Validating an employer Graduate-Employability skills questionnaire in the faculty of management sciences

Abstract

The purpose of this paper was to identify the psychometric properties of a graduate employability skills questionnaire that was developed as part of a PhD study by De Jager (2004:157) for the Faculty of Management Sciences. The aforementioned was investigated using the following hypothesis: There is a set of graduate employability skills that are perceived statistically significant by employers in the Free State with specific reference to Management Sciences. The sample consisted out of 503 (n = 503) employers from diverse sectors within the Mangaung area. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to analyse the data. Exploratory analysis identified a 7-factor solution, however parallel analysis yielded a 4-factor solution. The four factors responsible for the majority of the variance were interpersonal skills, Critical Cross Field Outcomes, job-related activities and academic skills. It is recommended that the results be used to stimulate research on the employability of Management Sciences graduates.