School To Work Transition Among Employed Graduates In Accra.

ABSTRACT The transition from school to work is one that has long been the focus of academic attention. Two assets, formal and informal have been identified to offer a more successful transition. However, there is a lack of clarity in our context about which supersedes the other in determining this successful transition. Generally, this study sought to explore the nature of assets that enabled an easy transition from school to work. To achieve this, the study utilized a mixed methods approach; a survey of 209 employed graduates working in six formal organizations and interviews with 7 respondents. The study revealed that, it takes a graduate as early as one year and at least five years to get a job in Accra after tertiary education. The study also disclosed that, out of the varied strategies used in securing jobs, the family factor was the main source of finding out about job vacancies. As Granovetter (1974) argued, the study found that informal assets specifically social networks were the most important factor for successful school to work transition among employed graduates in Accra. In this study, it is also found that, the status of members in one‟s social network was key. The study, however, recommends graduates make use of their formal assets (skills, qualification, work experience, course of study etc) rather than their informal assets (family friends, acquaintances) since it is the formal assets that would help them stay in the organisation when there is a change in the structure of the organisation.