This study reports on the findings of a mixed methods study that was undertaken to
establish student perceptions of academic learning environments and the perceived
impact of these on their articulation of employability skills. This was so student
perspectives on employability could be used to inform reflection on pedagogic practices for
their educators in higher education. Using a purposive sample of 250 students based in a
recently modernised Sciences Complex Building in a Higher Education Institution (HEI),
the study was cross sectional and descriptive by design. The social learning spaces
researched were perceived by participants to provide optimal academic learning
environments for their development of knowledge, skills and professionalism through
certain signature pedagogies as they progressed through their programmes of study.
Students also expressed the view that their acquisition of functional skills were significantly
more important than any personal attributes/characteristics that they brought to
programmes. What also mattered was whether the importance of certain graduate skills to
the workplace had been made explicit to them so that they could see the relevance of their
studies to practice. In defining ‘graduateness’, in employability terms the research
Hayes et al. Perception of academic learning environments and perceived impact on articulation of employability skills
Journal of Learning Development in Higher Education, Issue 10: November 2016 2
concluded that it was necessary to consider how it was shaped by the context of delivery
of subject disciplines, stages of academic progression, and the use of social learning
spaces, as they all had a significant impact on the perceptions students held about their
potential employability upon completion of their academic programmes.
Keywords: learning environments; employability; signature pedagogies; situated
cognition; problem based learning.