Labour-market orientation and approaches to studying–a study of the first Bologna Students at a Swedish Regional University

Abstract

This study investigated labour-market orientations of students at a Swedish University with a dual/diverse focus on vocational/academic objectives. The aim was to investigate whether and how levels of students' labour-market orientation vary with social background, change during the study period, and are related to approaches to studying and achievements. The design was a multiple panel time-series study. Labour-market orientation was studied on the basis of locally designed questionnaires. Approaches to studying were analysed deductively in accordance with dimensions previously found by Study Process Questionnaires and inductively using a principal component analysis. Results suggest that labour-market orientations co-varied to a higher degree with the study programme than with social background. Contrary to what was hypothesized, being labour-market oriented was only moderately related to surface-oriented approaches to studying. It is suggested that future research should pay more attention to disciplinary traditions and local teacher and programme cultures in understanding developmental paths in labour-market orientation.