Just over 10 years ago, the Ontario government passed legislation that resulted in baccalaureate degree-granting status for provincial community colleges. Since this fundamental shift in college credential delivery, the numbers of programs, students and graduates have continued to grow, and are expected to continue to do so. While employers were not an obvious driver behind this shift, understanding their expectations and perceptions as they pertain to these degree programs and graduates is critical for Ontario colleges and students. This research involved interviews with Greater Toronto Area employers who have hired college degree graduates. The interviews demonstrated that, while there is still a general lack of knowledge about college degrees, employers find value in the programs and essentially envision themselves as partners who can play a greater role in future program development and ongoing review. This includes having an impact on curriculum, graduate expectations, work experience opportunities and identifying skill gaps.

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The purpose of this research study was to examine how chefs and other individuals in the food industry understood the field of culinary arts. This study used an instrumental case study with purposeful sampling of multiple cases. Through a series of open-ended interviews using snowball-sampling strategy that concluded with 45 participants sharing their experiences in culinary education and employment, several themes emerged across all of the interviews: (1) Disempowerment of those who have been successful in the culinary arts; (2) Conflict in the field; and, (3) Needs of employers not being met. Following the analysis of the data, two research questions were inductively formed: (1) How do the participants' understandings vary based upon the three models (apprenticeship, associate degree, and baccalaureate degree) of culinary education? (2) How do these themes vary depending upon the three models of culinary education? What resulted was thick description of the impact of the three models of formal chef education has had on the field of culinary arts, followed by the potential in the development of the baccalaureate degree model as it represented an opportunity for field redefinition in culinary arts. This study produced a set of data revealing that current culinary education has become one that has bred disempowerment, continued conflict in the field of culinary arts, and left needs unfullfilled related to technical skills required for successful employment. The shift from the time-consuming and expensive model of apprenticeship to the development of the associate degree has necessitated a reconsideration of culinary education. What has been offered in this research is the potential for a transformation facilitated within a baccalaureate degree that could intertwine both technical skills and academic knowledge.

Employment issues in South Africa (SA) are a significant problem. There are ongoing discussions revolving around the employability challenges facing South African graduates, particularly in the Information Technology (IT) sector. The preparedness of these IT graduates has been questioned with many looking towards skill sets and employability status while others have scrutinised the validity of the IT curriculum meeting industry needs. The research focuses on a case study of graduates from an accredited, private higher education institution in SA. The study followed a qualitative approach using questionnaires and interviews to understand the experiences of employers, employed graduates and recruitment personnel upon employment of the graduates. This study investigated, determined and confirmed recommendations to adapt the South African higher education IT curriculum to improve the productivity of IT graduates upon employment. / School of Computing / M. Sc. (Computing)

The purpose of this study was to investigate the knowledge, skills, abilities and traits environmental engineers need. Two questions were asked: what skills are considered important, and where are they learned? Dreyfus and Dreyfus' novice-to-expert model, which describes a progressive, five-step process of skill development that occurs over time on the job and through practical application, was used to frame this study. This study extended prior research by including data on professional skills and seeking the input of working professionals: in this case, the technical staff at the California Department of Toxic Substances Control. Quantitative methodology and descriptive statistics were used for data collection and analysis. Results showed that experienced professionals agree that professional or soft skills are essential are essential in the workplace Many technical skills are learned over time, through practice and meaningful application on the job that builds on principles learned through formal training. Professional skills are developed through a combination of formal training and experiential learning from work, or through life experiences. The implications for higher education are twofold. Environmental engineering programs would benefit by integrating professional skills development with existing curricula, and by giving students opportunities to develop experiential knowledge in the workplace. Results indicated that environmental engineering professionals with higher levels of education and more experience believed that science and mathematics were most appropriately learned in school, while engineering, skills in technology and other technical areas were best developed through a combination of formal education with experiential learning. The more experienced people also believed that life experiences, rather than work or school, were the best way to develop professional skills. These findings confirm the Dreyfus & Dreyfus model, which indicates that individuals move from novice to expert based on experience. Environmental engineers would benefit through continuing education and in-service training. Collaborative initiatives between higher education and practitioners in environmental engineering may prove mutually effective and beneficial to students, workers, educational institutions and employers.