Graduate Expectations and Experiences

Non-traditional ways of achieving a business qualification are becoming more common and popular internationally. A joint delivery model including full credit between two higher education institutions, a vocational-based polytechnic and a traditional university, shows the strong foundations that can be built to assist a diverse student group moving into higher levels of study.

This project collated information from a number of data sources to produce a demographic profile of students who have enrolled in the New Zealand Diploma in Business programme at Bay of Plenty Polytechnic between 2008 and 2013 and compare their intentions at that time with their actual destinations on graduation, particularly further study or employment.

A representative sample of graduates (2009-2014) from the New Zealand Diploma in Business who then progressed to a business or management degree with a partner university were surveyed to gauge their expectations and experiences of both study environments.

In particular the survey focused on how the diploma programme assists the students in transitioning from a vocational-based introductory programme to an academic business degree. Their employment outcomes were then compared to their initial enrolment expectations and key contributors to success were identified.

The report describes the findings from the study and discusses the implications for those who are managing and teaching the qualifications at both levels to ensure that the quality of the student experience is enhanced and teaching and learning delivery options are aligned to the needs and expectations of the learners.

Overall the majority of participants were highly satisfied with the learning foundation that they built as a result of transitioning from a diploma programme into a fully-fledged university environment.