eSTEeM Seminar Series: Scholarship Showcase - April 2026

Postgraduate project management: interventions in module tuition and assessment to support employability skills development

Kay Bromley, Joan Jackson, Jill Shaw, Mark Slaymaker

M815 Project management module team have embedded employability skills development within the module assessment. However, anecdotally it appears only some students recognise this in their reflective writing. Technical and behavioural competences relevant to the module have been developed based on PM professional body and other competence frameworks. Student perception has been investigated through a questionnaire and evidence of employability skills and competence development examined through thematic analysis of reflection in assessment. Support for development of reflection, a key transferable and employability skills has been enhanced in the module through a targeted module wide tutorial. Behavioural and technical competences have been highlighted in module assessment. Findings related to the technical competences will help to inform future module material updating.

Confidence Matters: Self-Efficacy in STEM Modules

Sam Johnson

The session will look at student’s self-confidence, also known as self-efficacy, and the impact it can have on student’s persistence and success. We will discuss research that quantified student’s self-reported self-efficacy levels on two level one STEM modules, tracking how self-efficacy changed over the module timeline. We will also look at the factors that students report affected their self-efficacy, and whether lower self-efficacy correlated with lower retention rate, and whether this is comparable across presentations and modules. We will then look at the effect of a targeted intervention aiming to increase self-efficacy within the modules.

Registration

This event is open to OU staff, please visit the registration form to register.