PurposeIn a fast evolving labour market, higher education graduates need to develop employability competences. Key in becoming employable is the ability to reflect on learning experiences, both within a curriculum as well as extra-curricular and work placements. This paper wants to conceptualise how an online learning platform might entail a reflective practice that systematically supports students in reflecting on their learning experiences.Design/methodology/approachWhen studying online learning platforms for developing students' employability competences, it became clear that the effectiveness of the platform depends on how the platform guides students' reflective practice. In turn, the authors studied which features (tools, services and resources) of the online learning platform are guiding the reflective practice.FindingsThis resulted in the introduction of an online learning platform, containing a comprehensive set of online learning tools and services, which supports students' reflective practice and, in turn, their employability competences. The online platform facilitates both feedback from curricular and work-related learning experiences and can be used as a start by students for showcasing their employability competences. The reflective practice consists of a recurrent, systematic process of reflection, containing various phases: become aware, analyse current state, draft and plan a solution, take action and, finally, reflect in and on action.Research limitations/implicationsFuture research revolves around studying the features of online learning platforms and their role in fostering students' reflection and employability competences.Practical implicationsThe conceptual model provides concrete indicators on how to implement online learning platforms for supporting students' reflection and employability competences.Originality/valueThis is the first article that analyses an online learning platform that guides students' reflective practice and fosters their employability competences. The authors provide concrete suggestions on how to model the online platform, building further on reflective practice theory.

Three educational models for positioning the Maastricht research-based learning programme. In Research-based learning: Case studies from Maastricht University (pp. 35-41). Springer.

Employability, defined as a set of competences that allow an individual to create and maintain a job, is pivotal for both organizations and employees. Organizations with an employable workforce remain competitive and individuals who are employable experience better career development. The present study investigates self‐directed learning orientation (SDLO), job control, and job demand as predictors for three employability competences: occupational expertise, personal flexibility, and anticipation and optimization. Data were collected from a sample from two different sectors (health care and finance) in the Netherlands. A path model was built to investigate the relationships between the dependent and independent variables. Results indicate that SDLO and job demands relate positively to all three employability competences. These results suggest that employees with a self‐directed learning orientation and employees working in a demanding job are more employable. In addition, we found that the positive relationship between SDLO and employability competences was moderated by job control. To create an employable workforce, supervisors and managers can promote employees’ orientation toward self‐directed learning and pay considerable attention to job design in terms of job demands and job control.

Professional Learning and Development in Schools andHigher Education disseminates original, research informed writing on the connections between teacher learning and professionalism in schools and higher education. Global in their coverage, the texts deal with the problems and practices of the field in different national and international cultural, policy and practice contexts. The methodology employed encompasses a broad spectrum of conceptual, theoretical, philosophical and empirical research activities. The series explicitly encompasses both the fields of schools and higher education.The subject areas covered by the series are: professional learning in schools; contexts for professional learning; professional learning in higher education; change; the (new) meanings of professionalism in schools and higher education; training and development in schools and higher education; the 'well-being' agenda in schools and higher education; autonomy, compliance and effectiveness in schools and higher education; principal leadership in schools and higher education; middlelevel leadership in schools and higher education.More information about this series at

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