EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS AND PERFORMANCE OF ACCOUNTING GRADUATES IN THE WORKPLACE

Abstract

The study aims to describe the employability skills that the graduates possessed and the extent of their manifestation in their performance in the workplace as perceived by their employers. The respondents of the study were accountancy graduates and their respective employers. The questionnaire was adopted from the list of skills identified by the Business Council of Australia and the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The Mann-Whitney U-Test and the Mean were the statistical tools used to analyze the data. Based on the findings of the study, there were high employability skills possessed by the graduates in learning skills and satisfactory problem-solving skills. However, overall, they possessed high employability skills. There was a high manifestation of employability skills in the self-management skills of the graduates as perceived by their employers, while they manifested satisfactory problem-solving skills. However, overall, there was a high extent of manifestation of employability skills as perceived by the employers. In addition, there is a significant difference between the extent of possession of the graduates’ employability skills and the extent of their manifestation in their performance in the workplace as perceived by their employers. It is recommended that the program should embed policy on employability measures in its curriculum and should also explore ways to promote and enhance these employability skills and personal attributes of its graduates.