The application of information literacy to gain and undertake graduate employment: a collaboration between the library and the careers service

Claire Abson & Alison Lahlafi

Today's session

• Training & collaboration with careers colleagues • Information literacy as a graduate attribute:

• the HE view - Librarian / Academic / Careers Adviser / Student

• the employer view

Information Literacy as a graduate attribute: Are employers getting a good deal?

"get some local employers involved in the discussion or to give short presentations from their point of view, which will help us all to devise information literacy training with lifelong applicability".

University of West London, Dec 2011

Training

IL as a graduate attribute

Job and Placement Interviews

Research the company and sector

Researching the company before attending

interview will make you better prepared to ask and

answer questions

What resources do you direct students to if they are:

a) researching a company prior to a job or placement interview?

b) researching an industry sector prior to a job or placement interview?

Trade press

Professional body website

The Library Gateway

Mintel

Prospects

Social networks e.g.

LinkedIn

Print directories

e.g. Kompass

Company website

Newspapers

Sector skills councils

Careers Central

the name game

Company Parent Company

Asda

T-Mobile

Marriott Hotels

Apple

Rolls-Royce

Boots

BHS

Natwest

Walmart

Deutsche Telekom

Marriott International Inc.

Royal Bank of Scotland Group

Arcadia Group

Alliance Boots

BMW

Apple Inc.

Feedback & follow-up

• workshops / careers sessions

• on an individual basis, careers service appointments

• through academic staff and in lectures

• better awareness by the Careers Information Team to enable us to pass information on to students and staff

information gathering

critical thinking

ability to process large amounts of information

How our careers colleagues defined it...

"how literate you are, how well you can understand research and interpret information"

"being able to handle effectively the vast number of resources"

"ability to use IT effectively"

Is 'information literacy' relevant?

"only librarians seem to be making direct connections between information literacy and desirable workplace skills" (Sokoloff, 2012, p.7)

"once the term information literacy leaves its domain, it loses its power" (Lloyd, 2011, p.279)

"some of the limiting factors in developing interest in information literacy include the term itself, which does not clearly communicate its meaning" (Bruce, 1999, p.34)

Information literacy in the workplace

•Does our choice of language mean we are missing an opportunity to demonstrate our value?

•Are we developing truly transferable skills in our students?

The employer view

"it is conservatively estimated that £3.7 billion is spent by SMEs in the UK on time wasted looking for information that they cannot use" (De Saulles, 2007, p75)

Next steps

• online guide

• resources for alumni students

•scope for work with faculty placement teams

• further research!

References

Bruce, C.S. (1999) Workplace experiences of information literacy. International journal of information management, 19, 33-47

De Saulles, M. (2007) Information literacy amongst UK SMEs: an information policy gap. Aslib proceedings: new information perspectives, 59(1), 68-79

Lloyd, A. (2011) Trapped between a rock and a hard place: what counts as information literacy in the workplace and how is it conceptualized? Library Trends, 60(2), 277-296

Sokoloff, J. (2012) Information literacy in the workplace: employer expectations. Journal of business & finance librarianship, 17(1), 1-17.

Thank you for listening, any questions?