Exploring the link between employer needs, employability and postgraduate module design in a contemporary mining education framework

Abstract

Lower metal prices since 2013 and the current global COVID-19 pandemic have resulted in reduced industry workforce numbers and started a discussion and review of the link between employer and workforce needs, graduate skill sets, and postgraduate module design in mining education. Relating student satisfaction and employability to contemporary teaching practices is a key factor, driving the current UK Teaching Excellency Framework (TEF). Geoscientific, project management, and operational logistics-related skill sets are reviewed and put into context with industry employability rates and strategies as well as researchinspired teaching philosophies in Geoscience Higher Education, and exemplified by a case study outlining the development of a new module on the MSc programme Exploration Geology at Camborne School of Mines, University of Exeter.