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Work integrated learning (WIL) has attracted attention nationally and internationally as universities investigate ways to improve the work readiness of graduates. This project responded to concerns that the needs and potential contribution of marginalised students in relation to WIL (particularly work placements) had received little attention. Its broad aims were to: (1) investigate current practices in WIL management in the disciplines of built environment, business and health at the partner universities; (2) work with national and international colleagues to translate inclusive education principles into the WIL context in order to improve student access, participation and progression; and (3) contribute to change in university principles, policies, guidelines, and procedures to enable better support for students from diverse backgrounds to participate in WIL. The project has contributed to ensuring that the National WIL Strategy (2015) includes a specific action to address equity and access issues to enable students to participate in WIL.

Emerging from the project are the following key findings: (1) the Principles, Guidelines and Strategies for Inclusive WIL in conjunction with student profile data can be used to: review current policies, practices, curriculum design and delivery of inclusive WIL; and identify barriers to inclusive WIL and to develop targeted resources and professional development; and (2) working collaboratively with external bodies can help: address specific issues related to professional standards, accreditation requirements, student self-disclosure, confidentiality, duty of care, and reputational impact; ensure that the National WIL Strategy informs the development of a sector-wide framework for inclusive WIL; ensure that the Principles, Guidelines and Strategies for Inclusive WIL are enacted to support student learning in the workplace; and support further research to better understand and support Inclusive WIL.

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Disruptive technologies, emerging global markets, and uncertain workforce requirements are driving the need for skilled graduates. This research developed a framework for collaboration between stakeholders to ensure work-ready graduates and sustained economic growth. A mixed-methods, multiple case study research design was deployed to gather data from graduates, employers, staff, students, and professional body representatives across three disciplines. The Australian course experience questionnaire generated 476 graduate responses and 1,175 comments. The graduate employability surveys collected responses from 88 graduates, 51 employers and 34 teaching staff. SPSS and Excel functions were used for quantitative data analysis and Nvivo for thematic analysis. A cross-case analysis of the three case studies revealed consistency in stakeholder perceptions of domains perceived as important for graduate employability with collaborative partnerships emerging as integral to actualizing the domains. Findings from this research challenge conventional university approaches to brokering and maintaining partnerships and suggests a holistic engagement framework for stakeholders.

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Work-integrated learning (WIL) has become an essential component of many university curricula. Recent global disruptions have challenged traditional models of WIL, particularly industry-based student placements, leading to growing calls for new, sustainable models of WIL. Aligned with this call and the increased emphasis on learning across disciplines, interdisciplinary project-based WIL provides an alternative to student placements that is both student and industry centered. This study reports on the outcomes of pilots of this model of WIL across four Australian universities. A cohort of 38 students, faculty and industry staff who participated in the pilots were interviewed. The key challenges and enablers of interdisciplinary project-based WIL are identified along with recommendations for implementation.

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In the contemporary workplace, data scientists who are capable of interdisciplinary collaboration are in high demand. Universities need to provide data science students with a plethora of learning opportunities that involve collaboration in interdisciplinary contexts and engagement with industry partners. Curtin University and Lab Tests Online Australasia (LTOAU) collaborated to provide an interdisciplinary, industry-focused learning experience for data science students. Upon completing the project, students reported improved understanding of the range of applications for data science skills. The experience delivered opportunities for greater self-awareness and highlighted the importance of teamwork, decision-making and leadership skills. This chapter presents Interdisciplinary Project-based Work-Integrated Learning (IPjWIL), an educational approach that equips data science students with the necessary skills to navigate the future world of work. The results of the pilot project described demonstrate how interdisciplinary, industry-focused learning experiences enhance the capabilities of data science students, thereby augmenting employability.

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This paper addresses the question of the relative importance of work-integrated learning placement quality, structure (whether part-time or full-time), and duration (in weeks), for producing employability outcomes. Additionally, we explore whether the quality of those placements is more, less, or equally important than the structure and duration. Drawing on responses to questions in a survey from 2,313 participants, 1,316 of whom had no placement experience and 997 of whom had had a placement experience, as part of their university studies, we tested a series of related hypotheses. After controlling for prior work-experience, results show that the quality of the placement experience is a greater predictor of a variety of employability outcomes than either structure of the placement experience or its duration. Findings will inform curriculum designers, practicum supervisors, and those interested in the outcomes of higher education.

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The diversity of the student population within Australian and New Zealand universities has changed dramatically across recent decades due to greater focus on policies of social inclusion, widening participation and the massification of higher education. At the same time there has been a movement towards increased student participation in work-integrated learning [WIL] programs. Some universities now set requirements for all programs to have some form of WIL opportunity as these have been shown to be beneficial for students seeking graduate employment, improving student retention and academic performance, and for guiding development of professional identity.

However, a disconnect exists between the benefits of WIL and the capacity for diverse student populations to fully access, participate and engage with these opportunities. This paper presents an exploration of this challenge.

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Based on wide consultation and research across the Higher Education (HE) sector in Australia, it is clear that there are many concerns about issues of inclusive practice in the design and delivery of work-integrated learning (WIL). Some students, for a variety of reasons, face barriers in gaining access to and achieving full participation in WIL. This issue is becoming increasingly prominent and there has been a call for action in the National Strategy on WIL in Higher Education (2015) [available in VOCEDplus at TD/TNC 119.961], with a key area of importance identified as addressing equity and access issues in student participation in WIL. While many examples of effective practice in universities exist, there is currently no systematic approach nor agreed set of principles about how to develop genuinely inclusive WIL. This guide is intended to assist universities to address equity and access issues by developing more inclusive approaches to the way WIL is conceived and practiced. This resource is designed to inform university policies and practices, and the design and delivery of WIL curriculum. The target audience is university leadership and those determining policies and practices, as well as professional and academic staff who work directly with students. WIL inherently involves working with a range of partners which includes students.

The resource is presented as a hierarchy, that is: (1) principles: high level statements intended to guide the conceptualisation of inclusive WIL; (2) guidelines: intended to assist in determining how to enact the principles; and (3) strategies: examples of effective practice which demonstrate practical application of these concepts. This resource acknowledges that different contexts, priorities and approaches, as well as particular disciplinary requirements and student cohorts, will impact on how this resource is adopted. It is important to note that many parameters influence how WIL operates and how inclusive it will be in practice.

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As the higher education sector transitions into a standards based, regulatory environment, educational institutions will be required to provide evidence of the employability capabilities acquired by students during the course of their degree studies. Work-integrated learning (WIL) is promoted as a valuable mechanism for embedding and assessing employability skills and thereby enhancing work readiness of graduates. Work placements, also known as fieldwork are a component of WIL that is a common feature in professional qualifications. Disciplines that have not traditionally offered WIL experiences are exploring opportunities to nurture industry relationships and provide authentic learning experiences to expose students to the world of work. The resource implications of managing, monitoring and assessing work based student activities are immense. Challenges associated with quality, equity and consistency remain unresolved. This study focussed on a range of units covering diverse disciplines which incorporated fieldwork experience. The investigation involved discussions with unit coordinators; and the collection and analysis of student feedback. The assessment patterns for the fieldwork units were collated enabling comparison of student and staff perceptions.

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Contemporary perspectives of higher education endorse a work integrated learning (WIL) approach to curriculum content, delivery and assessment. It is agreed that authenticity in learning relates to real-world experience, however, differentiating and strategically linking WIL provision and facilitation to assessment tasks and collation of authentic student evidence is critical. Irrespective of whether authentic learning tasks can be achieved in the education or workplace settings, the imperative of why an assessment is regarded as highly or minimally authentic needs to be better understood. The literature doesn't clearly describe such parameters for assessments, nor does comprehensive course review (CCR) use a structured framework to analyze WIL assessments in curriculum. An Authentic Assessment Framework (AAF) was designed to assist this gap in CCR and piloted at Curtin University to enable a consistent approach across programs and disciplines. This paper describes the process for developing that framework, highlighting the effectiveness in engaging WIL practitioners and informing authentic curriculum development.

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Research into work-integrated learning continues to show through a variety of small-scale and anecdotal studies, various positive impacts on student learning, work-readiness, personal and cognitive development and other outcomes. Seldom are these research findings strongly generalizable because of such factors as small sample sizes, discipline-specific case attributes, and qualitative approaches that seek richness of detail rather than generalizability of findings.

Drawing on a sample of more than 3000 students, the study reported here explored the following questions: What curriculum factors can be validly measured to operationalize work-integrated learning curricula design? What measures validly operationalize the concept of 'employment readiness'? and What predictive relationships exist between these two sets of measures? Measures are based on students self-reporting of both curriculum characteristics and employability skill acquisition. Findings indicate that robust measures of both curriculum factors and employment-readiness factors are possible and that the curriculum factors are associated with students' employment readiness outcomes.

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