What do students think of employability and overseas work placements? A comparison of English and German views

A central role of Higher Education Institutes in the UK is to prepare graduates for the global economy, however the UK target set in 2017 for students undertaking a period of work or study abroad remains lower than the original set by the Bologna Process in 1999; with other European countries achieving substantially higher numbers of outwardly mobile students. The research in the field of outward mobility mainly concentrates on study abroad, providing an opportunity for further research. This paper examines employability and outward mobility/internationalisation in the context of the perceived reluctance of UK students to undertake a work placement abroad. The views of undergraduate Business Management Students at Brighton Business School were compared with those of German students studying at a similar institution in Germany: Goethe University in Frankfurt. Staff from Brighton Business School and other universities in the UK were also surveyed to gather data on their attitudes towards work placements abroad. The research found that students from Brighton and Frankfurt displayed similar barriers to going abroad but were motivated by different drivers. The difference in these drivers is further echoed in the variations of their definitions of "employability". The research also found that lack of staff awareness or interest in placements abroad could negatively affect students' decisions about going abroad.