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Quality in higher education: linking graduates' competencies and employers' needs

Anne Martensen (Department of Marketing, Copenhagen Business School, Frederiksberg, Denmark)
Lars Grønholdt (Department of Marketing, Copenhagen Business School, Frederiksberg, Denmark)

International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences

ISSN: 1756-669X

Article publication date: 20 March 2009

1745

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to focus on measuring competencies of higher education graduates and employers' needs, and using these measurements in the quality development of higher education study programmes.

Design/methodology/approach

Results of a survey among Danish employers and their perception of the competencies of MSc graduates from Copenhagen Business School (CBS) are presented and discussed. In addition to assessing the competencies, the respondents were also asked to assess the importance of the individual competencies.

Findings

The estimated importance score and performance score for each competency can be combined in a competency map, and it is shown how the four cells in the map can be interpreted in useful ways, when essential areas for quality improvement of the study programme are to be identified.

Research limitations/implications

This study is limited to the Danish employers' perceptions of MSc graduates from CBS.

Practical implications

The presented linking of competencies to employers' needs have clear managerial implications in the strategic development of higher education study programmes.

Originality/value

The study identifies and measures 16 essential graduate competencies and links these to employers' needs in a competency map.

Keywords

Citation

Martensen, A. and Grønholdt, L. (2009), "Quality in higher education: linking graduates' competencies and employers' needs", International Journal of Quality and Service Sciences, Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 67-77. https://doi.org/10.1108/17566690910945877

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2009, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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