Impact of human capital and social capital on employability of Chinese college students under COVID-19 epidemic—Joint moderating effects of perception reduction of employment opportunities and future career clarity

Abstract

This research constructed a relationship model between human capital, social capital, and the employability of college students. With two moderating variables introduced, the perception reduction of employment opportunities under the COVID-19 epidemic and future career clarity, this research studied the direct impact of human capital and social capital on the employability of college students and boundary conditions. Research data from 810 employed Chinese college graduates shows that both human capital and social capital have a positive and significant impact on the employability; the perception reduction of employment opportunities under the COVID-19 epidemic negatively regulates the relationship between human capital and the employability of college students; the future career clarity positively regulates the relationship between human capital and the employability of college students; the perception reduction of employment opportunities under COVID-19 epidemic and the future career clarity jointly regulate the relationship between human capital, social capital and the employability of college students. These conclusions enrich the relevant theoretical and practical research on the employability of college students under the COVID-19 epidemic.

Individual stories of agency: an exploratory study into the pandemic impact on students' employability skills

“…Furthermore, there are several opportunities for students to acquire these abilities, including work-integrated learning activities, networking events, extracurricular programs, internships, volunteer opportunities and international exchanges (Kinash et al, 2016). During the pandemic, these activities were under restrictions and labor market demand has decreased (Shiyuan et al, 2022) which may reduce students' chances of acquiring these skills. The limitations of these work-based learning activities can contribute to a negative sense of self-doubt when there are not plenty of possibilities available for students.…”

“…The majority of adverse observations of student academic conduct were linked to COVID-19's disruption of teaching and learning, suggesting that remote learning may have impeded certain student learning and professional skill development during the previous academic years (Aristeidou and Cross, 2021). Thus, the development of college graduates' employability during this epidemic is thus seriously challenged (Shiyuan et al ., 2022).…”

“…Graduate employability has never been more of a priority due to the existing labor market restrictions, which have been exacerbated by COVID-19 (Tran et al ., 2022). College students' employability and human capital are adversely affected by the assumption that work chances have declined as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak (Shiyuan et al ., 2022). Furthermore, the disparity between the affluent and poor in developing countries, including Vietnam, at the time may have contributed to skills discrepancies in the post-pandemic era, as the wealthy could purchase anything for their children while the underprivileged lacked access to computers, smartphones and the Internet (Van and Thi, 2021).…”

Structure and flexibility: systemic and explicit assignment extensions foster an inclusive learning environment

“…It created increased fear of the future as the recognized stability of circumstances such as employment and safety took on tremulous qualities (Yin et al, 2022). And finally, students lost social and societal capital due to isolation and other aspects of the pandemic that likely decreased their available resources and social network for information and direction but increased the associated costs of communicating with a professor (Shiyuan et al, 2022). All of these situations that occurred during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic continue to impact the student population today (Sarvary et al, 2022).…”

The impact of career expectation on employment anxiety of art students in higher vocational colleges during the COVID-19: A chain mediating role of social support and psychological capital

“…This gap between ideal and reality has caused nervousness, irritability, and other uneasiness in the employment process of higher vocational art students. This unease will grow as their graduation time approaches ( Bolton, 2022 ; Li et al, 2022 ; Shi et al, 2022 ).…”