Self-assessment of employability skill outcomes among undergraduates and alignment with academic ratings

Abstract

Despite acknowledgement of the benefits of self-assessment in higher education, disparity between student and academic assessments, with associated trends in overrating and underrating, plagues its meaningful use, particularly as a tool for formal assessment. This study examines self-assessment of capabilities in certain employability skills in more than 1000 Australian business undergraduates. It evaluates the extent to which student self-assessments differ from academics, in what ways and the influence of certain individual and background characteristics – such as stage of degree, gender and academic ability – on rating accuracy. Explanations for documented disparities are presented, in addition to implications and strategies for educators.

Keywords:

• self-assessment
• evaluation
• performance
• reflection
• skill assessment.

Acknowledgements

This study was funded by a teaching and learning grant from Edith Cowan University. I gratefully acknowledge the work of my colleagues Ms Linda Riebe and Dr Ruth Sibson on the study.