Embedding Employability: A Case Study Using ePortfolios in Studio Learning and Teaching

Abstract

Teaching Urban and Environmental Planning, like most Professional degree programs, requires overt and significant linkages to the relevant industry and or professional practice. Student employability is largely implicated by the type and level of professional competencies they have achieved during their education. The embedding of employability skills has been successfully achieved in studio-based learning and teaching environments in the Urban and Environmental Planning program at Griffith University. Through the use of ePortfolios and the PebblePad Personal Learning Environment, students identify as Trainee Planners from week one of their studies. Over the four years of the program, students build upon, critique, and develop their professional identity in conjunction with their resume and ePortfolio. By the time of graduation, students leave the program as Professional Accredited Planners with a professional portfolio to launch them into their professional life. Current indicators show that 90% of Griffith Urban and Environmental Planning graduates obtain industry-related employment after graduating. This is significant given the changing nature of the workforce and employment prospects.