Integrating Career Development Learning with Work-Integrated Learning: A Multiple Case Study Advancing Education for Sustainable Development

Engaging in work-integrated learning (WIL) activities helps students develop critical skills, formulate their professional identities, and refine their career direction. Integrating career development learning (CDL) and WIL throughout a degree is a mechanism for fostering sustainability. This multiple case study explores individual and institutional practices that enable integration of CDL with WIL. Data include interviews with careers and WIL practitioners at seven institutions in three countries. The findings indicate that clear communication via policy guidance, across teams and through information systems, facilitates integration of CDL and WIL in the curriculum. Integrating CDL with WIL can make iterative WIL experiences accessible in contexts where students have lower access to workplace-based WIL. Integrated CDL and WIL can raise awareness and develop sustainability-related skills, such as ethical reasoning, diversity awareness, ability to work in interdisciplinary teams, and complex problem-solving. An example from practice explores how sustainability-focused CDL and WIL can embed the value of iterative WIL experiences while fostering sustainability. This study offers educators insights and models for raising graduate awareness of their capacity and agility to contribute to a more sustainable future.