Factors influencing real estate graduates soft skill gap in Nigeria

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this study is to evaluate the soft skill gap of graduate employees, as well as the factors influencing the skill gaps of real estate graduates in the employment of real estate firms in Nigeria.Design/methodology/approachPrimary data were employed for the study. Close-ended questionnaire served on real estate employers in the two major property markets of Nigeria: Lagos and Abuja. From a total of 343 questionnaires administered, 172 (59.7%) questionnaires were retrieved. While data from the graduate employees were obtained via a web-based survey sent out to a total of 558 graduates, 119 (21.33%) responses were received. Descriptive and inferential statistical techniques were employed in the data analysis.FindingsThe findings showed that employers had high expectations for soft skillsets relating to responsibility, administrative, listening and communication skills. These have respective mean scores of 6.38, 6.33, 6.31 and 6.31 on a seven point scale. However, the results revealed significant skill gaps with skills such as logical thinking, business negotiation, responsibility and marketing. Further, the analysis revealed that factors influencing the skill gap, in decreasing order of influence, are training/professional mentors/remuneration, personal preferences/industry characteristics and curriculum/faculties.Practical implicationsReal estate graduate soft skills are investigated to uncover areas of emphasis and skill gaps. These outcomes could serve as important feedbacks for stakeholders towards improving real estate teaching and curriculum. The findings could also assist real estate graduates to know employers areas of emphasis in relation to graduate employability skills.Originality/valueExtant studies have reiterated and evaluated the soft skills gaps based on the perceptions of employers, faculties and institutions of higher learning. However, there is the need to investigate the perception of graduate employees, being the recipient and major stakeholders in the training process.

Generic and digital competences for employability — results of a Croatian national graduates survey

“…E.g. the subject-specific skills gaps, similar to our practical knowledge and its application , are evident in 35% of respondents from Guàrdia et al ( 2021 ), while the study by Ayodele et al ( 2021 ) indicated skill gaps in leadership, from students’ point of view. Our critical thinking and reasoning are similar to logical thinking and dispute resolutions, which are recognized by employers as skills with influenced gap (Ayodele et al, 2021 ).…”

“…‘Competence gap’ is usually defined as a difference between the level of competence acquired during studies and the level of competence required in the workplace (demand). The gap can be observed from the perspective of different stakeholders — students (Nghia, 2018 ), graduates (Ayodele et al, 2021 ; Nghia, 2018 ), employers (Ayodele et al, 2021 ; Collet et al, 2015 ), and others, including e.g. academic staff and public sector (Guàrdia et al, 2021 ).…”

“…E.g. Ayodele et al ( 2021 ) applied factor analysis to determine factors influencing the soft skill gaps, while Guàrdia et al ( 2021 ) used principal components analysis (PCA) to group skills based on respondents’ assessment of the skills, not on the gaps. Only two papers identified in the databases applied factor analysis on competence gaps (Collet et al, 2015 ; Martinez-Cerda & Torrent-Sellens, 2016 ).…”

“…Therefore, research on generic competences is expected to enable comparison among different fields of education, which is poorly represented in the existing literature. Often, research is focused on only one sector, such as real estate (Ayodele et al, 2021 ), teacher education (Garcia-Vandewalle Garcia et al, 2021 ; Guzman-Simon et al, 2017 ), knowledge-intensive industry (Collet et al, 2015 ), or includes several universities (Martinez-Cerda & Torrent-Sellens, 2016 ; Nghia, 2018 ). Badcock et al ( 2010 ) compared the Art, Science, and Engineering students and found differences in the acquisition of generic skills among the three groups, but not among the gaps.…”

“…E.g. Ayodele et al ( 2021 ) analyse gaps in generic skills in the real estate sector from both employers’ and graduates’ points of view. Employers rated the expected and the observed graduates’ soft skills, while graduates expressed their perception of the expected soft skills and self-assessed their actual skills.…”