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Background
In the past 60 years, participation in post-secondary education has increased dramatically. Prior to the Second World War, post-secondary education was constrained to the societal elite that possessed the required economic capacity ([90] Sutherland, 2008). However, following the Second World War, a combination of public policy and demographic shifts saw post-secondary education expand considerably in developed countries. For example, the number of degree granting post-secondary institutions in Canada expanded from 28 to 87 between 1918 and 2009 ([42] Harris, 1976; [84] Scott, 2006). Recently in Canada, undergraduate student enrolment has increased at a rate of approximately 3.1 per cent per annum, while graduate student enrolment has seen an even faster rate of growth (approximately 5 per cent since 2000; [88] Statistics Canada, 2009). This increased enrolment has resulted in a significant increase in the number of credentials granted by these post-secondary institutions. By 2009, over 60 per cent of the working-age population in Canada held post-secondary education qualifications ([20] Canadian Council on Learning, 2009).
Despite the increasing participation rate in post-secondary education, not all university graduates obtain jobs that fully harness their skills and credentials. In fact, evidence suggests that one out of every five university graduates is overqualified for their job, working in a position that only requires a high school education ([56] Li et al. , 2006). In addition, labour market surveys indicate that the proportion of overqualified university-educated workers has been increasing over time ([56] Li et al. , 2006).
One primary way to improve labour market outcomes for new university graduates is to ensure they have employability skills. Indeed, [97] Wickramasinghe and Perera (2010) contend that these employability skills are critical for economic and social development. Moreover, from an employer's perspective, an educated and skilled workforce is vital to sustain a competitive advantage in the market ([58] Lin et al. , 2012; [11] Batra, 2010; [46] Hitt et al. , 2001).
Increasing our understanding of factors that influence undergraduate university students' successful transition into the labour market is critical, both to reduce the proportion of new graduates who are overqualified for their jobs, and to ensure that employers can recruit graduates who have the skills their organisations need to succeed in the twenty-first century knowledge-based economy. In a recent survey...