Abstract
The concept of ‘vocationalism’ has for some time been part of the policy debate on the nature and future of higher education. A decade ago, fears of an ‘overproduction’ of graduates in an economy in recession increasingly led to concern about the ‘employability’ of graduates. Large student cohorts with increased participation rates in higher education entered a labour market with fewer jobs, and with available jobs not always perceived by employers as matched by graduate skills and qualifications. With the recovery of the economy, however temporary, the demand for graduates again increased. New labour demands, especially in the areas of technology and finance, again called into question the ability of higher education and its students to ‘deliver the goods’. The agenda for government policy-making continues to be dominated by notions of matching educational expenditure to the requirements of the economy.
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© 1993 British Sociological Association
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Lyon, E.S., Murray, K. (1993). Graduate Labour Markets and the New Vocationalism in Higher Education. In: Payne, G., Cross, M. (eds) Sociology in Action. Explorations in Sociology. British Sociological Association conference volume series. Palgrave Macmillan, London. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-349-12108-3_11
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