The Transition from University Graduate to Employee

Abstract

The transition from graduate to employee is examined from the perspective of nineteen graduate recruits entering three diverse organisations - information services, financial services and a manufacturing industry. Natural field research methodology allowed the researcher to understand and interpret the subjective meanings events had for the graduates during their first year of employment. Participants were selected through purposive sampling incorporating the techniques of minimising and maximising differences between cases. Fieldwork involved combination of data gathering strategies: loosely structured, in-depth interviews conducted prior to participants beginning work and following 4,8 and 12 months of employment; diaries kept by participants for the year long duration of the study; and two self-report inventories, the Occupational Stress Inventory (Osipow & Spokane, 1987) and the Stress Diagnostic Survey (Ivancevich & Matteson, 1980), administered at 4 and 8 months of employment. Triangulation of methods, data sources and theory in conjunction with prolonged engagement with participants and analytic induction (Denzin, 1989) led to the construction of a set of explanatory themes. These themes revealed the nature of the transition from a 'graduate' experiencing alienation and ambiguity, to a 'worker' who believed they were relatively autonomous, involved in meaningful, productive activities, and who displayed political sophistication in the workplace. Case studies provide further insight into the transition process, highlighting the uniqueness of the adjustment experience.