TY - JOUR
T1 - Does higher education equip graduate students with the employability skills employers require? The perceptions of employers in Ghana
AU - Damoah, Obi Berko Obeng
AU - Peprah, Augustine Awuah
AU - Brefo, Kwabena Osei
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 UCU.
PY - 2021
Y1 - 2021
N2 - Recent changes in the labour market and higher education sector have placed graduates’ employability on the agenda of researchers, policymakers and employers in both advanced and developing economies. Yet, the question of whether higher education equips graduate students with the employability skills employers require remains under-studied particularly in a developing country like Ghana. Using survey data and employing a paired t-test analyses, our findings reveal that whilst the employers perceive graduate students to possess various critical skills which match industry demands, the graduate students fall short in these critical skills. The differences were statistically significant indicating that there are still gaps between what higher education is offering its students and what industry requires from graduates at the entry-level. Based on the findings, implications for theory, policy, and practice are discussed.
AB - Recent changes in the labour market and higher education sector have placed graduates’ employability on the agenda of researchers, policymakers and employers in both advanced and developing economies. Yet, the question of whether higher education equips graduate students with the employability skills employers require remains under-studied particularly in a developing country like Ghana. Using survey data and employing a paired t-test analyses, our findings reveal that whilst the employers perceive graduate students to possess various critical skills which match industry demands, the graduate students fall short in these critical skills. The differences were statistically significant indicating that there are still gaps between what higher education is offering its students and what industry requires from graduates at the entry-level. Based on the findings, implications for theory, policy, and practice are discussed.
KW - Employability skills
KW - Ghana
KW - employers perception
KW - gap analysis
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85098782889&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1080/0309877X.2020.1860204
DO - 10.1080/0309877X.2020.1860204
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85098782889
SN - 0309-877X
VL - 45
SP - 1311
EP - 1324
JO - Journal of Further and Higher Education
JF - Journal of Further and Higher Education
IS - 10
ER -