The expectations gap for engineering field in Malaysia in the 21st century

Abstract

Purpose This paper aims to explore the expectations of relevant stakeholders in the engineering field to better understand the demands of the twenty-first century. As the number of unemployed continues to grow in Malaysia, it is evident that as industries continue to develop, demands and new requirements for skilled workers change over time. Design/methodology/approach Through face-to-face interviews, the study explored the expectations of accreditation bodies, industry operators and academics in the engineering field. Findings Three major findings were documented: mismatch of expectations in engineering field across the stakeholders; the expected “must-have-skills” from the perspectives of the stakeholders; and the need to reassess how information transmission is cascaded to all stakeholders and remains relevant to market demand. Research limitations/implications It is recognized that the findings from this study may only be relevant to the engineering field and not to the other different disciplines, but the qualitative findings provide some key issues in understanding the gap between relevant stakeholders that may motivate future studies to further extend into the other disciplines. Practical implications With this mismatch drawn out clearly, all relevant stakeholders would be able to revisit and revaluate their existing strategy in addressing, cascading crucial information and equipping graduates with analytical skills to gain immediate employment in the market. Originality/value A clearer understanding on the expectations and the “must-have-skills” required in the engineering field in the twenty-first century.

Integrating Drone Technology in Service Learning for Engineering Students

“…This could be countered by adding 'cross-cultural' adjustment into the courses [11]. This is also in agreement with the study of Tan [12] on the expectations gap for engineering field in Malaysia in the 21st century. The setting of today's labour market is becoming competitive to meet the globalization of all industry.…”

Strategies to Enhance Graduate Employability: Insights From Malaysian Public University Policy-Makers

“…This unemployment statistic points to an impasse where a rising number of graduates is produced by HEIs yearly, even while striving to hire qualified and competitive candidates remains a challenge for many employers today. A multitude of factors have been linked to this graduate unemployment, among them mismatch of qualifications to market needs or overqualified graduates (Al Nejam, Chong, Ahmed & Al-Masri, 2017;Osman, Yusof & Mohd-Nor, 2010;Tan, Chew & kalavally, 2017;Vona & Consoli, 2014), lack of interpersonal and social skills (Dhakal, Cornell & Burgess, 2018;Hajazi, 2016;Tanius, 2018;Yusof & Jamaluddin, 2017), lack of career guidance and information (Finch, 2013;Jackson, 2013;Palvin, 2014;Rahmat, Ahmad, Idris & Zainal, 2012;Ren, 2017;Wickramasinghe & Perera, 2010;Yusof, Jamaluddin & Mat-Lazim, 2013), and also economic factors (Tan et al, 2017). As such, the Ministry of Higher Education introduced the National Graduate Employability Blueprint 2012-2017(NGEB 2012-2017 to produce competent graduates and fulfil national and international workforce needs with 75% of graduates being employed in their relevant fields within six months of graduation.…”

“…Despite this awareness, there is a difference between the real demand for job skills requirements versus what is supplied by education and does not match the employers' requests. This has led to a phenomenon of inequality of education, and there are also graduates who have qualifications beyond the scope of work offered (Al Nejam et al, 2017, p. 87;Osman et al, 2010;Tan et al, 2017;Vona & Consoli, 2014, p. 8). These criteria are assessed by employers during the hiring process.…”

Traceability of Intra- and Interpersonal Skills: From Education to Labor Market

“…Besides, as Ali et al highlight [24], education requires the integration of relevant content, skills, and instructional support to enhance knowledge processes in line with twenty-first century employability requirements. However, authors, such as Gewertz [16], Bronson [26], Klaus [27], Mitchell et al [28], or Tan et al [29], among others, conclude that current students (future employees) do not have the set of soft skills they need to be successful in workplace.…”