Key generic skills for employability of built environment graduates

Abstract

The dynamism and unpredictability of the construction industry have continued to underline the need for adequately skilled graduates to handle key positions after graduation. Apart from good academic degrees and theoretical knowledge, industry employers are constantly seeking graduates who also possess an array of generic skills (GS) or non-academic skills. This study aims to evaluate the GS that built-environment graduates need to possess to thrive in the labour market after graduation. A quantitative research approach was adopted to achieve this study’s objective with close-ended questionnaires developed and administered to built environment professionals based in the Gauteng province of South Africa. Retrieved data were analyzed using several statistical tools such as descriptive statistics (DS), Mean Item Score (MIS), One-Sample T-test (OST), and Exploratory Factor Analysis (EFA). Findings revealed four clusters highlighting the key GS that built environment graduates require to thrive in the construction industry after graduation. These include leadership skills, critical thinking and analytical skills, problem-solving skills and entrepreneurship skills. A key implication of these findings makes a case for universities to constantly adopt several pedagogical approaches to develop these GS and other related competencies to ensure industry readiness for graduates. This study contributes to the body of scholarly knowledge as it reveals the various clusters of GS skills which employers constantly seek from built environment graduates in South Africa and beyond. The outcomes of this study will be beneficial to university educators, higher education officials, policymakers and even students.

Keywords:

• Built environment
• construction education
• employability
• employability skills
• engineering education
• generic skills
• graduateness
• pedagogy

Disclosure statement

On behalf of all authors, the corresponding author states that there is no conflict of interest.