1. Centre for Enhancement of Learning and Teaching PDP and Employability: practice and research @ Birmingham City University Jo Powell & Rachel Moule Centre for Enhancement of Learning and Teaching

2. What’s happening with PDP? Ongoing support for staff one-to-one and workshops including supporting staff’s own PDP BCU generic PDP moodle site: Your Personal and Professional Development E-Portfolio Mahara launched with tools and pedagogic framework Researching academic staff perceptions of PDP In development- SEDA approved course for staff supporting PDP Researching student use of e-Portfolio for PDP 10 step reflective feedback model to support modules

3. Centre for Enhancement of Learning and Teaching Status of Employability Birmingham City University cited as good example* for ‘embedding (employability) into all documents that bear on how the organisation works’ Also integrated into PG Cert / staff MA Ed modules NTF project: Creating Future Proof Graduates http://www.bcu.ac.uk/futureproof/ http://www.bcu.ac.uk/futureproof/ Graduate Employability Skills Framework for mapping employability skills opportunities to the curriculum Employability and Entrepreneurship Working group established In development-BCU Employability Award to include ePDP * UK Commission for Employment & Skills - The Employability Challenge 2009

4. Centre for Enhancement of Learning and Teaching PDP NARN research with students Research project investigated students’ reasons for engaging or not engaging with PDP via e-Portfolio. Focus group with 8 first year non-traditional UG students. Student perspectives confirm the literature: –they really value the opportunities afforded by ePDP –BUT it feels ‘indulgent’ –If given academic acknowledgement they would give it a higher priority –Needs to be very clearly integrated and signposted throughout the course, preferably via personal tutorial system

5. Centre for Enhancement of Learning and Teaching PDP NARN research with staff Research project investigating staff perceptions PDP and its parts and how valued they are –Questionnaire of 125 cross faculty academic staff –Asked to rate value of PDP and its parts –Asked to define PDP PDP seen as important – although elements of reflection, self awareness, action planning and employability rated more important separately Different faculties see different elements as most important

6. Centre for Enhancement of Learning and Teaching Interested? Please call us: Ruth Lawton University Teaching Fellow for Employability Centre for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching ruth.lawton@bcu.ac.uk 0121 331 5126 Jo Powell Tutor for PDP and Employability Centre for the Enhancement of Learning and Teaching jo.powell@bcu.ac.uk 0121 331 6412 http://www.bcu.ac.uk/celt/employability-personal-development