23 November 2017 | EQAF Paper

Meeting employers’ expectations on employability competencies of higher education graduates

Anita Līce, Tatjana Volkova, Arkādijs Zvaigzne

Abstract

Employers can give a valuable insight into the employability competencies and desired improvements in the higher education quality assurance system. The main aim of the paper is to find what kind of employability competencies are highly valued by employers, how employers see their involvement in higher education and what further quality assurance activities should be performed by HEIs to better meet employers’ expectations. The survey of employers who participated in the evaluation of higher education as the members of experts’ pool in Latvia was conducted based on the Importance-Performance Analysis. 


According to the results obtained it was concluded that for ensuring sustainable employability of graduates they should take responsibility for their own decisions, show positive attitude towards work and colleagues, be adaptable and motivated to work. The research results confirmed that employers are much keener on participating in activities, which provide a direct and immediate benefit to their enterprise.

 

This paper was presented at EQAF and reflects the views of the named authors only.

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