1. GEES Graduate Employability Survey: Preliminary Results Sharon Gedye & Brian Chalkley LTSN National Subject Centre for Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences Contact details: sharon.gedye@plymouth.ac.uk

2. Why is Employability an Issue for GEES? Graduate employment record – could do better Recruitment Subject Rank (out of 62) Geology32 Geography47 Environmental Science 48 Source: The Times Good University Guide 2004 – Graduate Destinations

3. GEES Employability Survey - Rationale To find out about GEES graduate experience of employment To find out the opinions of GEES graduates on the value of their degree with respect to employability To use the information to inform curriculum review

4. GEES Employability Survey - Approach Postal questionnaire Graduates from universities of Gloucester, Leeds and Plymouth Graduates from 2000, 2001, 2002 Survey return – approx 600 (35%) Analysis is preliminary

7. How much do GEES graduates earn?

8. 53% of respondents had undertaken some form of further study / training

9. How qualified do you feel for your current employment?

10. Degree aspects students felt were given about the right level of attention Subject Knowledge95.5 Ability to work independently92.8 Flexibility / Adaptability90.1 Written communication89.1 Interpersonal / Teamwork Skills89 Intellectual Skills87.7 Working under pressure86.7 Self and time management86.5 Fieldwork Skills86.1 Research skills85.9

11. Degree aspects students felt were given too little attention Too Little Attention Professional Work Experience89.8 Business Awareness76.6 Entrepreneurship66.9 Career Planning53.8 GIS41.3

12. Which modules helped you prepare most for the workplace?

13. As an undergraduate, did you know what career you wanted to pursue?

14. What careers action did you take at university? Wrote / updated my CV92% Visited institution's career centre65% Did research on specific careers I was interested in63% Visited a careers fair62% Sought advice on how to write a CV60% Browsed for info in newspapers / web-sites / magazines56% Found out what skills / attributes / qualities employers want51% Had an interview with a careers advisor42% Had my CV checked by a tutor / advisor42% Kept a record of my personal development and achievements42% Gained work experience33% Undertook a careers module offered by my institution32% Asked a tutor / lecturer for careers advice25%

15. Agree / Strongly Agree Disagree / Strongly Agree It has substantially improved my job prospects75.3%5.7% It has qualified me for a range of careers upon graduation65.4%16.1% Career guidance should be an important part of the curriculum90.1%2.3% Graduates from my discipline often need more vocational training after graduation75.3%6% The curriculum should include skills useful in employment92.7%2%

16. Would you still choose to study the same degree? Yes - 71.9% No - 28.1% I enjoyed the degree and am still interested in the subject but should have done more to improve my workplace skills Geography appears to be a degree that employers look upon sceptically. It hasn't really trained me in any specific areas, only broadened my overall knowledge. These days everyone seems to have a degree and employers are therefore able to choose employees with more valuable degrees such as economies