PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to offer a systematic review of the literature that explores under‐employment among recent graduates. Literature from a range of disciplines is reviewed in an attempt to further a theoretical understanding. In doing this, the secondary aim is to identify avenues for future research.Design/methodology/approachThe paper adopts a systematic literature review methodology to answer the question “What is graduate underemployment?”FindingsThe review highlights significant issues around the conceptualisation and measurement of graduate under‐employment. It argues that individual volition and meaning making are important issues that to date remain under‐researched in relation to graduate under‐employment. The paper argues that the most appropriate basis for developing a theoretical understanding of graduate under‐employment is to draw upon relevant theoretical frameworks from career studies – specifically those on the objective‐subjective duality of career, career indecision, and career success. This approach provides a greater focus on the dynamics of the individual's experiences.Practical implicationsThis review has implications for a range of stakeholders including students, graduates, teachers and careers advisers, parents, universities, employers, HR professionals and policy makers.Originality/valueIn the context of policy debates surrounding the purpose and value of higher education, this review brings together the highly fragmented perspectives on a phenomenon that encapsulates many of the issues being debated.

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Purpose -The paper aims to contribute to the discussion about how SIEs articulate narratives as cognitive efforts to expand, restrict or adapt their repertoire of identities in highly regulated environments. Design/methodology/approach -Drawing from a social constructivist positioning, the paper explores situated social and relational practices using a qualitative framework that relied on primary data gathering through semi-structured interviews. Qatar is a context of particular interest for exploring identity narratives of SIEs given the highly regulated environment and the large numbers of non-nationals within the overall workforce. The study was conducted in an anonymous Qatari public shareholding company. Findings -Findings suggest that narratives of self are framed in relation to structural constraints and patterns of adaptation. These reveal the interplay between identity, careers and self-initiated expatriation at macro-country and micro-individual levels. As part of these themes, narratives of mobility and opportunity emerged in reference to career experiences and discussions about themselves (lives, identities, and expectations). Originality/value -The paper contributes to our current understanding of SIEs and encourages us to consider the importance of context in shaping the SIE experience. Similarly, the scarcity of literature about SIEs in GCC countries makes this paper a timely contribution. These contributions have significant implications not only for theoretical discussions about SIEs, but also for discussions on the interplay between migration, identity and global careers.

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to systematically summarise and evaluate recent articles on modern homebased work (2000)(2001)(2002)(2003)(2004)(2005)(2006)(2007)(2008)(2009). In identifying the key recurrent themes and commonalities in the existing research, it brings order to the variety of contributions to provide future directions for inquiry and knowledge production. Design/methodology/approach -Papers are identified through systematic keyword searches of multi-disciplinary databases. The aim is to identify papers that explore the social/organisational embeddedness of homebased work, rather than framing it as a technology related phenomena/problem. Findings -The review highlights some contradictory evidence about the potential for change entailed in homeworking practices and an absence of studies which focus on "less visible" workers engaged in homebased production. It also argues that few longitudinal studies exist which could address the question of the ability of homebased work to initiate change. Practical implications -The paper provides an evaluation of the literature to make sense of the diversity of themes and issues within existing research. The insights gained are of use to both academics researching this form of working and practitioners implementing it. Gaps within existing knowledge and directions for future study are also identified. Originality/value -This paper is a timely review of the recent articles that have been published on homebased work.

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