Date of Conferral
2015
Degree
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
School
Education
Advisor
Olga Salnikova
Abstract
Local employers believe the lack of prerequisite soft skills is inhibiting the graduates from a local community college from securing employment. The rationale of this phenomenological study was to investigate the perceptions of students and employers related to the soft skills needed to be successful in future employment. The theoretical framework was based on Mezirow's transformational and Daloz's mentorship theories. Individual face-to-face, semistructured interviews were used to gather data from 12 business and computer students and 7 employers (N=19) who were selected using purposeful random sampling. The typewritten transcripts of participants' responses were imported in MAXQDA 11, then were open coded and analyzed for emergent themes. According to emergent findings among these 19 participants, for entry-level jobs, communication was the most important and the most lacking soft skill. The recommendations informed the creation of a mandatory 3-day professional development training program, which was developed to help students enhance their soft skills before entering their future careers. This study directly affects positive social change by enhancing the quality of soft skills for future employees who enter the local work force.
Recommended Citation
Williams, Ann-Marie Claudia, "Soft Skills Perceived by Students and Employers as Relevant Employability Skills" (2015). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 1427.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/1427
Included in
Adult and Continuing Education Administration Commons, Adult and Continuing Education and Teaching Commons, Community College Education Administration Commons, Community College Leadership Commons, Higher Education Administration Commons, Higher Education and Teaching Commons
