Employability study of the graduates at the English Language and Literature School

Abstract

The purpose of this project was to evaluate the main factors that influence the employability of the graduates at the English Language and Literature School, University of Cuenca. The population of this study was constituted mainly by graduates working in educational areas, and a few unemployed graduates. The field research was conducted through a long survey, which was applied to 161 graduates who graduated between 2000 and 2013.The survey collected personal information of the professionals as well as data related to the knowledge acquired in the degree course and their labor situation among others. The data analysis techniques used were quantitative and qualitative analysis techniques. The study also examined the methods used by graduates to secure a job, the requirements by educational institutions,and causes for graduate unemployment as well asaspects of the English curriculum to improve. Some of the most important findings in this study were that more than half of the graduates have a high degree of satisfaction with their employment. In addition, it was found that 96.3% of graduates are working in their area of specialty. Consequently a large percentage ofteachersuse theknowledge acquired inthe University in their jobs. It is expected, therefore, that the information published in this research becomes an important resource for further studies.