Towards a National Graduate Destinations Survey in Kenya: An Exploratory Study of Three Universities

Abstract

While concerns about graduate unemployment and the work-readiness of graduates in Sub-Saharan Africa abound, there is a severe lack of institutional data and academic research on graduate destinations on which to base policy changes. This article presents findings from an exploratory study of three major higher education institutions in Kenya. An online survey was conducted of undergraduate students graduating between 6 and 12 months prior to the study, aiming to determine, first, what employment activities they were engaged in, and second, what associations there might be between those activities, the graduates' background characteristics, and their experiences at university. Findings suggest that proportions of absolute unemployment are lower than expected, but that many graduates are transiting between provisional or part-time employment and internships, and have not yet obtained the graduate level jobs aspired to. Finally, implications are drawn out for potential national-level graduate destination surveys in Kenya and elsewhere in Sub-Saharan Africa.

Conceptualising Graduate Outcomes with Critical Realism

“…A further characteristic revealed by the foundational concepts is the overly narrow economic focus of much HE policy. This is not a novel insight, complimenting the work of other scholars (Tomlinson, 2012;McCowan et al, 2018), but this paper arrives at this from a more philosophical perspective. There is nothing in the nature of the foundational concepts that justifies a narrow economic focus.…”

“…Similarly, in the UK metrics associated with graduate employment form a key part of the Teaching Excellence and Student Outcomes Framework, a nationwide accountability exercise that attempts to measure teaching quality at higher education institutions (Tomlinson et al, 2018). This focus on graduate outcomes is also increasingly influential in other contexts, including China (Guo et al, 2019) and Kenya (McCowan et al, 2018).…”

Knowledge mapping of skills mismatch phenomenon: a scientometric analysis

“…Conversely, the African continent lacks research on skills mismatch despite the continent's efforts to overcome such a critical issue. Nevertheless, in an explanatory study of three universities in Kenya, McCowan revealed a serious lack of research on graduate destinations in the Sub-Saharan Africa region, with no destination surveys with complete national coverage (2018, p. 4).…”

Enhancing employability opportunities for Pharmacy students; a case study of processes to implement competency‐based education in Pharmacy in Kenya

“…Defining employability from a Kenyan context is challenging as there is no formal process to collect graduate destinations that can provide insight into the roles that graduates are able to secure. However, there is a clear need to identify industry needs and ensure that graduates are skilled in adapting their higher education specialist knowledge and experience to the roles they take on (McCowan, et al, 2018). Pharmacy is well placed, in that graduates have a career trajectory available for them to embark on within healthcare.…”