Work-integrated learning programs in human resource management

Abstract

Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) in higher education is not new. What is new is the increase in the scale and diversity of student engagement in communities and workplaces (Cooper, Orrell & Bowden 2010). The increased commitment to WIL program implementation in Australian universities is primarily driven by industry and Australian Federal Government demand. In order to address skill shortages, meet future needs of the economy, and satisfy the need for a highly skilled, adaptable and productive workforce, industry and Government are pushing for employable, work ready individuals. In response to this demand Australian higher education institutions are developing a range of WIL programs across all disciplines. A review of this literature on WIL finds a gap about the range of WIL programs being offered in the undergraduate discipline of Human Resource Management (HRM). Given previous research on WIL in Business (of which HRM is a subset) has identified skills gaps in business graduates, and that WIL has been framed as having the capacity to address skill shortages, this exploration of WIL programs in HRM is significant. This research explores the mental models of four stakeholder groups (academics, careers advisors, workplace supervisors and students) in the context of WIL programs offered in undergraduate HRM degrees in Australian universities. It focuses on the stakeholders' perceptions and experiences of WIL programs in HRM. This research provides answers to why there is a range of WIL programs offered in the teaching of HRM undergraduates, and the impact of a range of WIL programs on the teaching and employability of HRM undergraduates. This examination provides insight into the many developmental aspects of WIL programs in undergraduate HRM degrees, including how graduate attributes and employability are viewed by the stakeholders, the role of WIL, and the challenges experienced when embedding a WIL program into the curriculum. The four stakeholder groups (academics, careers advisors, workplace supervisors and students) provided for a total of 38 semi-structured interviews. In order to examine the responses from the participants and understand the behaviour of complex social systems, this research used Mitleton-Kelly's (2003b) principles of complexity. With the assistance of the Computer Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis System (CAQDAS) NVivo 10 ®, the data was coded and then analysed to compare the different stakeholders' mental models of WIL.

Date of Award	2015
Original language	English