Anticipatory socialisation: the effect of recruitment and selection experiences on career expectations Dora Scholarios Department of Human Resource Management, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK Cliff Lockyer Department of Human Resource Management, University of Strathclyde, Glasgow, UK Heather Johnson Disability Service, Jobcentre Plus, Kilmarnock, UK Management literature has tended to emphasise post-entry organisational influences in newcomer socialisation (e.g. Comer, 1991; Van Maanen and Schein, 1979; Wanous, 1992); but pre-entry experiences also influence socialisation to work and organisational life (Porter et al., 1975). The career transition from higher education into employment is one such phase which has been identified as contributing to graduates’ career development. Garavan and Morley (1997) suggested a stage model of organisational entry, where the first stage, anticipatory socialisation, encompassed all learning that took place prior to a graduate’s first day on the job, and influenced subsequent stages such as the development of an initial psychological contract and the first organisational encounter (see also Rousseau, 1990). The focus of the present study is the anticipatory socialisation stage for students planning to enter professions, and in particular the effects of recruitment and selection experiences on career expectations and orientation. The nature of students’ job search activity, the possession of relevant work experience, and exposure to employers through recruitment and selection activities may form part of the ``evolving sequence of a person’s work experiences’’ (Arthur et al., 1996, p. 8) which contributes to anticipatory socialisation. It has been argued that exposure to employers through recruitment and selection is a social process where employers and potential employees gradually perceive a match (e.g. Anderson, 2001; Anderson and Ostroff, 1997; Chatman, 1991; Herriot, 1989). Through job search activities and awareness of employers’ recruitment literature and events, students gather information about organisation goals, values, climate and work practices to guide their ultimate decision (Major et al., 1995). Exposure to selection procedures provides information about the culture and attributes of an organisation, and candidates form judgments from their perceptions of the fairness of the selection methods used (Arvey and Sackett, 1993; Gilliland, 1993). Stewart and Knowles (1999a) argued that providing students with greater awareness of employment opportunities, and equipping them with the ability to be proactive in approaching potential employers, will lead to more effective career self-management and selection processes. There is also evidence that employers prefer graduates with a broader range of skills than just academic knowledge and greater appreciation of business needs (Stewart and Knowles, 1999b), both of which can be gained through work experience and awareness of employers’ recruitment and selection procedures. Using a sample of students in two traditional and one emerging profession (law, accountancy and human resource Management), the present study examined the extent of career-related pre-employment work, recruitment and selection experiences and the relationship between these experiences and career expectations. The focus on professions reflects the expectation that anticipatory socialisation is likely to be greater amongst these students. Although most students in their final years of university training will have had some contact with potential employers (Rynes et al., 1980), students in dedicated professional courses are likely to be provided with information earlier in their training about potential employment in the profession. This is partly because of the prescribed nature of the degree, the mandatory post-degree training required for membership of the professional institute, unlike the problems identified in general The Emerald Research Register for this journal is available at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/researchregister The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at http://www.emeraldinsight.com/1362-0436.htm [182] Career Development International 8/4 [2003] 182-197 # MCB UP Limited [ISSN 1362-0436 ] [DOI 10.1108/13620430310482562 ] Keywords Social systems, Organizational culture, Recruitment, Selection, Career development, Graduates Abstract Recruitment and selection experiences are part of a process of pre-entry organisational socialisation, also known as anticipatory socialisation. Graduates are susceptible to such effects as their socialisation through exposure to professional employers begins during training. Employers’ practices are thought to contribute to the formation of realistic career expectations and the initial psychological contract between graduates and employers. The present study found that students in traditional professions reported greater exposure to employers than students in an emerging profession through work activities, more proactive engagement in recruitment events, and more extensive experience of selection processes at similar stages of study. Greater activity, in turn, was related to career expectations, including varying levels of commitment to and interest in the profession and career clarity. Received November 2002 Revised February 2003 Accepted February 2003