Teaching and Learning

Employability, Enterprise and Entrepreneurship in Higher Education

The ‘3Es’ of Employability, Enterprise and Entrepreneurship are core to higher education. Through the 3Es we can help ensure that all students have the skills and knowledge they need to succeed. This will benefit them, the economy and their communities.

Institutions are under increasing pressure from government and regulators to develop workforces that contribute to economic ambitions and promote social mobility. This, alongside, increasing student expectations of strong employment outcomes means embedding employability, enterprise and entrepreneurship into higher education has never been more important.

To be addressed effectively, employability, enterprise and entrepreneurship should be embedded into all learning and teaching policies, processes and practices and considered throughout the student lifecycle, from the very start of a student programme through to the completion of their studies. Graduates should be equipped to make successful transitions not just on graduation but throughout their life, and to manage their careers effectively.
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We can help you:

  • Prioritise areas: Identify any gaps across the provision that would benefit from initiatives specifically designed to enhance employability and enterprise and entrepreneurship education.
  • Design Interventions: Implement evidence-based strategies and practices to maximise impact across your employability, enterprise and entrepreneurship provision.
  • Measure Impact: Use a variety of agreed metrics to evaluate the success of initiatives, fostering continuous improvement and reflection.
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Framework for Embedding Employability

The framework aims to engage and support a broad spectrum of stakeholders involved in fostering employability, including those responsible for developing and implementing policies, designing curricula, providing student support, and enhancing learning and teaching practices. 

It serves as a guiding tool to integrate employability principles seamlessly into the overall higher education ecosystem, ensuring that students graduate with the knowledge, skills, and experiences necessary to thrive in the ever-evolving world.

 Access the Framework
Employability Framework
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Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Framework

Framework for Enterprise and Entrepreneurship Education

This framework is designed to inform and support the activities of those educators who interact with students through the development and delivery of enterprise and entrepreneurship curriculum and/or extracurricular activities. 

It will be of use to senior managers with responsibility for enterprise, employability and external engagement, as well as staff involved with supporting the development of businesses and social enterprises through executive education programmes and innovation-led enterprise support initiatives.

 Access the Framework
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Explore our latest reports and publications on employability, enterprise and entrepreneurship

Harnessing AI to Enhance Employability - A Screencast Series

Through this work, we will bring advice and perspectives from those working outside of HE on how AI is changing the world of employability, enterprise and entrepreneurship. These changes are happening now, and this work has the focus of helping your institution understand, make sense of and respond to the implications for your graduates.

Strengthening the student experience: Distilling the 3 Es

This is the sixth annual Advance HE Employability Case Study Compendium, with this year's edition focusing on strengthening the student experience through employability education. 

Students becoming graduates: The role of industry placements

Led by Northumbria University in collaboration with the University of Liverpool and the University of Manchester, the research examined the role of industry placements for UK Business students, within the context of widening participation, in becoming successful graduates.

Lighting the Labyrinth: enhancing student success through the 3Es

Case studies are brought together from across the higher education sector to answer how HE institutions can 'navigate the labyrinth of how to support students in the development of enterprise, entrepreneurship and employability skills'.

A Case Study Compendium: Contemporary practices and initiatives in employability

Editors Stuart Norton and Maria Romero-González bring together case studies from across higher education looking at contemporary practices and initiatives to develop students' employability.

Embedding enterprise and entrepreneurship in higher education: An Advance HE case study collection

This is the second case study collection to be produced from the enterprise and entrepreneurship collaborative projects and concludes the current series through which we have explored how to embed enterprise and entrepreneurship education within a range of different academic disciplines.

Adding value through enterprise and entrepreneurship education in higher education

This collection of case studies from project participants explore how to embed enterprise and entrepreneurship education within a range of different academic disciplines. 

Employability: a review of the literature 2016-2021

This literature review aims to identify specific impact and evidence in relation to embedding employability within higher education since the most recent Advance HE literature review from 2016.

Access more employability, enterprise and entrepreneurship resources in our Knowledge Hub

 Access more resources
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Latest blogs
Seven hands around a table each holding a jigsaw piece

Developing an attributes and skills framework

Professor John Barrow, University of Aberdeen - 16 September 2024
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Yaw Afari and Robert Crawford

Advancing academic practice through ABC themes for enterprising education and business engagement

Dr Yaw Afari and Dr Robert Crammond, University of the West of Scotland - 13 March 2024
Read more
A graduate in science working in a laboratory wearing a white coat, safety glasses and protective gloves

Evidencing the impact of authentic assessment in graduate employability

Dr Maria Romero-Gonzalez, Queen Mary University of London - 21 February 2024
Read more
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Professional Development Opportunities

Our portfolio will help you build or refresh your pedagogy throughout your career. Below you will find our upcoming development opportunities linked to employability, enterprise and entrepreneurship:

Employability Symposium 2026

10 March 2026

Don't miss your chance to present your impactful initiatives.

Following on from previous successful symposia, this year’s Employability Symposium will continue to provide attendees with an open and supportive environment to discuss contemporary practices and share successful or unsuccessful initiatives in employability. This symposium offers the chance for colleagues to discover new practices, challenge others to progress, and discuss insights into employability in higher education.

 Find out more
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Teaching and Learning Conference 2026
30 June – 2 July 2025
TBC
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Meet our experts

Stuart Norton, PFHEA

Head of Educational Excellence
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Advance HE
Stuart Norton
Stuart has over 20 years’ experience within higher education with extensive experience in designing and developing strategic, institutional-wide change. In his role as Head of Educational Excellence at Advance HE, he focuses on both thought leadership and providing evidence-based solutions to support institutions, educators and students.
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Professor Mark O'Hara

Senior Consultant, Education
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Advance HE
Mark O'Hara 2024
Professor Mark O’Hara is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy, a National Teaching Fellow and a winner of the Collaborative Award for Teaching Excellence in the UK. Mark is a former Chair of the UK’s CATE-Network and has over 30 years’ experience leading educational change in a wide variety of roles including undergraduate and postgraduate programme leadership, Head of Student Experience, Associate Dean for Learning, Teaching and Academic Quality and Associate PVC (Education).
Read more
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Speak to one of our employability, enterprise and entrepreneurship experts

We support institutions to design and deliver transformational and sustainable strategies that enhance student employability, foster enterprise skills, and embed entrepreneurship in higher education. Our experts can help you develop innovative approaches that prepare students for success in a rapidly changing world of work, while building institutional capacity and capability to improve outcomes.


If you are interested in commissioning consultancy support or would like to discuss how our expert team can work with you, please complete the form below.


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