New study confirms sustainability skills are key to employability

15th November 2018

The Global University Employability Ranking, published by Times Higher Education (THE), has this week revealed that institutions promoting sustainability skills are much more likely to produce employable graduates.

This is a concept that the EAUC has espoused for a long-time, and has begun to tackle in the UK and Ireland through its pioneering Future Business Council.

The Council was founded in response to the worsening graduate skills gap. EAUC recognised that the employability skills frameworks Higher and Further Education Institutions were working towards, were vastly different to the graduate skills businesses were looking for in successful applicants. The key skills missing were those deemed ‘real-world employability skills’. These are skills like teamwork, communication and problem solving – skills that are taught in sustainability modules.

The Employability Ranking shows Britain has seen a decline in the employability of graduates following competition from institutions around the globe that recognise the need for these skills. A sentiment predicted by Green Gown Awards judges, a mixture of representatives from the Higher and Further Education sector and the business sector – who idenitified this skills gap as one of the megatrends for the following year.

Iain Patton, Chief Executive of the Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges (EAUC), said: “For the EAUC, the need to address this skills gap, and ensure students have the ‘sustain’ability is clear. Our Council brings employers and educators together to ensure that graduates are ready for the significant challenges of tomorrow's workplace. Some of the best minds from education and business are now working together to ensure we are creating a future fit generation to lead the world into a new sustainable era.

“Sustainability skills and better links with industry is a winning formula for institutions, and those that take this seriously will see huge improvements in the employability of their students. We hope that more institutions will heed this warning, and we welcome their participation in the Future Business Council.”

A full list of participants of the Future Business Council is available here.