Dr Roy Priest, Associate Professor at Birmingham City University (BCU), joined the Learner Success Community of Practice for a second session on Employability Ecosystems on 6 June 2025. In this session, Roy gave participants a more in-depth look at the informal networks that make up the Employability Ecosystems, including the industrial mentors initiative.

The initiative’s aim is to maximise the potential for ongoing informal communication between students and industry-based professionals.

It uses online forums facilitated by the university, providing a safe space for students and employers to connect with one another. This differs from other types of mentoring forums that connect a small group of four to five learners with one mentor. BCU’s forums share information with all learners in the programme.

Learners create and build networks through the forums. By engaging with recognisable and relatable role models and mentors, they learn more about how an industry works and what employment could look like in their current field study.

The forums keep the university’s relationships with industry partners alive, enriching practice-based learning. Employers report the forums help with graduate recruitment, and often employers suggest pieces of research the learners can conduct to inform their projects. The forums also sustain links with alumni, as mentored graduates often return as mentors.

Roy will be back later in the year to talk about changing the culture within academic teams and faculty, to support embedding employability into the curriculum.

Watch Dr Roy Priest’s Learner Success Community of Practice sessions.

Learner Success Community of Practice sessions

The Tertiary Education Commission hosts online Community of Practice sessions in partnership with the tertiary sector. The aim is to connect tertiary education organisations to share knowledge, collaborate, and promote individual, group and organisational development to improve the success of their learners.

To find out about upcoming sessions, please contact 0800 601 301 or customerservice@tec.govt.nz with the subject line [EDUMIS # Learner Success Community of Practice].

To view recordings of previous sessions, visit Learner Success Community of Practice.