Statistical Analysis and Employability skills Equation for Graduate Students in the Bahamas

Abstract

A statistical analysis was carried out to systematically explain and evaluate how the possibilities of acquisition of entry-level positions are raised by aiding and improving different employability skills. The data was collected from final-year undergraduate (Accounting, Banking & Finance, Computer Information Systems, Management & Marketing) students by using a convenient sample technique through a questionnaire, floated on an online G Monkey survey instrument to collect primary source of information based on Likert scale. The study finds that students used a combination of traditional and student-centred learning methods and pedagogies to acquire employability skills. The students’ responses data was analyzed using SPSS based techniques, ‘Cronbach’s Alpha’ , ‘backward regression’, and ‘ANOVA’ respectively to check the reliability of data, to iteratively examine the statistical significance of the employability factors, and to check whether ‘employability skills’, ‘academic skills’, ‘personal management skills’, ‘Teamwork skills and learning methods’ are the important employability factors, for the final-year undergraduate (Accounting, Banking & Finance, Computer Information Systems, Management & Marketing) students. However, based on student’s response analysis, it was investigated, the ‘employability skills’ ( F=28.45, P<0.000, α=0.05, Fc=1.39),‘personal management skills’( F=3.391, P<0.000, α=0.05, Fc=1.29) , ‘Team skills’( F=6.531, P<0.000, α=0.05, Fc=1.27) have no impacts on the possibilities of acquisition of entry-level positions, but students of all disciplines agrees with the significance of employability factors in ‘academic skills’( F=0.559, P=0.812, α=0.05, Fc=1.32). By knowing the effect and significance of employability factors/indicators it will be very beneficial and easy for graduate students to choose and acquire employability skills. The study contributes to the literature by providing the perceptions of graduate students from specific premises and respondents of a particular background in the Bahamas context. The statistical analysis of students’ responses shows, the employability factors were ‘numeracy skills (mathematical)’, ‘IT literacy skills’, ‘decision making skills’, ‘communication skills’, ‘critical-analysis skills’, ‘competence in specialized subject area’, and ‘ability to apply specialized knowledge from various field’. While the literature finds communication skills, problem-solving skills and interpersonal skills often appear among the highest ranked skills in terms of importance, the significance of this study is that ‘learning skills’ ranked as the second most important employability skill [1]. A regression model equation was developed for forecasting the probabilities of acquisition of entry-level positions based on ‘numeracy skills(mathematical)’, ‘IT literacy skills’, and ‘decision making skills’, ‘communication skills’, ‘critical-analysis skills’, ‘competence in specialized subject area’, ‘ability to apply specialized knowledge from various field’, skills [2].