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oai:figshare.com:article/34022346 2026-09-29T09:43:00Z category_26122 category_25402 portal_947 item_type_13 month_year_09_2026

An Educator's Guide to Constructing Employable Identities Behnam Soltani (14553536) Keng Wee Kenneth Ong (10759632) Education policy Employment equity and diversity Graduate Employability Graduate Identities Systemic Identity Negititaion Model (SINM) Systems Capital Career Development Professional Communication <p dir="ltr"><b>An Educator’s Guide to Constructing Employable Identities</b> is a practical and research-informed book that helps educators support learners in developing not only the skills required for work, but also the identities needed to navigate increasingly complex professional environments. The book argues that employability is not simply about possessing competencies; it is about how learners construct, negotiate, and validate their identities through interactions with peers, educators, employers, and wider social systems.</p><p dir="ltr">Drawing on graduate identity research, forms of capital, workplace ideologies, and employability studies, the book introduces frameworks that help learners understand who they are, who they want to become, and how they can present themselves as credible professionals. It moves beyond traditional skills-based approaches by emphasizing identity construction, social positioning, and the relational nature of employability.</p><p dir="ltr">A distinctive feature of the book is its extensive collection of interactive workshops that translate theory into practice. These activities encourage learners to reflect on their academic, professional, and digital identities; manage how they are perceived by others; navigate workplace expectations; leverage different forms of capital; and envision future career selves. The workshops address themes such as claiming and disclaiming identities, affirming and disaffirming identities, workplace ideologies, systems capital, and professional communication. </p><p dir="ltr">The book also introduces the <b>Systemic Identity Negotiation Model (SINM)</b>, which conceptualizes employability as the ongoing interaction between identity, forms of capital, and workplace ideologies. Through this lens, learners are encouraged to develop the capacity to understand, navigate, and influence the systems in which their professional identities are judged and validated.</p><p dir="ltr">Designed for educators, career practitioners, trainers, and higher education professionals, the book concludes with strategic recommendations for institutions, employers, facilitators, and learners. Its central message is that employability is best understood as a process of becoming, one in which learners actively construct meaningful and credible professional identities throughout their educational and career journeys.</p> 2026-08-20T00:00:00Z Text Book 10.25447/sit.34022346.v1 https://figshare.com/articles/book/An_Educator_s_Guide_to_Constructing_Employable_Identities/34022346 In Copyright