This study aims to explore the factors perceived as central for individuals who have undergone retraining to be recruited into their new profession. Specifically, it explores the factors that contribute to securing employment in the new profession after retraining. This with a focus on identifying any factors that hold greater significance in the recruitment process. Recruiting based on potential involves looking beyond a candidate's current skills and assessing their ability to grow and exel in a specific role or organization. By evaluating their past experiences and comparing them to the desired qualifications, recruiters aim to identify individuals with capacity for learning and development. Data was collected through 16 semi-structured interviews, and a qualitative methodology was employed. The theoretical framework guiding this research incorporates Pierre Bourdieu's concepts of social and cultural capital, Mark Granovetter and Lin Bian's concepts of social networks, and Lin's concept of homophily whichresults in homosociality and homogeneity. The findings reveal that certain factors play a more prominent role in securing employment after retraining. These factors include the individual's social capital and social network, compatibility and consensus during the interview, charisma and social skills, as well as academic qualifications and previous work experience. Additionally, the study highlights the significant role of the social media platform LinkedIn, both as a means for candidates to expand their social network and also for showcasing their skills. Overall, this study provides valuable insights into the factors influencing the recruitment of retrained individuals, emphasizing the importance of social and cultural capital, social networks, and social compatibility in securing employment opportunities. The implications of these findings are relevant to employers, retraining programs, and policymakers, offering guidance for the development of effective employment strategies for retrained workers.

Syftet med avhandlingen är att beskriva akademikers bana mot att bli professionella då de kommer ut i arbetslivet med en magisterexamen i psykologi eller statsvetenskap. The study has a longitudinal design where Political Science and Psychology graduates’ have been interviewed on three consecutive occasions; the last semester before graduation, the first year and then, in the third year of professional work. The theoretical frame of reference comprises a situated and social learning theory and a gender perspective. These theories were chosen since they elaborate on concepts such as identity, practice, participation and learning. The results indicate that becoming a professional is not an isolated phenomenon merely learned and nurtured in higher education and/or in working life. It is emphasised as a dynamic learning process between a reflective individual, the interaction with a professional practice as well as a relationship between other spheres of life, e.g. the personal and the private. The graduates’ professional trajectories can be characterised by a movement from appropriating new knowledge to a need to change direction, e.g. new work tasks or professional fields. This is also a process of professional identity formation. The graduates’ professional identity is emphasised as being both closely related to a gender identity and influenced by the individuals’ belonging to and participation in other practices. The results thus indicate that professional identity formation is an interplay between different spheres of life that changes over time. By using a longitudinal design, it can be claimed that becoming a professional requires balancing one’s whole life situation. / Syftet med avhandlingen är att beskriva akademikers bana mot att bli professionella då de kommer ut i arbetslivet med en magisterexamen i psykologi eller statsvetenskap. Avhandlingen baserar sig på en longitudinell studie där statsvetare och psykologer har blivit intervjuade vid tre olika tillfällen; sista terminen innan examen samt efter första och tredje året i arbetslivet. Den teoretiska referensramen utgörs av begrepp från situerat och social lärteori samt från ett genusperspektiv. Dessa teorier valdes då de fokuserar på begreppen identitet, praktik, deltagande och lärande.Resultaten visar att utvecklingen mot att bli professionell inte är ett isolerat fenomen förvärvat och underhållet i högre utbildning och/eller arbetslivet. Det uttrycks snarare som en dynamisk lärprocess mellan en reflekterande individ, interaktion med en professionell praktik samt med olika sfärer i livet, den professionella, den personliga och den privata. Akademikernas professionella bana kan karakteriseras som en rörelse mellan att utveckla ny kunskap och göra den till sin, till ett behov av förändring i form av nya arbetsuppgifter eller byte av professionellt fält. Att bli professionell innebär även en utveckling av en professionell identitet. Statsvetarnas och psykologernas professionella identitet skapas i relation till en genusidentitet och är influerad av individernas tillhörighet och medverkan i olika praktiker. Resultatet visar därför utveckling av professionell identitet som ett samspel mellan olika sfärer i livet som är föränderligt över tid. Utifrån den utförda longitudinella studien är det möjligt att hävda att utvecklingen mot att bli professionell är ett sätt att skapa ett samspel och balans i individens livssituation.

Att behålla sin anställningsbarhet genom hela livet blir allt viktigare i dagens föränderliga arbetsmarknad. De ökande krav som läggs på individen gällande anställningsbarhet kan vara en anledning till att antalet studenter på Sveriges högskolor stadigt ökar. Men frågan är hur viktigt anställbarhet är för studenters studiemotivation. Motivation delas i huvudsak in i två kategorier, inre och yttre motivation (Deci & Ryan, 2000). I en mer detaljerad indelning skiljer man på sex motivationsfaktorer; to know, toward accomplishment, to experience stimulation samt identified, introjected och external regulation (Vallerand m.fl, 1993). Syftet med denna studie var att undersöka vilka motivationsfaktorer som påverkar en individs val att börja studera på högskola. Vi har även undersökt om motivationen ser annorlunda ut beroende på respondenterna kön och ålder. Empirin samlades in via en webbenkät som var baserad på Academic Motivation Scale (Vallerand m.fl, 1992), där deltagarna fick skatta till vilken grad de ansåg att respektive påstående motiverat dem i valet att börja studera. Även om marginalerna var små så visade vårt resultat att yttre motivationsfaktorer hade störst påverkan på valet att studera. Identified var den motivationsvariabeln som fick högst värde vilket innebär att man gör någonting för att man har bestämt det, även fast det inte är kul. Att man istället ser handlingen som en nödvändighet eller för att man tror att man kan ha nytta av det i framtiden. Vi fann inga signifikanta skillnader mellan könen. Dock visade vår analys att de fanns signifikanta skillnader i motivationen, men dessa hängde samman med respondenternas ålder. / Maintaining one’s employability throughout their lives is becoming increasingly important in today's labor market, which is in constant change. The increasing demands placed on the individual regarding one´s employability can be a reason why the number of students at Swedish colleges is steadily increasing. But the question is how important is the factor employability for students' student motivation. Motivation can be divided into two categories, internal and external motivation (Deci & Ryan, 2000). In a more detailed division, six motivational factors are distinguished; to know, toward accomplishment, to experience stimulation as well as identified, introjected and external regulation (Vallerand et al., 1992). The purpose of this study was to investigate which motivational factors affect an individual's choice to study at college. We have also investigated whether the motivation appears different depending on the respondents' gender and age. The empirical data was collected via a web survey that was based on Academic Motivation Scale (Vallerand et al., 1992), where the participants estimated in what extent they considered each claim to have motivated them in their choice to start studying. Even though the margin was small our result showed that external motivational factors had the greatest impact on the choice to study. Identified was the motivational variable ranked highest, which means to do something because one has decided to do it although it is not fun. That the activity is seen as necessary or because one believes that doing an activity will be useful in future. We found no significant differences between the sexes. However, our analysis showed that there were significant differences in motivation, but these were related to the respondents' age.

<p>Denna studies syfte var att följa upp examinerade beteendevetare från Mittuniversitetet med fokus på vilka arbetsmöjligheter utbildningen hade gett dessa. Avgränsning gjordes till områdena etableringsgrad, lönenivå, andel med kvalificerad befattning (till utbildningsnivå och arbetsområde) samt tillfredställelse i förvärvsarbetet. I studien ingick samtliga vilka hade tagit ut sin examen från utbildningen. I dessa ingick båda examensformerna – kandidatexamen och magisterexamen. Till respondenterna skickades en enkät med frågor av kvantitativ art. Data från dessa analyserades deskriptivt och ställdes mot beteendevetare i liknande studier. Även signifikanstester användes för att analysera orsaker till tillfredställelse. Resultatet visade att respondenterna har en hög etableringsgrad. Andelen med kvalificerade yrken är dock inte jämförelsevis hög. Likaså är respondenternas lön något lägre än för övriga beteendevetares. Respondenternas tillfredställelse i arbetet var relativt låg vilket kan antas ha påverkats av användningen av utbildningen i arbetet, om arbetet motsvarade utbildningen samt lönenivån.</p>

Denna studies syfte var att följa upp examinerade beteendevetare från Mittuniversitetet med fokus på vilka arbetsmöjligheter utbildningen hade gett dessa. Avgränsning gjordes till områdena etableringsgrad, lönenivå, andel med kvalificerad befattning (till utbildningsnivå och arbetsområde) samt tillfredställelse i förvärvsarbetet. I studien ingick samtliga vilka hade tagit ut sin examen från utbildningen. I dessa ingick båda examensformerna – kandidatexamen och magisterexamen. Till respondenterna skickades en enkät med frågor av kvantitativ art. Data från dessa analyserades deskriptivt och ställdes mot beteendevetare i liknande studier. Även signifikanstester användes för att analysera orsaker till tillfredställelse. Resultatet visade att respondenterna har en hög etableringsgrad. Andelen med kvalificerade yrken är dock inte jämförelsevis hög. Likaså är respondenternas lön något lägre än för övriga beteendevetares. Respondenternas tillfredställelse i arbetet var relativt låg vilket kan antas ha påverkats av användningen av utbildningen i arbetet, om arbetet motsvarade utbildningen samt lönenivån.

Over the course of the last few decades, work-life has changed and now includes a higher degree of instability and insecurity. This thesis takes this change as its starting point, aiming to understand the ways in which individuals manage involuntary work-life transitions at the workplace, in terms of learning. The study has a longitudinal focus, based on interviews of twelve people who used to work at the same plant. Seven of the interviewees were laid off during the financial crisis of 2008, five of them were not laid off, but continued their employment throughout the crisis. Theoretically, the approach is a combination of a pragmatic learning perspective, through which learning is seen as a kind of problem-solving activity, and a narrative perspective that provides tools with which to view stories as carriers of meaning. The results show that insecurity is accepted by many as a non-negotiable part of work-life. Work-life is in many aspects affected by market globalisation the discourse of employability, where the individual bears the responsibility for their personal work-life. By preparing as best they can to be financially, socially and employability-wise well equipped, the interviewees do what they can to minimize the negative effects of the bad times that are bound to come at some point. Across time, many of the interviewees are moving between different approaches to dealing with the insecurity of work-life. In the process of making meaningful strategic choices, they are involved in learning. Experience and future plans play a role in which choices are made, and thereby also form the route that is constructed by each individual as they navigate between different points in their work-life. The final discussion aims at pointing out the effects an insecure work-life impose on people. People tell stories of acceptance towards the instability of work-life, not because they find work-life satisfying or well-functioning, but because they need to. In order to match the qualifications of an employable individual, they cannot oppose it. In doing so they would automatically define themselves as not so flexible, not so employable. This is a result of learning in work-life transitions.

The purpose of this study was to get an understanding of how young adults perform impression management and fake in the recruitment process. Previous research has shown that candidates in recruitment processes impression manage and fake. Therefore, the focus in this study was on the respondents’ reflections of their portrayal of themselves in order to prove themselves employable. The empirical material has been collected through seven qualitative semi-structured interviews with young adults and has been analyzed with the help of Erving Goffman's (1959) dramaturgical theory. The study shows that both impression management and faking occur, but none of the respondents admit that they actually fake. Instead, they use words like embellish to describe their behavior. Furthermore, the study shows that whether individuals manage impressions and fake depends on the recruitment situation itself. It is therefore a socially constructed phenomenon that takes place in the meeting between recruiter and candidate, where even group interviews, as an alternative social context, can have a great impact on the individuals and their presentation of themselves. / Syftet med denna studie har varit att få en förståelse för hur unga vuxna intrycksstyr och fejkar i rekryteringssammanhang. Tidigare forskning har visat att kandidater i rekryteringsprocesser intrycksstyr och fejkar. Intresset för denna studie har därför varit att undersöka unga vuxnas reflektioner av sina egna självporträtteringar för att visa sig som anställningsbara. Det empiriska materialet har samlats in genom sju kvalitativa semistrukturerade intervjuer och har sedan analyserats med hjälp av Erving Goffmans (1959) dramaturgiska perspektiv. Studien visar att både intrycksstyrning och fejking ofta förekommer, samtidigt som respondenterna helst inte vill medge att de faktiskt har fejkat. Istället beskriver de hellre sitt beteende som att de har förskönat sina egenskaper. Vidare visar studien på att huruvida individer intrycksstyr och fejkar beror på rekryteringssituationen i sig. Det är därmed en socialt konstruerad process som sker i mötet mellan rekryterare och kandidat där även gruppintervjuer kan ha stor påverkan på individen och dess presentation av sig själv i sammanhanget.

AbstractThe purpose of this study is to illustrate how Work-based Learning (WBL) is handled in Special Education High Schools. With this purpose in mind, four questions have been formulated and they focus on what proportion of the total amount of high school students in the Special Education High School National Program who is completing their WBL according to governmental regulations, what challenges the WBL managers experience in working with WBL, what reasons the WBL managers see as decisive for students not completing their WBL and what benefits the WBL managers see with WBL. To answer the study’s purpose and questions, a survey was conducted, where we looked for respondents on a nationwide level. Data from the survey was analyzed with the help of a theoretical basis that we chose. This theory was based on three different perspectives on special education; the compensatory, the critical and the dilemma perspective by Nilholm (2007). A total of 127 respondents were included in the study and there were respondents from all three parts of Sweden; Norrland, Svealand and Götaland. The majority of respondents work as vocational teachers, Special Ed teachers working with the developmentally disabled and high school level teachers. The results showed that compulsory WBL education is an important part of the Special Education High School National Program, but at the same time difficult to implement due to lack of time, lack of internships and students’ individual abilities to complete a WBL. / SammanfattningSyftet med denna studie är att belysa hur styrdokumentens krav när det gäller arbetsplatsförlagt lärande (APL) hanteras i gymnasiesärskolan. Kopplat till syftet har fyra frågeställningar formulerats och de fokuserar på hur stor andel av det totala elevantalet på gymnasiesärskolans nationella program som genomför sin APL enligt styrdokumentens krav i dagsläget, vilka utmaningar de APL-ansvariga upplever sig möta i arbetet med APL, vilka orsaker de APL-ansvariga ser som avgörande för att eleven inte genomför sin APL, vilken nytta de APL-ansvariga ser med APL. För att besvara studiens syfte och frågeställningar genomfördes en enkätundersökning, där vi sökte efter informanter på ett rikstäckande plan. Data från enkäten analyserades med hjälp av en av oss vald teoretisk utgångspunkt. Denna teori utgick från tre olika perspektiv på specialpedagogik; det kompensatoriska, det kritiska och dilemmaperspektivet av Nilholm (2007).  Det var sammanlagt 127 informanter som ingick i enkätstudien och det fanns informanter hemmahörande från alla tre landsdelar i Sverige, Norrland, Svealand och Götaland. Majoriteten av informanterna arbetar som yrkeslärare, speciallärare mot utvecklingsstörning och ämneslärare på gymnasienivå. Resultatet visade att den obligatoriska APL utbildningen är en viktig del av ett nationellt program i gymnasiesärskolan, men den är samtidigt svår att genomföra på grund av tidsbrist för uppdraget, brist på APL-platser och elevernas individuella förutsättningar att klara av en APL.

Employable humanists. A qualitative study on humanist students' views on employability. The crisis of the humanities is a controversial debate in the media and within academic settings. Because of lack of request for humanists in the labor market, the question of humanistic skills and employability is becoming increasingly important. The concept of employability importance not only echoes within the economic discussions, but also on everyday agenda in the academic world and takes a large part in the communication between the university and the students. It is therefore important to get answers to the question whether there is conformity in the interpretation of this concept between the university and the students. The aim of this desk study is to examine how the concept of employability has its significance in the academic communication and how the responsibility for employability is portrayed. This is done by studying how the concept of employability is formed and how the responsibilities outlined in texts from Career Center at the University of Umeå, and by comparing study results with the students' perceptions of the concept of employability and responsibility. The study has a qualitative disposition and consists of two main methods: qualitative interviews with focus groups to explore students' views, and critical linguistic analysis of texts with a focus on metaphor analysis and syntax analysis which are also supplemented by the multimodal text analysis. Results of this study indicate that the concept of employability takes a central part of the university’s communication. There are many common starting points in the interpretation of the concept and the responsibility between the university and students. Both the Career Center at Umeå University and students believe that actual knowledge, skills, experience as well as network forms the meaning of the concept of employability, and has a big importance in the student’s position on the job market. However, because the students look at the use of the concept of employability in the texts as acceptance to the social ideological perception of the individual as objects, there is some criticism of the use of the term employability in the university’s communications.