Employability Definition

Employability:
Employability Defined:
Employability, what defines employability? It is a concept that is used within a range of different contexts for those employed as well as to those seeking employment (McQuaid & Lindsay, 2005). It is a term that centers on many definitions, making it difficult to single out just one definition. There are various questions that arise around the term ‘employability’. Does getting a job within a specified time after graduating signal employability? Does employability signify an ability to demonstrate desired attributes upon recruitment? For some employability is an indication of furthering their studies. But for most employability is about securing a job.

A ‘holistic’ framework of employability as illustrated

The aim of the study was to establish how transferrable basic skills from higher education into employment are. The study concludes that, as opposed to students from other faculties, business graduates felt that their degree provided them with the required technical skills in order for them to be successful in the labour market. This however, contradicts a previous study conducted by (Cotton, 2001) who maintains that employability skills should be added as a module and included in the curriculum. It was established that business graduates acquired the necessary skills that enabled them with a wide variety of skills making the transition from higher education to the labour market much simpler.
Open distance learning institutions
The role of open distance learning

Pursuing a higher education meant that students had to attend full time classes, which was known as traditional learning (Hannay & Newvine). But as the labour market evolved and became more demanding employees were forced to update their skills. This is where the concept of open distance learning came about.

Open distance is not an unfamiliar concept for many institutions. They were designed to facilitate lifelong learning. Many students that study via an open distance learning institution are those that cannot attend a traditional university due to a number of other

Based on a study that was conducted (Inman, Kerwin, & Mayes, 1999), lecturers were willing to teach classes via distance learning but at the same time doubted the quality of education, but based on a study that was conducted it was established that students not only learned the subject matter but also learned how to engage in online learning.

With regards to employer expectations most employers felt that graduates from an ODL institution possessed the necessary skills that enabled them to be successful in the working environment. Students also felt that studying via an ODL institute required them to be independent and enabled them to take a more active role in managing their careers. They did not feel that their level of education was lower than those that studied at a traditional