Graduate employability: meeting higher education's defining challenge

University students will soon be connected directly with employers and employment opportunities from the commencement of their course thanks to a ground breaking graduate employment initiative that will give Deakin graduates an advantage when entering the labour force.

Launching soon, DeakinTalentis a digital portal that will offer personalised career education and graduate employment services to Deakin students and alumni.

Professor Dineli Mather, Australia’s first Pro-Vice Chancellor for Graduate Employment said DeakinTalent would embed personalised career education at the heart of its student experience to better prepare graduates to enter the workforce.

“Today’s graduates face the challenge of trying to get a foothold in one of the toughest labour markets in history,” Professor Mather said.

“The share of new bachelor graduates who are unemployed or underemployed four months after graduating is at its highest since the 1970s, according to Grattan Institute figures.

“In a crowded employment market, combined with ongoing global economic uncertainty, it’s no surprise that today’s students worry about securing their first graduate role.

“To make it even harder, most jobs are now found and secured through professional networks and digital media rather than the traditional job fairs and recruitment drives.

“Graduate employability is the defining challenge for universities in Australia and across the world.

“To meet this challenge, Deakin’s focus is squarely on what we need to do to empower students to build a successful career in the twenty-first century.”

DeakinTalent will take career development and employment services into the cloud and offer:

• Contemporary career education to develop career-ready graduates;
• Graduate talent development to improve the marketability of students; and
• Graduate recruitment services to connect students directly with prospective employers and employment opportunities.

DeakinTalent will harness digital technology to offer personalised career development wherever students are, for wherever they want to go.

“We have transformed our thinking from the traditional offering of a ‘careers service’ to instead providing lifelong ‘career education’ and employment services as part of a Deakin education,” Professor Mather said.

“At any stage during or after their studies, students and alumni will be able to see relevant employment opportunities, while on the other side of the platform employers will have access to a field of high quality career-ready Deakin graduates.

“Mentoring and networking will happen within the digital community, even across different career areas.

“But before students begin being connected with employment opportunities, they’ll take part in a range of Work Integrated Learning experiences to enhance their employability.

“This will include establishing a digital Work Integrated Learning business park where students will connect with prospective employers in a freelance-style environment, to share and develop ideas.”