ERIC Number: EJ1450288
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024-Dec
Pages: 13
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0141-8211
EISSN: EISSN-1465-3435
Available Date: N/A
The Importance of Graduates' Perceived Network Quality in Their Transition to Work: A Longitudinal Approach
European Journal of Education, v59 n4 e12786 2024
To navigate the labour market graduates turn to their social network for valuable resources. However, existing disparities in accessing and exerting network resources may result in more precarious transition outcomes for first-generation graduates. To gain deeper insight into how social networks facilitate the transition process, this study focuses on the network actors and resources that are perceived as valuable by graduates. Over a 4-month period commencing at graduation, 22 graduates, encompassing both first-generation and continuing-generation students, were bi-weekly tasked with mapping their social networks. Results show that graduates rely strongly on close contacts, making graduates dependent on the experience of their parents with a certain field of work, which often results in an implicit advantage for continuing-generation graduates. Moreover, higher education institutions fail to use their power to embed valuable institutional resources or network actors into graduates' networks after graduation, which creates limited opportunity structures, in particular, for first-generation graduates.
Descriptors: First Generation College Students, College Graduates, Social Networks, Social Support Groups, Parent Background, Education Work Relationship, Longitudinal Studies
Wiley. Available from: John Wiley & Sons, Inc. 111 River Street, Hoboken, NJ 07030. Tel: 800-835-6770; e-mail: cs-journals@wiley.com; Web site: https://www-wiley-com.bibliotheek.ehb.be/en-us
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A