Critical evaluation of employers’ contributions on curriculum development
There are a number of concerns regarding the need for change in property courses. Due to the changing environment in which the property sector operates and the expectations of property professionals, property courses must be re-designed and re-developed in order to meet market needs. The increasing emphasis on the need to include the development of students’ skills as part of these courses as well as the importance of considering course design and delivery methods in order to ensure constructive alignment between learning outcomes, assessment and teaching and learning activities are also areas of concern. The development of a successful curriculum requires an input from a variety of stakeholders such as employers, students, curriculum experts and professional organisations. Employers are very important stakeholders as only they play a key part in providing students with the kind of practical experience that will enhance their employability; however, they have expressed their dissatisfaction with the commercial awareness of their graduate employees (see Section 3). Therefore, it is vital for employers to be able to offer students the opportunity to gain practical experience, as this is essential to them if they are to embark on a career in the property sector. However, previous research has found that employers in the property sector have an unrealistically high expectation of graduates’ competency and employability skills (Poon, 2012). In the same study, it was also reported that real estate course directors in the UK had commented that if employers in the property sector were more proactive in offering opportunities for students to gain practical experience, such as placements or internships, this would be very beneficial to the students’ employability.