Date of Conferral

2019

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Management

Advisor

Howard B. Schechter

Abstract

Online degree holders in Nigeria have poor acceptability during recruitment and promotion decisions because of reliability and legality perceptions of online degrees. There is little knowledge about how human resource (HR) managers identify employability skills in online degree holders. Guided by Bills's screening conceptual framework, the purpose of this case study was to explore how Nigerian recruiters identify employability skills in online degree holders. The participants for this study consisted of 2 participants from each of 10 sectors covering the government and nongovernmental organizations; participants had at least 5 years' experience in working with online degree holders. Data were collected through semistructured interviews with 20 participants. Yin's 5-step data analysis process was used with triangulation and member checking to analyze the findings. The findings of this research indicate that, contrary to earlier suggestions of low rating and poor acceptability of online degrees, HR experts in Nigeria have a high regard for the employability skills in online degree holders. The study produced 4 major findings: the possession of relevant skills by online degree holders, degree type does not form the determinant factor in recruitment, discovery strategies, and going beyond mere perception. The findings of this study may bring about positive social change toward policy changes in Nigeria regarding the adoption of online education. The results of the study can lead to positive recommendations for online degree holders, seekers of online degrees, online higher institutions, employers, and public policy makers.

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