Participation, reflection and integration for business and lifelong learning

This paper gives a succinct account of current debates in the literature on graduate attributes as they are related to employment and lifelong learning, and argues the limitations of a “key skills” agenda as a guide to curriculum practice. Development of a curricular innovation that addresses key skills, “integrative studies” at the Strathclyde University Business School, is described and located in a wider framework of work‐related facets that extend thinking beyond key skills. Those facets include the idea of a learning organisation and the concept of student identity formation. A research‐based approach to further development of the curriculum is outlined, which takes the experiences of students and the perceptions and practices of specific employers to be key influences.