Stay up to date with our work
Our monthly updates are a great way for you to stay up to date with our work, events, and higher education news.
This is a past event from 18 - 19 May 2022, 9:30am - 5:30pm (BST)
They are unavailable to book
The focus and challenge for universities to equip students with the skills, experience and adaptability to enter a rapidly-changing workforce have never been so heightened.
Join us online on 18 - 19 May to explore how universities can align with economic and social recovery and the Levelling Up agenda, the future of careers services, engaging with employers and much more.
We are delighted to announce that Professor Chris Day, Vice-Chancellor and President, Newcastle University and Professor Malcolm Press CBE, Vice-Chancellor, Manchester Metropolitan University will be chairing the conference.
Further speakers include:
Kelly Nicholls, CEO, TechSkills
Michael Wood, Head of Health Economic Partnerships, NHS Confederation and NHS London Anchor Strategy Advisor, NHSEI London Region
Martin Edmondson, CEO, Gradcore
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Why should you attend?
Alongside informative, timely content from the most pertinent speakers on the topic, we will also be providing a wide range of opportunities to network, discuss, and make connections with colleagues within the sector.
You will also be able to access the recordings of all sessions after the event, including any sessions which you were unable to attend live.
Testimonials from last year's conference:
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
If you have any questions about this or any other of our events, please contact us at events@universitiesuk.ac.uk or 07500 441505.
We allow delegates to cancel their bookings up to one month before the event and receive a refund. If this applies to you, please contact us at the email or phone number above.
If you want to stay up to date with our events, news and publications, you can sign up for our newsletters here.
Professor Chris Day, Vice-Chancellor and President, Newcastle University
Professor Bryan will speak about key recommendations and findings from Yorkshire Universities' upcoming report ‘Supporting Graduate Employment and Employability in Yorkshire’.
With a backdrop of a government prioritising the ‘levelling up agenda’, this session will bring in different perspectives on how universities can work in partnership with industry to respond and contribute to the UK’s overall economic and social recovery.
Since the workplace environment has significantly changed, what are the opportunities and barriers for students entering the world of work? What flexibility is required from careers services and employers to adapt to the changing economy and how will this be reflected in wider and long-term strategies?
Professor Chris Day, Vice-Chancellor and President, Newcastle University
Hosted by: Myles Hanlon, Policy Researcher, Universities UK
In this networking session, you can meet colleagues and swap best practices and solutions to sector-wide challenges. This discussion will focus on support for students from widening participation backgrounds. Bring your drink of choice, turn your camera and microphone on and get settled in for a lively discussion.
In this session, we will hear why universities should be supporting more student entrepreneurs and the benefits of placing a greater emphasis on teaching entrepreneurship. Discussion will include best practice, barriers to students beginning entrepreneurial journeys, and engaging SMEs in placement opportunities.
This session will introduce some of the work being trailblazed by regional areas to create Local Skills Improvement Plans (LSIP) and Skills Advisory Panels and discuss how universities can engage with these.
This session outlines the context for higher technical education and some examples of how universities are engaging with it. With a government so focused on ‘levelling up’, can higher technical education and degree apprenticeships be a key way to contribute to this agenda?
Lifelong learning is key to a flexible, changing economy where workforce skills cannot keep up with business needs and employer demands. In this session, we will hear from key contributors to the lifelong learning strategy and the role of universities. We will also hear about recent developments in the lifelong learning loan entitlement and how this could be a positive step for mature learners to access a flexible and modular education.
Host: Sarah Bevan, Policy Manager, Universities UK
In this networking session, you can meet colleagues and swap best practices and solutions to sector-wide challenges. This discussion will focus on relating employability and sustainability. Bring your drink of choice, turn your camera and microphone on, and get settled in for a lively discussion.
Professor Malcolm Press CBE, Vice-Chancellor, Manchester Metropolitan University
Stephen Isherwood, Chief Executive, Institute of Student Employers (ISE)
The debate about the value of graduates continues and this session will present the latest findings on ‘myth-busting’ the state of graduate employment, as well as discuss different perspectives on the current state of the student employment landscape.
This session will showcase findings and recommendations from different careers support research. The discussion will focus on inequalities in the labour market that affect students from underrepresented backgrounds and opportunities for students that can help combat this.
This session is dedicated to how university and employer collaborations are key to meeting future skills needs. We will hear from different industries about how they work with universities to embed employer needs into the curriculum to develop graduates to meet future demands.
Professor Malcolm Press CBE, Vice-Chancellor, Manchester Metropolitan University
Professor Day is also currently a member of the Universities UK Board and North East Local Enterprise Partnership Board.
Prior to joining Handshake, Clare spent over a decade in a variety of roles across careers and student services in HE and FE.
Greg has spent most of his career working as a policy civil servant, and has worked on a range of education policy.
Kelly’s vision is for TechSkills toplay an integral role in creating pathways to digital careers and providing the industry with the talent they desperately need.
Malcolm is also a Trustee of the British Council and UCAS, and a Board member of Universities UK and the Institute for Apprenticeships & Technical Education.
Martin has 20+ years’ experience working across graduate recruitment and higher education. His work includes running global graduate schemes for employers, delivering employability performance improvement in universities, and working with local government on graduate utilisation.
Michael has also worked as a deputy local growth consultant for the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE).
At Social Market Foundation, Niamh has worked on projects pertaining to Net Zero as well as education and skills.
Rajay is CEO of Skilled Education, which designs, markets and delivers employment focussed microcredentials and degrees for leading partners including the University of Cambridge, LSE, UWE Bristol, NHS and UK government.
Stephen was appointed Chief Executive of the ISE in June 2013 following seven years as Head of Graduate Recruitment UK & Ireland at EY.
This conference will be useful for all university staff who have responsibility for or play a part in student and graduate employability or skills development. Possible titles are suggested below, but we encourage anyone interested in the topic to attend:
We have a range of sponsorship opportunities available for this conference.
Please contact Jess Jackson, Marketing and Sponsorships Officer, for more information: jess.jackson@universitiesuk.ac.uk
Our monthly updates are a great way for you to stay up to date with our work, events, and higher education news.