
underway, particularly in their first year. Cultural norms and expectations may prevent
some students from seeing us earlier in their time on campus. International students are
sometimes conditioned to see Careers support at the very end. There's certainly a
mismatch of expectations and misperception of what the University can achieve. There's
a lot of high expectations based on what they're paying for tuition.
Careers advisors are not involved in the promotion of the institution, as this is a function
of marketing and recruitment. However, universities are increasingly leveraging graduate
outcomes and employability results promoted by rankings publications such as QS and THE,
both of which are popular in the Australian context. Whilst there are nuances to the methodology
employed by various rankings publications, employability ratings have the potential to be
misinterpreted by prospective international students, and some responsibility lies with the
promotional efforts of the institution’s marketing team. Frank reflected:
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 107
This is an acute issue across the board. Students want a return on investment especially
when they're spending that much money. Those in the university that go out and do the
marketing and say things like ‘oh we can guarantee you a job’ and I can guarantee you
we cannot! We can give you the tools to help you succeed and guide you in a correct
direction. And I think that's a better way of framing it as part of the sales pitch. We can't
guarantee things. And that disconnect between the university saying that everything will
be amazing yet the services that are provided are old, under resourced or can’t meet the
expectations of the students. That difference can become really problematic. The
importance of word of mouth is so critical in the international student marketplace.
Amy emphasized that engaging with the International Office is an integral part of the
process so that the right messages are conveyed to ensure student expectations are aligned to
reality.
We work with the International Office at the front line to manage expectations from the
initial interaction point. Offering bespoke events for international students and taking into
consideration the skills gaps of this cohort. Skills development programs or things that
can we tweaked to an international student audience are useful. We offer workplace
culture seminars as well. Communication skills development are important - there's lots
of mentoring and English tutoring. It’s important for students to self- assess on what they
need to still develop, with ideas and links for them to follow.
Work Visas
International students are attracted to Australia due to prevailing post-study work rights
and opportunities. In 2019, nearly 50,000 temporary graduate visas were issued by the Australian
Department of Home Affairs to international graduates of Australian institutions (IEAA, 2019).
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 108
Whilst data on the overall number of international students remaining after they graduate is
available and can be broken down into specific nationality trends, individual institutions do not
have access to data that links the number of post-study work visas granted to their graduating
cohorts. This is due to the Australian government not reporting on institution-specific post-
graduate visa data due to privacy concerns of individuals. Australian institutions only have
access to data concerning student visa holders that are currently enrolled within their institutions.
Therefore, once students transition onto a post-study work visa category, institutions cannot
access granular data and information.
This has created a knowledge and motivation gap between universities and employers.
Several interview participants agreed that there are misperceptions amongst employers that must
be addressed in relation to post study work rights and international graduates when they
transition from a student visa to a temporary work visa. It appears that further education and
campaigns need to occur at a higher level across the industry to improve the situation. It is a
situation deemed beyond the capabilities of individual institutions and careers advisors, which
requires a coordinated approach to address systemic misinformation and incorrect perceptions by
employers. Amy responded that:
We need to educate employers more on the post study work visa. It’s the flight risk that
concerns employers. My dream is to look at data that shows international student
retention vs domestic student retention in the workplace. Internationals need to stay and
establish their reputation and would likely show more loyalty vs a domestic student who
has more freedom to pick and choose.
David provided further in-depth views on the issue of international graduates
transitioning onto work visas and the apparent challenges of educating employers.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 109
It has a huge impact. Employers don't want to bother with [hiring international graduates]
and they see it as an extra layer of complexity and background noise. We shouldn't have
to argue with employers about the value that international students can bring, their
perspective, their diversity … [and] we need to be upfront to prospective students that we
cannot guarantee anything. Students may have the expectation that they've paid for the
degree, but in fact they've paid for the experience and to demonstrate their learning
capacity and capability. So in regards to post study work rights, we need to be upfront on
the limitations of what you can and cannot do and providing that information early on in
order to manage expectations is important.
Interview and survey participants were conscious that international students are growing
disillusioned by the lack of employment opportunities and this is having impact on the student
experience and Australia’s attractiveness as a destination. At a 2019 summit on Australian
graduate employability, it was reported that the number of university graduates (domestic and
international) who gained full-time employment within four months of completing their studies
fell from 85.2% to 72.9% over a ten-year period to 2018 (IQPC, 2019). For international students
that eventually transition onto a temporary graduate work visa and gain employment, the type of
employment they land is not commensurate with their level of education. Forty-four percent
(44%) of these visa holders were employed full-time, whilst thirty-percent (30%) were in part-
time work, with seventeen percent (17%) working in low skilled occupations that do not reflect
their academic credentials (Chew, 2019). Employers have an impact on the international student
experience (Gribble, Blackmore, & Rahimi, 2015), and this has a subsequent impact on
Australia’s reputation and attractiveness. If international students are largely unsuccessful at
securing adequate employment after they graduate, Australia will not benefit from the workforce
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 110
participation or realize the productivity of this highly motivated cohort of graduates (Chew,
2019). The reputational damage caused by disappointed graduates could have an impact by
discouraging prospective students from applying to Australian universities.
Motivation Summary
This study confirmed that it is important for careers advisors to possess the capacity and
motivation to innovate in skills development and understand the utility value of the programs
that are delivered to international students. Preparing international students for employment
onshore and offshore is a challenge. Students have specific goals and will learn more effectively
where instruction and skills development is relevant to their goals (Rothkopf & Billington,
1979). Careers advisors may not be aware of all the workforce challenges across all countries
around the world, nor the cultural nuances that students may need to apply in a different cultural
or linguistic context. However, some participants of this study reported that providing
fundamental skills development overlaid with discipline-specific content and supported with
self-reflection in a group setting of cultural peers could assist students to contextualize and apply
their knowledge across multiple settings. Participants believed that shifting careers advisors
away from a limited Australian employability mindset to a global employability mindset will
assist more students and allow them to adapt to whatever situation they might find themselves in
post-graduation. This adaptability and resilience could assist international student employability
and increase student satisfaction, which in turn should have a positive impact on institutional
attractiveness and reputation in the longer term.
Organization Findings
Three assumed Organization influences were identified, all of which were flagged as a
high areas of need by interview participants. This study confirms the need of universities to
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 111
prioritize employability, coordinate stakeholders and adequately resource initiatives to be
effective. There was agreement amongst surveyed participants that education institutions should
prioritize the importance of employability skills. This study found that prioritization of
employability can be both a simultaneous top-down and a bottom-up effort within an
organization, however the breadth and depth of employability initiatives should have support
from senior leadership of a university to be effective. University culture is impacted by the
written strategy and the visible actions of senior leadership. Feedback from surveyed and
interviewed participants reinforced the need for senior administrators and academics to take an
active and sustained interest in employability, backed by adequate resourcing, which may
encourage the organization to embed and weave employability into the fabric of institutional
culture. The following table and section provide context as to how these aforementioned
Organization issues were highlighted as areas of need and could be addressed through a cultural
lens of the organization.
Table 28
Confirmed and Validated Organization Influences
Category Assumed Organization Influence Confirmed/
Validated
Un-Confirmed/
Not Validated
Cultural
Setting
O-CS The university needs to prioritize the
importance of skills and employability
√
O-CS The university needs to coordinate
stakeholders on an agreed framework to
address identified indicators of student
dissatisfaction
√
Cultural
Model
O-CM The university needs to adequately resource
student careers and employability initiatives
√
Coordination of Stakeholders to Address Student Dissatisfaction
There was widespread agreement amongst interview participants that the university, as an
organization, should place greater importance, prioritization and emphasis on employability
initiatives. However, universities are large and complex organizations with competing demands
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 112
and priorities. Interview participants of this study said that there was a lack of prioritization of
skills development and employability initiatives for international students and this was caused by
both the siloed nature of the organization and exacerbated by perpetual under-resourcing.
Furthermore, whilst the employability of graduates is mentioned in the university strategy, there
are a lack of supportive actions adopted by the administration to encourage the prioritization of
skills and employability. All interviewed participants stated the university needs to better
coordinate stakeholders, from academics to student support teams, before tangible results in
student satisfaction can be realized. Given the complexity of the issue and stakeholders involved,
establishing a framework to systematically address indicators of student dissatisfaction will
remain a challenge for the organization. The questions below were those posed to interview and
survey participants as part of this study into cultural setting influences on careers advisors.
Table 29
Organizational Cultural Setting (O-CS) Inquiry Framework
Organizational Cultural Setting Questions Interview Survey
How does the University, as an organization, place importance on
employability initiatives?
√
What is the level of cooperation between the careers unit and the Faculties? √
Are there any further actions the University should consider that will
positively influence employability skills development of international
students?
√
Should careers be a teaching function of the Schools and Faculties, or a
service function of Student Services?
√
My institution’s performance in employability and graduate outcomes ratings
(e.g. QS/THE employability rankings) match reality and provide prospective
international students with an accurate picture of my institution.
√
My institution has dedicated employability skills development programs for
international students
√
My institution has a culture that tackles identified performance indicators in
career and skills-relevant areas in the International Student Barometer (ISB).
√
At my institution, faculties and academics help inform content in
employability initiatives.
√
My institution has a culture that tackles identified performance indicators in
career and skills-relevant areas in the International Student Barometer (ISB).
√
What are the top three initiatives on your campus that will have the greatest
impact for international student employability?
√
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 113
Siloed Departments
A lack of coordination and cooperation across siloed units and departments of the
university emerged as the most critical issue to be addressed in order to unlock greater
prioritization of employability. All of the interview participants confirmed that the careers team
sits separately from academic units and the organizational structure in place influences what
initiatives various areas of the university decide to prioritize. Initiatives that are deemed
important by the careers team may receive scant attention by academics as there are no obvious
mechanisms to harmonize or embed said initiatives into their curriculum. This lack of
coordination between central units and academic units is an internal barrier that limits scale and
opportunities to innovate.
Interview participants were asked about the level of cooperation between the careers units
and academics in Schools and Faculties. Georgina said that the university could and should be
doing better.
There's an increasing awareness we can't work in siloes. The Faculties are doing so much
more with WIL, which is really great to see. There's been a real change over the last few
years. But that change has really been student-oriented towards all of the things that can
be offered that are effective. What's still not effective is how we work together with
Faculties. We are not embedded in the Faculties and I don't foresee that happening any
time soon. I look at other universities and they seem to have greater cooperation.
Institutional culture may be influencing how the careers unit and academics communicate
on student related initiatives. Amy believed a disconnect is apparent in the organizational culture
of the university.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 114
Faculties aren't pro-active and they don't necessarily see importance of all aspects of
skills development as it doesn't neatly align with their curriculum. At a recent conference,
there was a great presentation on not just embedding but extracting career developing and
learning. Its already there we just need to lift and shift and elevate. There's a lack of
urgency by Faculties sometimes.
Survey participants echoed these institutional culture sentiments, with 88% of
respondents (n=50) believing that increased Faculty and academic engagement will have a ‘high
impact’. Survey participants were offered the opportunity to provide their opinion on the most
important initiative, investment or opportunity that will improve international student
employability. One anonymous survey participant stated that:
[We] need more interaction between Faculties & Schools, with Careers, with Marketing
and with Alumni office for a whole of institution approach. It’s piece meal at moment
and disjointed initiatives lose impact and scale. Increased academic engagement with the
careers office is needed. We're not always on the same page and it doesn't help our efforts
for international students and their skills development.
Inadequate systems were cited by interview participants as a further limitation and
internal organizational barrier. UEA has not invested in an enterprise-wide system to track what
is occurring across skills development and employability initiatives, meaning that initiatives that
show promise do not receive the attention they need to scale in order to meet the needs of a
greater volume of students. Harper noted, “Well, we need to be realistic. We can't reach every
student as we don't have the systems to provide scale.” Further compounding the CD unit’s
efforts, industry and employer contacts appear to be guarded and closely held by various
departments of the university. Amy said that, “Faculties and Alumni often don't want to share
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 115
employer contacts and things get cannibalized. Makes it tricky when a Faculty or unit don't
share, and they have their own quotas of students placed.”
At UEA, a certain School may have a quota or performance metric based on the number
of students it successfully places on industry projects or prescribed WIL opportunities per
semester or per annum. If it shares this employer contact with other Schools, it may not be able
to fulfil its goal or objective, which highlights the siloed nature of the institution. Conversely, a
university alumni office may not share its industry contacts if its objective is focused on
endowment and revenue generation that aligns with different organizational goals leading to an
inefficient use of existing staff resources leading to dissatisfaction. Indira noted with a level of
frustration:
[The Alumni office] have never understood or prioritized careers, even at senior levels.
Faculties went ahead and did their own thing - which they had to do because they had to
get on with it. But this has created service level inefficiencies and concentrations of good
support and concentrations of mediocrity.
Given that the current framework and structure appear to be siloed and uncoordinated,
interview participants were provided the opportunity to consider if the central careers service
should remain a centralized function of the organization or an embedded teaching function of
Schools. Nearly all participants stated that skills development and employability should be a
teaching function of Schools as it will have greater impact on individual students, unlock scale,
and garner greater support amongst academics. This does not necessarily mean replicating a
careers unit across all Faculties and Schools, but localizing and contextualizing employability
and skills development at the discipline-level so that it is embedded and can be tailored to the
needs of students by academics. Contextualizing employability at the discipline level will still
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 116
require some level of central coordination, and participants saw a potential hybrid solution.
David said that:
[Employability] should be an embedded function of all of these [Schools and Student
Services]. Skills development cannot occur in isolation. It has to be both a central
function as well as a devolved function to the Schools. Every unit needs to have some
involvement and to take a level of ownership.
Interview participants advocated shifting the focus of careers to a function of learning
and teaching and that this would have a positive impact but were aware this change would take
time to implement. Brian offered his point of view on Careers’ relationship with the Learning
and Teaching unit:
It would have a positive impact if there was greater integration with what is occurring in
the classroom and the direction of each Faculty and program they run. [Careers] would be
taken more seriously and encouraged to take up the performance-based funding model if
this service was less of a student service. More creditability in the eyes of the faculty and
from an education point of view. A seat at the table for more meetings with key
stakeholders is needed. It’s not just some resume checking and cv building service. It’s
part of education and not just a service. But the culture change takes time.
The cultural setting of universities can have a significant impact on the success and
scalability of employability initiatives. Ellen noted that she felt out of the loop on the strategy
and critical discussions at UEA:
[The university is] placing more importance on WIL, but that's also a reaction to
government mandates that students graduate with a more well-rounded and graduate-
ready experience. But I feel we're not as front and center in this as we could be. There's
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 117
lots happening everywhere, so it seems there's not a strategy in place that addresses our
future role. Maybe it’s being discussed but I'm not in the loop on that.
Harper expressed her frustration with the perceived lack of support from senior
leadership of the university for employability initiatives. “It needs to be top down with
executive-level support and strategy. Resourcing is tough. It’s really tricky now that I think about
it. It'd be so nice to work for a university that put more money into it.” This was echoed closely
by Indira, who said, “They have never understood or prioritized Careers.”
Organizational siloes have impact on the effectiveness of initiatives and the lack of
adequate systems may encourage duplication of efforts in different units. Aligning the careers
function with the teaching and education goals of a university brings the unit and its initiatives
greater visibility and perhaps respect in the eyes of academics. The lack of integration of central
careers and employability objectives into the curriculum will mean that skills development will
occur in isolation and this isolation will continue to confound efforts to improve participation
and enhance the student experience.
Resourcing Employability Initiatives
Inadequate resourcing of skills and employability initiatives was a concern expressed by
all participants. Resourcing is required to sustain initiatives from one year to the next, to
encourage greater participation, and to ensure that employability initiatives remain relevant and
meet the needs of students and employers. Resourcing for careers and employability can come in
two forms, with funding for initiatives and program development, as well as increase in staffing.
Interview participants agreed that scalability of skills programs is difficult without increased
resourcing and this often leads to initiatives remaining niche and only impacting a small slice of
the international student population which in turn has minimal impact on improving the overall
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 118
student experience. The questions below were those posed to participants as part of this study
into cultural model influences on careers advisors.
Table 30
Organizational Cultural Model (O-CM) Inquiry Framework
Organizational Cultural Model Questions Interview Survey
What do you believe are the resources required to have effective reach of
employability initiatives for international students?
√
Is resourcing for employability initiatives at your university centralized to
Careers or decentralized across Faculties and Schools?
√
My institution’s employability skills development programs for international
students have adequate resourcing.
√
Survey participants were asked to rate which initiatives would have the most impact on
international student skills development. WIL investment, increased resourcing for programs and
initiatives, and increased resourcing for staff both rated in the high impact category. These
initiatives require on-going commitments to recurring funding, not one-off funding envelopes for
initiatives to have impact. Initiatives rated as ‘High Impact’ and with greater than sixty percent
(60%) support are shaded in the table.
Table 31
Initiatives that Have Impact on International Student Skills Development
Question: At my institution, the following initiatives will
have impact on international student skills
development…
Low
Impact
Medium
Impact
High
Impact
SD n=
WIL / Work Integrated Education opportunities 0%
0
5.36%
3
94.64%
53
0.23 56
Increased resourcing for programs/initiatives 0%
0
7.27%
4
92.72%
51
0.26 55
Faculty & Academic engagement 2%
1
10%
5
88%
44
0.40 50
Increased resourcing for careers/support staffing 1.85%
1
20.37%
11
77.78%
42
0.47 54
More first-year student engagement 1.96%
1
33.33%
17
64.71%
33
0.52 51
Outsourced internships services 8.33%
4
29.17%
14
62.50%
30
0.64 48
Online skills development and employability programs 3.92%
2
37.25%
19
58.82%
30
0.57 51
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 119
More support from senior administration 0%
0
45.83%
22
54.17%
26
0.50 46
Alumni engagement for internships 4.17%
2
58.33%
28
37.50%
18
0.55 48
On-campus employment opportunities 26.67%
12
42.22%
19
31.11%
14
0.76 45
Half of the interview participants said that UK institutions are doing a better job than
Australian institutions at funding and resourcing initiatives and staffing to support employability.
A level of envy was expressed by participants that other countries’ education systems have
demonstrated their commitment to adequate resourcing of student skills development, and this
shows the cultural models are inherently different. Amy said, “Compared to the UK, Australia is
way behind in careers services. Not as drastic behind US. I'd say we're still under resourced
against most other universities.” This sentiment was further elaborated on by Indira, who stated:
Well, we need more targeted interventions like the UK universities. They're doing great
things with data collection and they can see the cohorts that are underperforming from
certain markets or in certain disciplines that need more knowledge in certain areas. This
has allowed universities to target them with services and assistance. This also links to
employability outcomes. If you want to increase employability rankings, then focus on
the problem cohorts. Especially those with low outcomes, reassess programs and their
underlying outcomes and their content.
Universities across the UK structure their skills development initiatives differently across
their organizations. Some institutions combine international marketing, careers and alumni
services into a cohesive unit under the same senior executive (Lawrence, 2013). Whereas the
typical Australian university separates all three of these functions into disparate units that report
to different university executives. The consequence of separating out these functions results in a
loss of coordination concerning the lifecycle of an international student and a lack of
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 120
coordination across key budget holders to harmonize initiatives that could positively impact the
student and graduate experience. Furthermore, the UK higher education sector has a more
cohesive system for coordinating employability data, institutional careers initiatives and
advocates greater visibility for international graduate employability efforts (UIUK, 2020).
Survey participants (n=54) reflected on their own institutions and how resourcing for key
initiatives is structured. There was no consistency across the public university careers offices
surveyed. Just under half of respondents, forty-six percent (46%), noted that their initiatives are
funded and governed centrally, thirty percent (30%) of survey responses claimed there was a
mixture of central and decentralized funding for services and initiatives, whilst twenty percent
(20%) claimed resourcing was wholly decentralized to the Faculties and School. One anonymous
survey participant noted the difficulty in comparing careers services on a university to university
basis given the variability of structures and reporting lines, even within the public university
system. “We have found that the biggest challenge when comparing ourselves to others is the
structure of careers services and what actually constitutes a ‘service’. It has changed so
substantially over the last few years that it is difficult to compare like for like.”
Table 32
Resourcing for Employability and Skill Initiatives
Question: At my institution, resourcing for employability initiatives… Responses
Is largely centralized and comes from the relevant DVC/PVC 46.30%
25
Is largely decentralized and is allocated to the Faculty/School 20.37%
11
Is a combination of centralized and Faculty allocated resourcing 29.63%
16
Other 3.70%
2
n=54
Note: DVC (Deputy Vice Chancellor) and PVC (Pro Vice Chancellor) are typical senior
academic administrative roles in an Australian university context.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 121
Irrespective of where the funding and resourcing comes from in the university structure,
the majority of interview participants focused on the need for greater resourcing that is dedicated
to increased staffing in careers services to meet the needs of a growing student body. Harper
noted that there needs to be greater emphasis on resourcing dedicated to the needs of
international students.
From a careers perspective, you need a team devoted to international students. It’s the
whole university piece. It should be integrated into the curriculum but it’s not. Marketing
and alumni value it, but the university is more about revenue generating and spending
extra money on [other] initiatives, not what they might consider our pet projects.
International student satisfaction with specific aspects of the student experience will
likely remain low if programs are not scaled to meet a greater proportion of the international
student population. Under resourcing in support staff has a direct impact on the ability of a
university careers service to scale initiatives. Georgina noted only 200 students are accepted each
year into one of their flagship skills development programs. Demand significantly outstrips
supply of places available, which in turn disappoints many students. Disappointment leads to
dissatisfaction which can become apparent in survey results, such as the ISB or QILT-SES.
To scale initiatives and to keep them running year on year requires institutions to pivot
away from short-term funding commitments, to a more medium-term mindset of guaranteed or
recurring funding commitments. Carol believed the uncertainty of funding year to year was not
the correct way to fund a core function of the university.
We know employability is something everyone is interested in and it is incorporated in
nearly every program we run so we talk about skills as this is what students want based
on feedback. We can’t just have wonderful one-off opportunities. We need to close the
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 122
loop or link it to the next opportunity. This takes resources, from systems to people, and
more importantly commitment from the university to keep funding going for several
years, not cap in hand year by year.
Organization Summary
Two key areas in relation to cultural setting and cultural model influences emerged from
participants. Universities need to be structured appropriately to meet the needs of a growing and
diverse international student body. Universities are heavily siloed organizations with internal
barriers created between student services, administration, and teaching and education functions.
These siloes contribute to disjointed and uncoordinated approaches to skills development
initiatives and do not contribute to or improve the student experience. Employability initiatives
should be harmonized within the curriculum and a lack of harmonization exacerbates the divide
between what academics deem important and what careers advisors view as critical learning
outcomes. Second, universities need to resource careers units and their initiatives in proportion to
the number of international students they are enrolling and servicing.. Initiatives have difficulty
achieving scale and critical mass as there are not enough resources to grow skills development
programs in isolation.
It has emerged that budgets for initiatives are, by and large, not guaranteed year to year
and this lack of commitment demonstrates that employability is not considered core business to
universities. Resourcing for staffing for careers units across Australian universities is less than
comparable nations and this staff resource deficit is having an impact on the effectiveness of
employability initiatives. The university has a goal to improve student employability, and the
utility value of this is apparent where the benefits of engaging in and focusing on students’ skills
development should ultimately outweigh the cost (Dembo & Seli, 2016) to the university.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 123
Through interviews and surveys with participants, this study confirmed the need for universities
to prioritize employability, coordinate stakeholders and adequately resource initiatives to be
genuinely effective at improving the skills development of international students.
Summary of Knowledge, Motivation and Organization Influences
There were a total of seven (7) identified influences across K, M and O areas, all of
which were confirmed as high areas of need for careers advisors and the university. There was a
depth of knowledge of effective skills development programs across the higher education sector
and participants were aware of critical design elements and effective delivery mechanisms for
skills development programs for international students. This knowledge is needed by careers
advisors to effectively design, develop and deliver skills programming. Emergent areas
uncovered as part of this study included the critical nature of self-reflective and self-assessment
opportunities for international students after they experienced a skills initiative as this improved
their critical thinking and communication skills. Self-reflection and assessment are critical
components of skills initiatives and participants have demonstrated their desire and commitment
to ensuring international student participants gain critical skills on an iterative basis during and
after their skills experiences
Careers advisors demonstrated a belief they had a positive impact on the student
experience and that they worked in an organizational unit that encouraged innovation,
professional exploration and continuous improvement. They demonstrated an understanding of
what stakeholders, such as students and employers, require from employability initiatives and
they demonstrated efficacy by encouraging regular solicitation of feedback to improve their own
contribution to skills initiatives. An emerging issue uncovered in this study is that by shifting
careers advisors away from a limited Australian employability mindset to a global employability
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 124
mindset, more students will be assisted and this will allow them to adapt to whatever situation
they might find themselves in post-graduation.
Careers advisors were significantly impacted by the structures and siloes of their
organizations and the under-resourcing of staffing and initiatives. This was the greatest influence
uncovered by this study. Initiatives have difficulty achieving scale and critical mass as there are
not enough resources to grow skills development programs in isolation. It has emerged that
budgets for initiatives are not guaranteed year to year and this lack of commitment demonstrates
that employability is not considered a core and critical mission of the university. Universities are
heavily siloed organizations with internal barriers created between student services,
administration, and teaching and education functions. These siloes contribute to disjointed and
uncoordinated approaches to skills development initiatives and do not contribute to or improve
the student experience. Skills programs and the development of greater employability initiatives
appears more successful if they are integrated elements of the curriculum and have broad
academic support. Combined, the validated influences in this study demonstrate that careers
advisors and universities need to have sufficient knowledge, motivation and organizational
commitment to succeed.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 125
CHAPTER FIVE: RECOMMENDATIONS
This study examined whether assumed influences in areas of knowledge, motivation and
organization affected the University of East Australia’s (UEA) ability to enhance the
international student experience through graduate skills development and employability
initiatives. A gap analysis model (Clark & Estes, 2008) was applied to seven assumed
knowledge, motivation and organizational influences. The literature reviewed for this study
supported the view that targeted skills development initiatives for students can have an impact on
graduate employability and positively influence student satisfaction. This study was underpinned
by interview data that was collected from nine participants within the UEA Careers office and
fifty-seven (57) survey responses that were collected from careers professionals across the higher
education sector.
Data collected from this study demonstrated a high level of need across the seven
identified influences. This chapter will present proposed solutions and recommendations based
on these confirmed and validated influences. Five key recommendations have been made that
will assist the stakeholders across the university to more effectively design, develop and deliver
skills initiatives at scale. Each recommendation details the primary and secondary stakeholders
involved, the various steps which will support the proposed recommendation and a timeline for
implementation and evaluation. These recommendations are proposed as they are actionable and
achievable, should the university seek to demonstrate commitment to overcoming international
student dissatisfaction with graduate employment preparedness. The five recommendations
based on the identified areas of need include:
1. Treat employability as a core mission of the university
2. Undertake a review of employability and skills initiatives on campus
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 126
3. Move the Careers unit from a student service function to an embedded function of
learning and teaching
4. Embed greater consistency in approach to skills development and employability
initiatives
5. Engage and consult with international students to systematically address
employability dissatisfaction indicators
Combined, the five recommendations proposed for UEA will assist relevant stakeholders
across the university to more effectively tackle issues that are limiting the effectiveness of skills
development programs for international students. There is no sequential order to the
recommendations and they can be implemented in parallel or aligned to a proposed timeline,
depending on the needs of stakeholders. These five recommendations target specific areas of
deficiency that arose from interviews with UEA careers advisors. This chapter presents an
implementation plan for these recommendations with suggested ways to systematically approach
the process of evaluating progress and effectiveness over time. Methods by which the university
can support the proposed recommendations are provided. Limitations of this study as well as a
discussion of future research considerations are included.
Overview of Key Findings
Seven confirmed influences were found to be high areas of need across the knowledge,
motivation and organization framework applied to this study. The university, as an organization,
has influence on the resourcing, structure and efficacy of skills development and careers
initiatives for international students. The proposed recommendations outlined in this chapter
have relevance to the apparent cultural model and cultural setting of the university as an
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 127
organization. The following table links the identified influence with the proposed
recommendations and aligns with the relevant KMO Gap Analysis framework component.
Table 33
Validated Influences and Recommendations
Influence Recommendations (5)
(R1-R5)
Confirmation
Status
KMO Gap
Analysis
(Clark &
Estes 2008)
Knowledge of effective skills
development programs
R2/Undertake a review of
employability and skills initiatives
on campus
R4/Embed greater consistency in
approach to skills development and
employability initiatives
Confirmed area
of need
Knowledge
Knowledge of how to design and
deliver effective skills
development programs to
international students
R4/Embed greater consistency in
approach to skills development and
employability initiatives
R5/Engage and consult with
international students to
systematically address
employability dissatisfaction
indicators
Confirmed area
of need
Knowledge
Careers advisors should feel they
have the capacity to succeed at
developing and delivering
effective skills development
programs for international
students
R3/Move the Careers unit from a
student service function to an
embedded function of learning and
teaching
R5/Engage and consult with
international students to
systematically address
employability dissatisfaction
indicators
Confirmed area
of need
Motivation
Careers advisors need to perceive
the development and delivery of
skills programs that enhance
employability for international
students as having value and are
important for institutional
reputation and international
attractiveness
R1/Treat employability as a core
mission of the university
R4/Embed greater consistency in
approach to skills development and
employability initiatives
Confirmed area
of need
Motivation
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 128
Influence Recommendations (5)
(R1-R5)
Confirmation
Status
KMO Gap
Analysis
(Clark &
Estes 2008)
The university needs to prioritize
the importance of employability
skills
R1/Treat employability as a core
mission of the university
R2/Undertake a review of
employability and skills initiatives
on campus
3/Move the Careers unit from a
student service function to an
embedded function of learning and
teaching
Confirmed area
of need
Organization
The university needs to
adequately resource student
careers and employability
initiatives
R1/Treat employability as a core
mission of the university
R2/Undertake a review of
employability and skills initiatives
on campus
Confirmed area
of need
Organization
The university needs to
coordinate stakeholders on an
agreed framework to address
identified indicators of student
dissatisfaction
R2/Undertake a review of
employability and skills initiatives
on campus
R3/Move the Careers unit from a
student service function to an
embedded function of learning and
teaching
R5/Engage and consult with
international students to
systematically address
employability dissatisfaction
indicators
Confirmed area
of need
Organization
This table highlighted how the five proposed recommendations aligned with identified
influences in the study. In the following section, each of the recommendations that have been
outlined are explained in further detail. The relevance and importance of each recommendations
are provided as well as the methods by which the university might measure success and
outcomes.
Recommendations
Five recommendations were outlined in the aforementioned Table 33, which address the
confirmation and validation of influences as identified in Chapter Four. The first
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 129
recommendation that is proposed is to treat employability as a core mission of the university,
which requires senior academic and administrative leadership to recognize its importance by
integrating and embedding it into organizational strategic intent. The core mission of the
university, typically in the form of a published institutional strategy, provides internal and
external stakeholders with a depth of understanding as to the vision and direction the university,
as an organization, seeks to pursue.
The second proposed recommendation is for the university to undertake a comprehensive
review of all employability and skills initiatives on campus. This will enable a transparent view
for a variety of stakeholders to see where gaps as well as duplication of effort lie. The third
recommendation is to move the Careers unit from a student service function to an embedded
function of learning and teaching, which requires both a physical shift of staff resources as well
as a cultural shift of the purpose of the unit.
The fourth identified initiative is to embed greater consistency in the university’s
approach to skills development and employability initiatives to allow for a more even
distribution of resources across the institution. The fifth and final proposed recommendation is to
engage and consult with international students to systematically address employability
dissatisfaction indicators. The following subsections describe in greater detail the proposed
solutions and recommendations for the university to implement. These recommendations are
aligned with Kirkpatrick’s four-levels of training evaluation: Reaction; Learning; Transfer; and
Impact (Kirkpatrick & Kirkpatrick, 2006).
Recommendation 1: Treat Employability as a Core Mission of the University
Graduate employability should be recognized as a critical function of the organization by
enhancing the prominence of graduate employability in the university’s strategic intent. The
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 130
university is nearing the half-way mark of its six-year strategy which provides an opportunity to
elevate and embed employability into its mission for greater visibility. To ensure that appropriate
emphasis is applied to employability and to provide for greater institution-wide acceptance and
adoption of its importance, international student employability should feature as a core
component of the university strategy. Currently, the university strategy makes passing reference
to 21
st
century skills development in the context of student satisfaction and a positive student
experience. International student employability is not specified in the broader context of graduate
success indicators. The size of the on-campus international cohort, and the influence these
graduates have on the university’s global profile and growth ambitions highlight the importance
of directly addressing positive engagement and adequate resourcing.
Cultural change within an institution, however, takes time. Changing academic
approaches to learning and skills interventions and curriculum design is an iterative process that
will differ by Department and School. The university will need to survey academics on what
skills development occurs in the classroom to determine what type of inconsistencies are present.
An external review of individual School curriculums and the relevant course syllabi will allow
for transparency in how skills are developed. Combined, the academic survey and the external
review of syllabi will allow for a gap analysis of where improvements can occur. Assessing
international student satisfaction and engagement with skills development initiatives is a critical
component to treating employability as an important element to the university strategy.
Assessment can occur on an iterative basis as well as an annual cycle. Measuring skills
development satisfaction can occur through existing end of course surveys each term to
determine if international students are finishing a course with adequate confidence. Moreover,
end of course surveys can validate whether the learning goals specified in a course syllabus
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 131
match end user perspective. The surveys, however, must ask targeted questions to the learners to
ensure course content has adequate efficacy and that course content can evolve to meet the skills
development needs of international and domestic students alike.
International student satisfaction with relevant skills development course content can also
be measured through external surveys. The i-graduate International Student Barometer (ISB) is
typically run on a bi-annual basis by UEA as well as a majority of Australian public institutions.
In previous years, up to 20% of the international student body at the university have responded to
the ISB, providing a representative view of learner engagement and student satisfaction. As well,
the national QILT Student Experience Survey (SES) is run on an annual basis with specific
ratings on skills development. Combined, these surveys allow institutions to objectively measure
student satisfaction and benchmark learner engagement against other Australian universities.
Survey results, in isolation, however, are ineffective if not disseminated, understood, and
debated across the institution. Survey results and end of course evaluations can be leveraged to
inform and enlighten academics and course convenors but there should be a plan in place to
ensure that various survey results are taken into consideration to address identified course
deficiencies. This will require discipline-specific skills to be embedded into curriculum
development and may require training sessions for academics on the skills required of learners.
Curriculum design, re-development and focused training for Schools requires funding
commitments over multiple years to ensure that progress towards stated goals can be measured
effectively. The following table summarizes the evaluation plan and measurements for
embedding employability into aspects of core university business.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 132
Table 34
Evaluation Plan for Recommendation 1
Evaluation Levels
(Kirkpatrick &
Kirkpatrick, 2006)
R1: Treat employability as a core mission of the university
Primary Lead Stakeholder The Vice-President (Education) (which Careers reports to)
Secondary Support
Stakeholder
Careers & Development unit
Reaction:
How best assess
satisfaction and
engagement?
- Gauge opinion and receptiveness of international students through surveys
and forums
- Gauge perspectives and feasibility of academics and administrators
through surveys and forums
- Measure skills development satisfaction through enhanced end of course
surveys
- Measure satisfaction through relevant ISB indicators and disseminate data
- Measure satisfaction through relevant QILT-SES indicators and
disseminate data
Learning:
How best assess learning,
commitment and
confidence?
- Embed discipline-specific skills development into the curriculum, relevant
to the academic content delivered
- Facilitate training for academics of skills requirements of international
students
- Commit to multiple years of funding allocated to strategic skills
development initiatives, both centrally and at the School level
- Create a transparent framework for evaluating academic engagement at the
School level that is shared widely and updated annually
Behavior:
How best to assess change
of behavior and effective
transfer of application of
learning?
- Survey academics on what skills development occurs in the classroom
- Establish a standard template and simple process for review of School
syllabi
- Compare syllabi with peer institutions to provide a gap analysis in skills
development
Impact:
How best measure results
and assess impact?
- Elevate international student employability in upcoming version of
university strategy
- Establish relevant targets for Deans and Heads of Schools based on ISB,
SES and end of course evaluations
- Benchmark ISB, SES and end of course evaluations over time
- Feature student employability metrics in Annual Report
- Benchmark QS and THE employability rankings
Recommendation 2: Undertake a Review of Employability and Skills Initiatives on Campus
Prior to the university embarking on an investment and rejuvenation of skills
development initiatives on campus, the Vice President (Education) division will support
academic administrators and Heads of School with a transparent view as to what initiatives are
currently occurring or were trialed in the past. This will allow for interested academic and
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 133
administrative stakeholders to see where gaps in skills development have been concentrated over
time. As well, a review of activities will allow stakeholders to determine where duplication of
effort has occurred within Schools and across the institution. The purpose of this review is to
provide a level of confidence to stakeholders regarding the scale of the problem and ultimately a
clearer understanding of the time, energy and investment that may be required to rectify skills
development deficiencies in the curriculum.
The University, led by the Vice-President (Education), should establish a common set of
principles to be applied across the institution that will allow stakeholders to capture appropriate
information. This review will start with initiatives at the local program and School level and
allow each Faculty to determine what activities are currently taking place. This local review will
be performed by each Head of School. In parallel, Heads of Schools will be provided with a
template to capture aspects of their course syllabi. This will allow for a systematic approach to
identifying and capturing employability and skills related content that exists within the current
curriculum. The university may seek to compare select course syllabi against a group of
identified university peers’ syllabi to provide a form of gap analysis related to skills development
and content that may or may not be embedded within the curriculum. This will allow both Heads
of Schools and the Vice-President (Education) to determine next steps in potential curriculum
reform.
Academics that teach course content are the critical stakeholder to engage as part of this
process. The Vice President (Education) office should consider how this stakeholder group are
best surveyed to determine their existing views, opinions and knowledge of skills development
needs of international students. Based on stakeholder feedback, analyzing the content of relevant
School syllabi and cross-referencing this with end of course surveys completed by students,
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 134
clusters of skills development deficits may become apparent. As well, centers of skills
development excellence will also become more apparent through this process, lessons from
which may be shared, scaled or applied to other areas of the institution if deemed appropriate.
Patterns may emerge in areas of skills development excellence and corresponding student
satisfaction indicators that will assist academic administrators to more accurately devote time to
understand and resources for expansion. Triangulating the results of academic surveys, end of
course student surveys and relevant ISB and QILT-SES skills development indicators will take
concerted efforts and time, but should yield valuable insights. These insights can be shared in a
transparent manner so the journey of understanding and auditing employability and skills
initiatives on campus is inclusive and informative for stakeholders involved. The following table
summarizes the evaluation plan and measurements for how the university should undertake a
comprehensive audit of skills and employability initiatives.
Table 35
Evaluation Plan for Recommendation 2
Evaluation Levels
(Kirkpatrick &
Kirkpatrick, 2006)
R2: Undertake a review employability and skills initiatives on campus
Primary Lead Stakeholder The Vice-President (Education)
Secondary Support
Stakeholder
Heads of Schools
Reaction:
How best assess
satisfaction and
engagement?
- Assess existing end of course surveys for skills development feedback and
share findings
- Assess relevant skills development feedback in ISB and share findings
- Benchmark campus careers resources against peer institutions
Learning:
How best assess learning,
commitment and
confidence?
- Survey academics on their existing views and opinions on skills
development
- Based on survey results, undertake a gap analysis of where skills
development deficits occur
- Based on survey results, identify where concentrations of skills
development excellence on campus occur
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 135
Evaluation Levels
(Kirkpatrick &
Kirkpatrick, 2006)
R2: Undertake a review employability and skills initiatives on campus
Behavior:
How best assess change of
behavior and effective
transfer of application of
learning?
- Establish a standard template and simple process for review of School
syllabi
- Compare select syllabi across the institution and share findings
- Compare select syllabi against group of peer institutions on skills
development inclusivity
Impact:
How best measure results
and assess impact?
- Set benchmarks for the under-developed and under-performing Schools
- Review implemented initiatives School by School
- Praise and elevate the good work undertaken by well-performing
initiatives on campus
Recommendation 3: Move the Careers Unit from a Student Service Function to an
Embedded Function of Learning and Teaching
The Careers unit is currently classified as a student service and support function. Whilst
this classification is not necessarily incorrect, it unnecessarily separates employability from the
classroom and confines it to a supportive role. As outlined previously, employability should be
considered a core mission of the institution. The needs of international students as they seek to
develop skills, focus their efforts on their employability and prepare for graduation necessitate a
higher profile and more integrated role for the Careers unit across the academic spectrum.
To enable a more integrated role for the Careers unit, it should evolve into an embedded
function of learning and teaching. This change will require aspects of the Careers unit be
‘localized’ at the Faculty or School level. Localization of specific functions of the Careers unit
will assist with greater integration of skills development that are relevant to specific disciplines.
STEM, Business and Health students, for example, will have greater access to skills development
and careers support that is relevant to their specific employment needs based on the profile of the
industry they intend to enter. Localization of careers resources will raise the profile of skills
development and employability at the School level and ensure there is greater relevance and
reason for academics to be involved.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 136
Localization of careers resources will require engagement with Associate Deans
(Education) and Heads of Schools to determine how resources can be best utilized. A resource
plan will need to be implemented to ensure that both large and small Schools have equitable
access to locally embedded employability and skills development specialists. This may require
resources to be shared across disparate Schools and siloed disciplines that have academic
programs with some levels of commonality, thus creating a cross-disciplinary approach to
careers resourcing. Relationships with industry and relevant companies that provide employment
for graduates logically remains where that discipline and specializations are taught.
Whilst the majority of careers resources should be localized, there remains an opportunity
to retain a discreet central Careers team. The purpose of a central Careers team is to develop
programs that have benefit for the broader student body and initiatives that require an institution-
wide approach. The central Careers team should establish three specific pillars that will work
collaboratively but have separate outcome-driven mandates. One would be in business
development aspects of work integrated learning (WIL) to facilitate and develop institution-wide
relations with large and small companies and to flag opportunities for Schools and to coordinate
international student-centered careers fairs. The second pillar would be focused on skills
development and design to ensure there were common principles to skills development,
internships and work placements for Schools to follow. The third pillar would be in careers
advisory to assist students with the basics and fundamentals such as cv writing and mock
interview preparation.
A redistribution of Careers staffing resources is not without complications. Substantially
changing an individual’s position description and reporting structure will necessitate workplace
change protocols. Potentially impacted Careers staff and School-based stakeholders should be
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 137
engaged prior to any changes so that the process is informed and inclusive. An open forum with
Careers staff and relevant stakeholders on what a future-state structure could look like will assist
in the development of plan that is underpinned by stakeholder consultation and input. Careers
staff aside, stakeholders such as School-based academics and Heads of School will need to
accept that discipline-relevant skills development and student employability are part of their
roles and remit within their School strategies. The following table summarizes the evaluation
plan and measurements for how the university could shift careers advising to become integrated
into learning and teaching functionality.
Table 36
Evaluation Plan for Recommendation 3
Evaluation Levels
(Kirkpatrick &
Kirkpatrick, 2006)
R3: Move the Careers unit from a student service function to an
embedded function of learning and teaching
Primary Lead Stakeholder The Vice-President (Education)
Secondary Support
Stakeholders
Learning and Teaching unit, Associate Deans (Education)
Reaction:
How best assess
satisfaction and
engagement?
- Interview Careers staff to gauge impact of proposed change
- Interview Heads of Schools and academics to gauge impact of proposed
change
- Co-design the process to maximize collective engagement and consultation
- Collect feedback of relevant stakeholders to gauge progress and likelihood
of success, and share relevant findings
Learning:
How best assess learning,
commitment, and
confidence?
- Engage Associate Deans (Education) to determine Faculty needs
- Engage Heads of School to determine School needs and how resources can
be localized
- Provide for consultative forums so that instructors accept these changes as
vital measures of reform
Behavior:
How best assess change of
behavior and effective
transfer of application of
learning?
- Gauge extent to which instructors operationalize their role in enhancing
skills development for international students
- Implement a resource plan to ensure that both large and small Schools
have equitable access to embed employability and skills development
specialists
- Establish three pillars for the smaller centralized Careers team across WIL
Business Development, Skills Development and Design, and general
Careers advisory
- Establish a committee of relevant stakeholders to ensure the new pillars
work collaboratively but have separate outcome-drive mandates
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 138
Evaluation Levels
(Kirkpatrick &
Kirkpatrick, 2006)
R3: Move the Careers unit from a student service function to an
embedded function of learning and teaching
Impact:
How best measure results
and assess impact?
- Benchmark pre and post change against student surveys and academic
administration feedback
- Measure volume of employability initiatives across each School over a 24-
month period and share findings
- Lobby government and Education department to share data on
international graduate outcomes that is inaccessible to institutions
Recommendation 4: Embed Greater Consistency in Approach to Skills Development and
Employability Initiatives
Improving consistency in the institution’s approach to skills development for
international students is required. To enable greater consistency in employability programs, the
university should establish a central directory of available skills development initiatives on
campus. This will allow for scalability when initiatives are created so they can be modified as
appropriate and applied elsewhere. A central directory will provide transparency to academics,
administrators and students as to what opportunities are available and at what point in the
calendar year. Establishing working groups of skills development subject matter experts will
allow for the sharing of promising practice that occurs across campus and within disparate
School. Dissemination of ideas, learnings on what has succeeded, and professional development
resources will create a more cohesive approach across the institution to skills development
initiatives. Identification of where an uneven distribution of initiatives and resources exists will
support a whole-of-institution approach.
Creation of a central directory will allow for a more even distribution of resources and
sharing of relevant knowledge across the institution. Faculties and Schools have variable student
enrolment profiles and resourcing should not be overly concentrated in one academic area at the
expense of another. Moreover, the institution should create scalable initiatives that have the
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 139
potential for transferability and application to different academic disciplines, which will allow
for a greater shared understanding of what initiatives have the greatest impact on international
student skills development and satisfaction.
Cohesive approaches will be supported through seminars and workshops that can be
established for skills development and discipline subject matter experts (SMEs). The provision
of training and case studies will allow for greater transparency in practical solutions. Skills
development ‘hackathons’ and ideation workshops each semester will enable academics to
become more motivated to innovate and embed skills development into the curriculum.
Consistency can also be applied to the recognition and rewarding of academics and
administrators that have led successful initiatives, providing a platform for individuals to be
publicly acknowledged for their determination, commitment and efforts. The following table
summarizes the evaluation plan and measurements for how the university should provide for
greater consistency in employability initiatives across campus.
Table 37
Evaluation Plan for Recommendation 4
Evaluation Levels
(Kirkpatrick &
Kirkpatrick, 2006)
R4: Embed greater consistency in approach to skills development and
employability initiatives
Primary Lead Stakeholder The Vice-President (Education)
Secondary Support
Stakeholder
Heads of Schools
Reaction:
How best assess
satisfaction and
engagement?
- Identify where uneven distribution of initiatives and resources exists and
set minimum standards to guide consistency
- Benchmark Faculties and School in the ISB and SES to determine centers
of excellence and those that need to improve
Learning:
How best assess learning,
commitment, and
confidence?
- Establish an accessible central directory of available skills development
initiatives on campus
- Allow for scalability when initiatives are created so they can be applied to
other Schools or circumstances
- Establish working groups of SMEs to share promising practice
Behavior:
How best assess change of
behavior and effective
- Run seminars and workshops for SMEs to provide training and case
studies in promising practice on campus
- Run hackathons and ideation workshops each semester to enable and
motivate academics to innovate
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 140
transfer of application of
learning?
- Ensure resourcing for professional development and external support in
skills development is provided each semester
Impact:
How best measure results
and assess impact?
- Establish a transparent ratings system to measure employability initiatives
based on identified criteria such as scale, impact and measurability
Recommendation 5: Engage and Consult with International Students to Systematically
Address Employability Dissatisfaction Indicators
International students are the beneficiaries of skills development programs as they are
designed to enhance their graduate employability. Their opinions and experiences are critical to
the successful implementation of these initiatives and programs. Workshops should be run each
semester for Careers staff, learning and teaching SMEs and academics to focus on the learning
needs of international students. These learning and teaching needs can then be infused into skills
development programs with self-reflective feedback opportunities for students during and after
the program. Through facilitated activities such as student self-reflection, academic
administrators can collect and monitor key themes, issues and opportunities which will enable
iterative improvements to employability programs. Reiterating to international students through
high level communication and social media channels that the university is listening and on-
boarding feedback to improve and enhance the student experience will provide confidence
amongst international students. This communication will show that the university takes the
opinions of its students seriously, that it is focused on employability satisfaction factors and that
it is working to address student frustrations.
Whilst the Careers unit and academics within Schools will develop and implement skills
initiatives, it will be important to not exclude international students from the design process.
Whilst a co-design process of new programs and initiatives may be overly ambitious at the start,
the Learning and Teaching unit can convene discreet working groups of students and academics.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 141
This process will ensure there is an adequate feedback mechanism into the process and to ensure
buy-in and take-up by academics who may be skeptical regarding international student needs.
This process will also allow international students who have participated in existing skills
initiatives on campus, whether through the CD unit or their individual School, to constructively
feedback on which initiatives have resonated with them. Initiatives that have not been considered
constructive or useful can be re-evaluated and reformed so that the university is directly
addressing and seeking to improve identified dissatisfaction indicators.
Currently enrolled international students may not fully understand the range of skills they
need in the workforce that will improve and enhance their employability prospects. Engaging
with recently graduated international alumni who have already entered the workforce will
provide the university with a stakeholder group that can reflect on what skills they feel were
underdeveloped. Their perspectives can add legitimacy and relevance to the skills development
program development and design. International alumni can also provide relevant perspectives
and advice to currently enrolled international students through workshops and seminars.
Universities are hampered somewhat by not knowing the full extent of their international
graduate successes due to the nature of data privacy protection in Australia. Universities and
international student bodies may seek to lobby the government to provide more transparency in
the numbers of graduates that move from student visas to temporary skilled work visas. This
information is relevant and useful as it can provide universities with a better understanding of the
profile of their international graduates and how many have remained onshore to work against
those that have returned home. Until this information sharing occurs, UEA and its peer
institutions will continue to make assumptions on international student movements post-
graduation. The following table summarizes the evaluation plan and measurements for better
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 142
engagement and consultation with international students to address persistent dissatisfaction with
employability.
Table 38
Evaluation Plan for Recommendation 5
Evaluation Levels
(Kirkpatrick &
Kirkpatrick, 2006)
R5: Engage and consult with international students to systematically
address employability dissatisfaction indicators
Primary Lead Stakeholder The Vice-President (Education)
Secondary Support
Stakeholder
Learning and Teaching unit
Reaction:
How best to assess
satisfaction and
engagement?
- Systematically engage with international students and collect feedback on
what students want to develop each semester
- Transparently communicate to international students the vision the
university has regarding their employability
- Provide opportunities for self-reflection in group settings post-WIL
experience
- Encourage students to self-reflect on video to create artefacts
Learning:
How best to assess
learning, commitment, and
confidence?
- Through facilitated activities such as self-reflection collect and monitor
key themes, issues and opportunities
- Reiterate to students through high level comms and social media that the
university is listening and on-boarding their feedback to improve the
student experience
Behavior:
How best to assess change
of behavior and effective
transfer of application of
learning?
- Run workshops each semester for academics on learning needs of
international students
- Provide funding for academics to undertake professional development in
L&T areas relevant to student skills and employability
Impact:
How best to measure
results and assess impact?
- Monitor ISB results over time across key indicators and by nationality and
share findings
- Monitor SES over time across skills development indicators and share
findings
- Develop tailored surveys or include questions for end of course
evaluations that target skills development satisfaction
Limitations and Future Research
One aspect of limitation in relation to this research is the narrow focus on the views of
careers advisors within the university. Careers advisors within the Careers unit are at the front-
line of skills development and employability initiatives, but they are only one stakeholder group.
Other critical stakeholders in the university, such as academics and Heads of School, were not
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 143
engaged. However, they would be directly impacted by proposed changes to skills development
resourcing on campus and their views on the feasibility of localizing such resources is important.
Resistance amongst academics and administrators in specific Schools remains unexplored.
Adapting and embedding aspects of skills development for students, particularly
international students, into the curriculum and relevant syllabi requires significant time and
effort. Some programs that have specific accreditation requirements, such as Engineering, are
constrained by their ability to change aspects of the curriculum without impacting or
complicating re-accreditation processes. Some programs have very few international students
enrolled, such as Law, and the amount of efforts made to enhance employability would need to
be weighed against the return on investment of time, effort and impact.
The survey of careers advisors across national public universities did not capture all
universities. As well, the survey could not capture subtle differences between large and small
universities and how their structure and resourcing have impact on the efficacy of employability
initiatives. Future research could examine whether there is an optimal size of institution and what
profile of international students require greater skills development interventions. When
government data eventually allows for greater transparency in the understanding of post-
graduation flows of international students onto various post study work visa categories by
nationality and by institution, a more nuanced understanding of challenges and opportunities will
become apparent.
Conclusion
This study sought to understand how UEA could systematically address international
student dissatisfaction through a re-invigoration of graduate employability initiatives. The
purpose of this improvement study was to understand the fundamental causes of the
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 144
organizational problem, how the university could improve international student skills
development and employability preparation and improve upon international student satisfaction
rates. The study identified opportunities for the university to enhance and elevate skills
development initiatives at both the central and School-level, which would require senior-level
support to embed international student employability into the university strategy. Both top-down
and bottom-up approaches are required to provide for a successful implementation of meaningful
changes to the way the university approaches skills development and employability of its
international cohort. Senior university leadership need to articulate a vision of international
student employability and demonstrate institution commitment by resourcing initiatives over the
medium term. Careers advisors and academics at the coalface of international student
engagement need to re-invigorate their skills development initiatives through tailored
engagement exercises that more holistically link classroom learning with real-world application.
Interviews and surveys conducted as part of this study support the notion that
employability and relevant graduate skills development must occur inside the classroom.
However, there is a disconnect between the perception of careers development as a student
service rather than an integral component of learning and teaching. This will require a shift in
mindset and culture change between academics and administration. To some extent, this shift has
already occurred in certain Schools and programs that are taught by industry practitioners and
where work integrated education initiatives have a foothold. However, there is a lack of
consistency across the institution regarding where and how skills are developed, and this creates
an uneven landscape of graduate employability for local and international students. Indeed, many
of the graduate skills in demand are relevant to local students as well but are more acute for
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 145
international cohorts based on their expectations, cultural understanding and language
differences.
Two critical themes emerged from this study. First, there is an over-arching disconnect
between employers and universities. Employers are frustrated by universities as they are not
producing international graduates with the requisite skills. Communication deficits, lack of
initiative, resilience and interpersonal skills reduce international graduates’ employability, and
these are skills employers expect new recruits to have already mastered. Conversely, universities
are frustrated by employers’ misperceptions about post-graduate temporary work rights and that
employers are not investing enough energy to allow greater opportunities for WIL to upskill
students in the work environment. Interview participants expressed frustration at the lack of
interest and engagement shown by employers and their fixed view regarding hiring individuals
who are not citizens or permanent residents, regardless of their legal right to work. Careers
advisors feel they do not have the clout or influence to change attitudes and this is forcing them
to lower students’ employment expectations. There is a shift towards contextualized skills
preparation and global employability given graduates will likely need return to their home
country for employment, regardless of the temporary graduate work rights they possess in
Australia.
A second theme that emerged was the importance of self-reflectivity in skills
development programs. Interviewed participants emphasized that international students need the
space and opportunity to talk about their perceptions, frustrations and attitudes towards their
individual employability. International students benefit from listening to and learning from other
students they can identify with that have experienced positive and constructive skills
development inside and outside the classroom. As well, WIL initiatives are deemed to be more
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 146
effective if international students are allowed the opportunity to express their frustrations and
concerns about what they need to improve upon. Positive reinforcement through socializing and
networking with their international peers in a facilitated and safe environment resonates with
international students.
Interview and survey participants appeared somewhat disconnected from skills
development initiatives that occur within their own institutions, highlighting the siloed nature of
certain centralized support services and School-based initiatives. Student service capacity and
reach are strained whilst student service effectiveness is constrained by ever increasing student
enrolments, resulting in variability across satisfaction indicators as student expectations are not
being met. This issue has impact on both domestic and international student cohorts. There are
siloes between administrators and academics which do not benefit student support and
development. The expectation of international students is that they will develop and attain skills
necessary to improve their employability both inside and outside of the classroom. Where course
syllabi fail to adequately address and support skills development and where campus
employability initiatives occur in isolation and in small-scale fashion, international students
appear likely to graduate with higher levels of dissatisfaction. Addressing this dissatisfaction
through targeted, scalable and discipline-specific initiatives and through well designed programs
that unify academics and careers advisory strengths will improve international student
satisfaction. The satisfaction in graduate skills developed will build the confidence needed for
international students to succeed and improve the reputation and relevance of Australian
education.
INTERNATIONAL STUDENT EMPLOYABILITY 147
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Abstract (if available)
Abstract
The purpose of this study was to identify knowledge, motivation and organizational needs for an Australian public university to address employer expectations and improve upon student satisfaction indicators. Graduate employability is an increasingly important issue for universities and international students in Australia. Australia is a global top three destination for international students seeking a study abroad experience, which relies heavily on international student fee income to support the public university system. International student satisfaction with their graduate skills development and employment prospects is under pressure. Dissatisfaction amongst international students has the potential to influence their propensity to recommend Australia as a quality study destination. The Australian public university system, which educates and enrolls the majority of international degree-seeking students onshore, is under pressure to provide relevant and tangible skills development programs for their large international cohorts. Increased enrollments, under investment in student-facing services and siloed skills development within and outside of the curriculum have created inconsistencies in institutional responses to international student dissatisfaction. The study confirmed organizational needs for elevating the importance of skills development and employability into institutional strategic plans. Recommendations focused on ensuring greater transparency and consistency in skills development occur across relevant student service units and within Faculties and Schools.
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Asset Metadata
Creator
Voninski, Aleksandr
(author)
Core Title
Enhancing the international student experience through graduate employment preparedness
School
Rossier School of Education
Degree
Doctor of Education
Degree Program
Global Executive
Publication Date
07/25/2020
Defense Date
07/22/2020
Publisher
University of Southern California
(original),
University of Southern California. Libraries
(digital)
Tag
australia,careers development,critical skills,curriculum,employability,employer expectations,graduate employment preparedness,graduate skills,international education,international student experience,international student feedback,international students,OAI-PMH Harvest,satisfaction indicators,self-reflection,skills,skills development,soft skills,student capabilities,student satisfaction,student service funding,WIL,work integrated education,work integrated learning,workplace skills
Language
English
Contributor
Electronically uploaded by the author
(provenance)
Advisor
Tambascia, Tracy Poon (
committee chair
), Chung, Ruth (
committee member
), Krop, Cathy (
committee member
)
Creator Email
avoninski@me.com,voninski@usc.edu
Permanent Link (DOI)
https://doi.org/10.25549/usctheses-c89-343791
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UC11663513
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etd-VoninskiAl-8750.pdf (filename),usctheses-c89-343791 (legacy record id)
Legacy Identifier
etd-VoninskiAl-8750.pdf
Dmrecord
343791
Document Type
Dissertation
Rights
Voninski, Aleksandr
Type
texts
Source
University of Southern California
(contributing entity),
University of Southern California Dissertations and Theses
(collection)
Access Conditions
The author retains rights to his/her dissertation, thesis or other graduate work according to U.S. copyright law. Electronic access is being provided by the USC Libraries in agreement with the a...
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Tags
careers development
critical skills
employability
employer expectations
graduate employment preparedness
graduate skills
international education
international student experience
international student feedback
international students
satisfaction indicators
self-reflection
skills
skills development
soft skills
student capabilities
student satisfaction
student service funding
WIL
work integrated education
work integrated learning
workplace skills