Search results

The role of women in the architecture and design industry is aligned with Saudi Arabia’s Vision 2030, which aims to increase the participation of women in the Saudi construction sector. Saudi female graduates from architectural and design schools are currently working in most of the mega projects underway in Riyadh; however, they face certain challenges at the beginning of their working lives due to the gap between the skills acquired during an architectural and design education and those needed for employability.

This study evaluates the employability skills of Saudi female cooperative education (COOP) students and graduates from architectural schools in Riyadh. A quantitative approach is taken, and two questionnaires are administered: one for female COOP students and graduates from the college of architecture and design in one of the private universities in Riyadh and the other for employers from different architectural firms and governmental organizations in Riyadh. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to analyze the research data.

The research findings suggest that practical experiences and on-site observation activities should be provided, and sustainability solutions and applications should be incorporated into the curriculum to bring architecture education closer to the architectural profession and highlight the role of universities in supporting graduates' skills development.

It is worth mentioning that the results of this study were based on the survey distributed to architecture and interior female students in a private university in Saudi Arabia. The number of students surveyed in this study is not large enough to generalize the survey results to the entire population of architecture and interior design students in the kingdom and in the world. The study will be extended to include more participants from male and female students in other universities in Saudi Arabia to investigate the gaps in employability skills in the field of architecture and interior design in the Kingdom.

The study has practical and policy implications for further development and upcoming challenges as the labor market seems to improve and innovate every day. The study suggests providing practical experiences and onsite observation activities and incorporating sustainability solutions and applications into the curriculum.

The originality of this study is that it focuses on the importance of some employability skills, such as research and budgeting aspects, Sustainability solutions and applications for students that have not been mentioned in the previous studies.

The purpose of this study is to examine the moderating effect of the reflective practice of business students on how it helps to develop their employability skills through various university strategies.

The study employed a simple random sample to select undergraduate level 400 students from the Universities under study (the University of Ghana, University of Professional Studies Ghana, Lancaster University Ghana and Webster University Ghana). Only final-year students with an informed judgement on the reflective practice and various institutional practices to acquire graduate employability skills were participated. The independent variables of the study are institutional strategies (curriculum design, extra curriculum, work-integrated learning, career development centre, university collaboration with the industry, student engagement, internship job placement), the moderator is the reflective practice and the dependent variable of the study is graduate employability.

The study found that the moderation role of reflective practice had a significant effect on institutional strategies (extracurriculum, career development centre, university collaboration with the industry, student engagement and internship job placement) and graduate employability.

The study was limited to only undergraduate business students from four universities ignoring other disciplines and postgraduate students.

The practical implication is that reflective practice must be an integral tool for various universities if they want students to use their strategies to sharpen their employability skills.

The social implications of the study emphasise the reflective practice of graduate students in universities. This implies that firms and other institutions must consider reflective practice for the maximum output of their employees.

The concept of employability is a bit complex as it concerns many stakeholders of the educational process; the students, academic staff, employers, policymakers and higher education; the private sector; and the government. Although examining students' employability development skills is of great importance, students' reflective practice tends to be overlooked in most studies. Therefore, the focus of this study examines how the reflective practice of graduate students promotes employability through the various university strategies, which had not been considered.

The study's objective was to address the factors impacting the employability attributes of fresh graduates in the Kingdom of Bahrain while considering the various challenges. This study used a quantitative approach which employed the questionnaire tool, and data were collected by using a convenience sampling method. The study sample comprised n = 385 respondents from different industries, including manufacturing, banking and finance, hospitality, healthcare, oil and gas, and real estate sectors of Bahrain. Data gathered from questionnaire were analyzed using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS), where descriptive and inferential statistics was used to analyze the data. The results of the study showed for the major Hypothesis 1 that the demographic variables have no significant statistical impact on employment attributes of the new fresh graduates. Moreover, findings suggest that null hypothesis for major Hypothesis 2 has been rejected as applied academic skills and critical thinking skills have no significant impact on employability attribute of fresh graduates in the Kingdom of Bahrain. Null hypothesis for major Hypothesis 3 has been accepted as findings suggest that technology use skills (β ₁ = 0.080), system thinking skills (β ₂ = 0.210), communication skills (β ₃ = 0.402), and information skills (β ₄ = −0.100) which are an antecedent of workplace skills, have significant statistical impact on employability attribute of fresh graduates in Kingdom of Bahrain. Lastly, null hypothesis for major Hypothesis 4 has been accepted as findings suggest that interpersonal skills (β ₅ = 0.229) which are an antecedent of effective relationship have significant statistical impact on employability attribute of fresh graduates in the Kingdom of Bahrain.

Currently, owing to the influence of rapid globalisation, the issue of international and cross-cultural implementation of cross-cultural relationships is being widely discussed. This is also related to the readiness of graduates for international cooperation. The objective of this qualitative study is to identify and compare the requirements of company representatives from the Czech Republic – the Vysocina Region and Austria (Region Upper Austria) regarding the readiness of graduates to entering the workforce and the intercultural differences between the relevant regions.

A total of 20 Czech and Austrian companies from the relevant regions participated in the research. The results were obtained through in-depth guided interviews and a comparative method.

The qualitative study has theoretical implications in the context of new findings in the field of research. It contributes to the knowledge relating to the preparation of graduates for entering the workforce, and in the context of intercultural development, it extends this knowledge with the identified weaknesses of the mentioned preparation at the level of Czech or Austrian education.

The most effective and probable approach to enhance the development of cross-cultural competences in particular appears to be the integration of new techniques and content of education in the form of new subjects in cooperation with academics and practitioners from the particular country. Collaboration with these experts can build students' knowledge and skills from an intercultural environment to the highest degree possible.

The purpose of this study is to examine the underexplored link between entrepreneurship education (EE) and graduate employability in the higher education (HE) sector in the United Kingdom (UK).

The study draws on a thematic content analysis of semi-structured interviews with 45 professionals in UK HE, representing the “supply” side of EE.

The findings demonstrate a unidirectional link between EE and employability outcomes. This link is affected by societal, stakeholder-related, and teaching and learning-related factors.

Although the value of universities’ initiatives connecting EE and employability for economic development is emphasized, the study does not provide direct empirical evidence for this effect. Macroeconomic research is needed.

EE and employability would benefit from knowledge exchange between universities’ stakeholders and a broader understanding of what constitutes a valuable graduate outcome.

The study reveals the benefits of EE on a micro level. Participation in EE supports the connection between individual investments in HE and employability.

Based on human capital theory, many policymakers regard EE as a vehicle through which the relationship between investments in HE and career success on a micro level and economic growth on a macro level can be nurtured. Challenging this logic, the study highlights the potential of institutional theory to explain a contextualization of the link between EE and employability on a national level.

In today’s highly competitive global business environment, there is a growing demand for professionals who possess well-developed soft skills. Such abilities include flexibility, effective communication and other skills. Soft skills are personal attributes and qualities that are more closely related to the emotional side of human beings. Individuals must cultivate and hone soft skills during their undergraduate studies. These skills, also known as interpersonal or non-technical skills, are essential to complement hard skills and pave the way for a thriving career trajectory. Soft skills are developed over the course of one’s career and are indispensable in establishing a strong, professional presence in the corporate or academic realm. The field of engineering is no exception in this regard, and the business approach during the engineering course is of significant relevance. By acquiring soft skills, engineering graduates will become competitive and adaptable professionals capable of handling the current and future challenges of the job market. The purpose of this study is to investigate the soft skills that students perceive as being better developed during their business classrooms in the engineering course and identify areas for improvement in the business education process.

The research method consisted in four different phases from variables identification to statistical analyses. Then, as part of this approach a structured questionnaire was administered at the end of the engineering course, where students rated their perception of the degree of development of each of the soft skills covered in the course on a scale of zero to ten. The collected data were analysed using multivariate analysis techniques, including factorial analysis.

The results of the study demonstrate that the set of skills acquired by individuals in business classrooms pursuing a degree in industrial engineering is in high demand by potential employers. Such skills are deemed essential for the successful operation of businesses in modern-day industries. The findings of this research validate the significant role that industrial engineering students play in fulfilling the requirements of the job market and pave the way to meaningful insights on how to approach this topic during the business education process in engineering courses.

The findings bring about significant insights for national educational councils and ministries, universities and educational stakeholders in the process of updating, rethinking and implementing new curricula criteria in higher education, particularly in the Latin American context.

This paper enriches the literature by assessing the development of soft skills of engineering students in the Latin American context. The research reinforces the importance of developing soft skills aligned with those required for the context of current and future labour markets.

With the increased demand for the application of technology in property activities, there is a growing need for property professionals adept in using digital technology. Hence, it is important to assess the competence of academia in equipping property professionals with digital technology skills. This study, therefore, assesses property academics in Australian universities to identify their level of knowledge and use of digital technology applicable to the property industry.

Online questionnaire surveys were administered to 22 out of 110 property academics contacted through the Australia Property Institute (API) database to achieve this aim. The collected data were analysed using mean score ranking and ANOVA.

The study found that apart from databases and analytics platforms such as Corelogic RP data, price finder and industry-based software such as the Microsoft Office suite and ARGUS software, the academics were not knowledgeable in most identified and sampled proptech tools. Similarly, most proptech tools were not used or taught to the students. It was also found that early career academics (below five years in academia) were the most knowledgeable group about the proptech tools.

Relying on the API database to contact property academics potentially excludes the position of property academics who may not be affiliated or have contacts with API, hence, the findings of this study should be generalised with caution.

The study bears huge implications for the property education sector and industry in Australia; a low knowledge and use of nascent tools such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, blockchain, drones, fintech, which have received intense interest, reveals some level of skill gap of students who pass through that system and may need to be upskilled by employers to meet the current day demand.

In response to the clamour for technology-inclined property professionals, this paper presents itself as the first to assess the knowledge levels and application of digital technology by property academics.

The aim of this empirical research is to define blended learning (BL) in the context of tourism education and discuss its effectiveness in learning and, upon completion, the employability of graduates in due cause.

The qualitative research consists of 22 in-depth interviews with experts from the tourism industry and graduates. The sampling method was purposive (judgmental), and open-ended questions were asked in order to encourage the interviewee to be expressive and to share their views and opinions on what the impact of the BL program has been.

The study found that the most significant obstacles were a lack of funding, a lack of cooperation from the local and various levels of government and a lack of knowledge about sustainable tourism product development among local residents.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, the majority of the tourism schools and university departments have developed a combination of mixed learning to include online, classroom and sector experience, which can be summarized as BL. This research suggests that BL has provided for a blend of skills and, as a result, employable graduates.

Researchers and policymakers have given attention to generic skills development in higher institutions. One of the intentions is to broaden graduate employability with generic skills. In South Africa, there is a paucity of research concerning future built environment practitioners’ (FBEP) generic skills development from the students’ perspective. Thus, this paper aims to investigate South Africa’s FBEP generic skills and suggest feasible solutions to improve FBEP generic skills from the students’ perception.

The researchers collated the views of FBEP via a phenomenology type of qualitative research design. It covered selected South African public universities and investigated the discourses that underpin “perceived hindrance” in developing generic skills for FBEP. Selected 30 FBEP were engaged in the virtual interviews across three public universities. Data saturation was achieved. Three themes emerged and were analysed through a thematic analysis.

Findings show that FBEP generic skills development will enhance integrated productivity and higher value for money in construction project delivery. But developing these skills demands a holistic approach. Findings have raised concern with the perceived hindrances facing FBEP in developing generic skills. Findings suggest the need to revisit and revamp the curricula to develop these skills and strengthen policies that will “nip” possible hindrances.

This study was limited to South Africa’s FBEP generic skills from students’ perception. In line with the limited resources, three public universities were covered from the selected provinces in South Africa. Future research with a more diverse sample is needed to ensure a better representative and generalisation of findings.

Findings show that apart from academic knowledge system thinking skills, civic responsibility skills and critical thinking skills are germane for intending construction industry professionals. Others are integrated teamwork skills, good attitude and communication skills, entrepreneurship skills and resources management skills. Findings from this paper may stir up the education sector’s stakeholders to revamp the curricula in enhancing these skills among students from the basic to higher institutions. The outcome will improve productivity in the construction industry.

Although few scholars have discussed generic skills in the built environment, there are limited studies from the students’ context in developing countries, a South Africa case study, a gap this research aims to fill. Also, it proffers ways to mitigate perceived hindrances facing FBEP in developing generic skills.

Purpose. This chapter discusses the challenges and different strategies to increase skill development for the future workforce.

Methodology. Multiple sources on the topic were studied and reviewed in this chapter. The idea of skill and its development is discussed in the literature review.

Findings. Different nations’ governments have promoted human capital development by providing up-skilling and retraining programs to balance supply and demand. Skills gaps need to be brought to the attention of stakeholders, such as governments, businesses, and the educational system. Teachers, employers, and other stakeholders need to develop strategies and action plans to ensure that the skills gaps are appropriately identified and adequately addressed. These initiatives must be developed with input from various stakeholders.

Practical Implications. The research results would inform the curriculum, incorporating skill development processes tailored to various scenarios. These findings would aid business organisations in crafting skill development programs that address identified skill gaps. Challenges in skill development would be taken into account during course development, and relevant teaching–learning materials would be created. Key stakeholders, such as accrediting organisations, employers, and students, should exert more influence on academic institutions to prioritise societal demands for economic development.

Originality/Value. The uniqueness and significance of this chapter lie in its concise summary of the strategies to tackle the hurdles in skill development.