Equality of opportunity for work experience? Computing students at two UK universities “play the game”
Journal Article
Smith, S., Taylor-Smith, E., Bacon, L., & Mackinnon, L. (2019)
Equality of opportunity for work experience? Computing students at two UK universities “play the game”. British Journal of Sociology of Education, 40(3), 324-339. https://doi.org/10.1080/01425692.2018.1489219
A recent UK Government commissioned study found concerning levels of unemployment among computing students from disadvantaged, black and minority ethnic backgrounds. The study...
Computing degree apprenticeships: An opportunity to address gender imbalance in the IT sector?
Conference Proceeding
Smith, S., Taylor-Smith, E., Fabian, K., Barr, M., Berg, T., Cutting, D., …Zarb, M. (2020)
Computing degree apprenticeships: An opportunity to address gender imbalance in the IT sector?. In 2020 IEEE Frontiers in Education Conference (FIE). https://doi.org/10.1109/FIE44824.2020.9274144
This paper explores the potential for new work-based apprenticeship degrees to encourage more women into computing degrees and the IT sector. In the UK, women are currently un...
Placement or practicalities? Barriers and disincentives to work experience, as reported by computing students
Presentation / Conference
Taylor-Smith, E., Smith, S., & Smith, C. (2017, December)
Placement or practicalities? Barriers and disincentives to work experience, as reported by computing students. Paper presented at Society for Research Into Higher Education (SRHE) Annual Conference, Newport, Wales
Having relevant work experience, such as a placement or internship, is valued by employers in the technology sector and can improve employment outcomes for computing graduates...
The impact of work placement on graduate employment in computing: outcomes from a UK-based study
Journal Article
Smith, S., Taylor-Smith, E., Smith, C., & Webster, G. (2018)
The impact of work placement on graduate employment in computing: outcomes from a UK-based study. International Journal of Work-Integrated Learning, 19(4), 359-369
This study followed recent computing graduates into the workplace and explored their undergraduate experiences of work placements and subsequent impact on graduate employment....
From work-integrated learning to learning-integrated work: motivations and apprehensions of Graduate Apprentices
Conference Proceeding
Smith, S., Taylor-Smith, E., Smith, C., & Varey, A. (2018)
From work-integrated learning to learning-integrated work: motivations and apprehensions of Graduate Apprentices. In Proceedings of the 3rdInternational Research Symposium on Cooperative and Work-Integrated Education, Stuttgart, Germany (199-207
Graduate Apprenticeship (GA) degrees bring new collaborations between universities and employers and new opportunities for apprentices—to gain a university degree, while also ...
Identifying factors influencing study skills engagement and participation for online learners in higher education during Covid-19
Journal Article
Fabian, K., Smith, S., Taylor-Smith, E., & Meharg, D. (2022)
Identifying factors influencing study skills engagement and participation for online learners in higher education during Covid-19. British Journal of Educational Technology, 53(6), 1915-1936. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.13221
The Covid-19 pandemic disrupted education across the world as campuses closed to restrict the spread of the virus. UK universities swiftly migrated to online delivery. The exp...
Participant-centred planning framework for effective gender balance activities in tech
Conference Proceeding
Taylor-Smith, E., Barnett, C., Smith, S., Barr, M., & Shankland, C. (2022)
Participant-centred planning framework for effective gender balance activities in tech. In UKICER '22: Proceedings of the 2022 Conference on United Kingdom & Ireland Computing Education Research. https://doi.org/10.1145/3555009.3555016
The gender imbalance in the tech industry [21], mirrored in computing education [13], is problematic in terms of providing appropriate products and services for the whole popu...
Graduate apprenticeships are great opportunities for individuals, but are they inclusive?
Presentation / Conference
Taylor-Smith, E., Smith, S., & Varey, A. (2018, December)
Graduate apprenticeships are great opportunities for individuals, but are they inclusive?. Paper presented at Society for Research into Higher Education (SRHE) Annual Conference
Higher education-level apprenticeships can provide routes to university degrees for people without the financial resources for traditional degrees. In Scotland, the first coho...
Towards graduate employment: exploring student identity through a university-wide employability project
Journal Article
Smith, S., Smith, C., Taylor-Smith, E., & Fotheringham, J. (2019)
Towards graduate employment: exploring student identity through a university-wide employability project. Journal of Further and Higher Education, 43(5), 628-640. https://doi.org/10.1080/0309877x.2017.1390077
Students have expectations of their university education leading to graduate careers, with universities investing considerable resources in institution-wide initiatives design...
Signalling new opportunities? An analysis of UK job adverts for degree apprenticeships
Journal Article
Fabian, K., Taylor-Smith, E., Smith, S., & Bratton, A. (in press)
Signalling new opportunities? An analysis of UK job adverts for degree apprenticeships. Higher Education, Skills and Work-based Learning, https://doi.org/10.1108/HESWBL-02-2022-0037
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to gain insight into the degree apprenticeship labour market and employers’ strategies for apprenticeship recruitment using job advertisem...