Career adaptability is better described as interconnected resources than as manifestations of a common factor. Using a sample of 1053 responses to the Career Adapt-Abilities Scale, we compared traditional confirmatory factor analysis models (unidimensional, bifactor, hierarchical) with a confirmatory network model, which is found to outperform the…

This study examines the extent to which career competencies (knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to manage one's own work and learning experiences to achieve the desired career progression) are prevalent amongst early career researchers (ECRs). We adapted the Career Competencies Questionnaire [Akkermans, J., Brenninkmeijer, V., Huibers, H.,…

Purpose: Self-initiated international placements by students have been largely ignored in the literature on outward mobility in higher education. The support given to self-initiated international placement students, if any, has received even less attention. This study aims to address this lacuna. Design/methodology/approach: Drawing on insights…

This article discusses the correlation between cascading subcontracting and employees' participation in continuing vocational training. Based on a capability approach, it uses the French quantitative linked employer-employee survey on training and career paths (DEFIS) to question to what degree inter-firm relations influence their employees'…

Drawing upon data on the entire population of French STEM PhD students, we explore the factors leading PhDs to pursue independent research from their supervisors during the PhD and how independence links to their career outcomes. We find that independence is significantly associated with students' and supervisors' characteristics. Moreover,…

Mexico is the main Latin American country sending students abroad for international education. In 2020, 34,781 Mexican students were enrolled in higher education institutions (HEIs) outside their country of origin. From those, 37% studied in a European country. The National Science and Technology Council (CONACYT) has funded international student…

The aim of this article is to situate the teaching body of the "écoles d'arts et métiers" in their historical context in nineteenth-century France, and to discuss the history of the specificity of teaching in technical schools. The success of this form of vocational education is commonly ascribed to the prominence it gave to manual work.…

Reforms in higher education have been passed in many European countries in the last decades, mostly trying to adapt national systems to new European and global challenges. This study examines some consequences of such major reforms in France and Spain. Specifically, these reforms introduced new agencies whose remit was "inter alia" to…

In this article we report the outcomes of a study on career choices of rural veterinary students during the educational process. In accordance with social representations theory, we studied how the representational project that students build during their curriculum is influenced by the socio-spatial elements of their biography (including…

Guidance systems exist within learning, working and welfare cultures, which are upheld by prevailing institutions and stakeholders. Implementing a lifelong approach questions rooted codes and idiosyncrasies of the sectors across which guidance is distributed. To support individuals' careers, unlock their potential and increase their contribution…

The purpose of this paper is to find out what academics do when approaching retirement, and why; as well as to reflect on the process and consequences of reaching a retirement decision -- for themselves, the university system, and the wider community. Our study concentrates on baby boomers, as this large cohort starts to retire or become eligible…

This paper deals with the question of French PhDs' career trajectories and especially those that lead to private sector employment. Using quantitative longitudinal survey "Génération" from Céreq, which allows observing professional pathways over the first five years of working life, it shows that for PhDs graduated in 2010, public-sector…

Purpose: This paper aims to explore the types of learning engendered by internal mobility (IM) by referring to the principles elaborated by Bateson (1972). Design/methodology/approach: A qualitative methodology is followed with interviews among 50 professionals working at four large French firms. Findings: A system of classification for IM is…

Around the world, young people face considerable challenges. Even before the disruption of the Covid-19 crisis, policymakers were seeking to respond to rapid technological advances, climate change and -- in some countries -- an ageing population and workforce. While children and young people worldwide generally have high aspirations and ambitions…

A career in engineering may be appealing owing to the prospect of a good salary and a dynamic work environment. There may, however, be challenges for students wishing to enter their first job. In engineering education, career preparation courses may be included so as to prepare students adequately for their first job, future careers, and to…