Critical Analysis of Higher Education and Employability in Pakistan
Abstract
This study examines the nexus between higher education and employability in Pakistan. In contemporary credential societies, Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) are believed to serve as the main providers of skilled and trained professional workforce. In Pakistan, higher education is crucial for creating job opportunities. This promotes the overall economic stability of the country. In the recent past, across societies, particularly in Pakistan, graduates have faced problems in securing jobs based on their credentials. The aim of this article is to explore the relationship between higher education and employability in Pakistan. The study was carried out in two public sector universities in Pakistan. A total of 80 respondents, selected through snowball sampling, were included in the study. Questionnaire was used for the collection of data. The collected data were analyzed using a quantitative data analysis technique. Univariate and bivariate analyses were performed. The study findings show a significant association between higher education and employability. The study found that graduates are less equipped with appropriate employability skills and training than before. There is a dire need to equip students with market-oriented skills during their stay in HEIs.
References
References
Anastasia, K., Julia, K., Elena, K., & Eldar, S. (2013). Discrimination and inequality in the labor market. Procedia Economics and Finance, 5, 386- 392.
Bakari, H., Hunjra, A. I., & Attiq, S. (2017). Measuring access to higher education: Development and validation of scale. PAKISTAN BUSINESS REVIEW OCT.
Barnett, R. (1990). The Idea of Higher Education. Society for Research into Higher Education and Open University Press, 1900 Frost Rd., Suite 101, Bristol, PA 19007.
Bhola, S. S., & Dhanawade, S. (2013). Higher education and employability-A review. Available at SSRN 2290103.
Brown, P., & Souto-Otero, M. (2020). The end of the credential society? An analysis of the relationship between education and the labour market using big data. Journal of Education Policy, 35(1), 95-118.
Chaudhary, A. R., Iqbal, A., & Gillani, S. Y. M. (2009). The nexus between higher education and economic growth: An empirical investigation for Pakistan. Pakistan Journal of Commerce and Social Sciences (PJCSS), 3, 1-9.
Collins, R. (2019). The credential society: An historical sociology of education and stratification: Columbia University Press.
Economic Adviser’s Wing. 2021-2022. Pakistan Economic Survey. Finance Division Government of Pakistan. Islamabad. Retrieved from https://www.finance.gov.pk/survey_2022.html
Fatima Warraich, N., & Ameen, K. (2011). Employability skills of LIS graduates in Pakistan: needs and expectations. Library Management, 32(3), 209-224.
Fernández, C. (2006). The role of education vis-a-vis job experience in explaining the transitions to employment in the Spanish youth labour market. Spanish Economic Review, 8, 161-187.
Gedye, S., & Beaumont, E. (2018). “The ability to get a job”: student understandings and definitions of employability. Education+ Training, 60(5), 406-420.
Harvey, L. (2001). Defining and measuring employability. Quality in Higher Education, 7(2), 97-109.
Hillage, J., & Pollard, E. (1998). Employability: developing a framework for policy analysis.
International Labour Organization, 2019 Pakistan Employment and Environmental Sustainability fact sheet. Retrieved from https://www.ilo.org/wcmsp5/groups/public/---asia/---ro- bangkok/documents/publication/wcms_779022.pdf
Julia, K., Anastasia, K., & Anastasia, F. (2015). Higher Education Demands of the Labor Market. Procedia-Social and Behavioral Sciences, 191, 1183- 1186.
Kuroda, K., Yuki, T., & Kang, K. (2014). The institutional prospects of cross- border higher education for East Asian regional integration: An analysis of the JICA survey of leading universities in East Asia. In Emerging international dimensions in East Asian higher education (pp. 55-79): Springer.
Lees, D. (2002). Information for academic staff on employability: Citeseer.
Michaels, E., Handfield-Jones, H., & Axelrod, B. (2001). The war for talent: Harvard Business Press.
Nair, C. S., Patil, A., & Mertova, P. (2009). Re-engineering graduate skills–a case study. European Journal of Engineering Education, 34(2), 131-139.
Ozsoy, C. (2008). The contribution of higher education to economic development. Paper presented at the 8th Global Conference on Business and Economics.
Panagiotakopoulos, A. (2012). Employability skills development in Greek higher education institutions (HEIs) Implications for policy makers. Higher education, skills and work-based learning, 2(2), 141-150.
Papakonstantinou, D. (2022). Person-related Factors of People with Disabilities Affecting Employers' Attitudes Toward their Vocational Integration: A Literature Review of the Top List. Journal of Rehabilitation, 88(2).
Qazi, W., Raza, S. A., & Sharif, A. (2017). Higher education development and unemployment in Pakistan: Evidence from structural break testing. Global Business Review, 18(5), 1089-1110.
Rizwan, A., Choudhary, M., Jahanzaib, M., & Ammar, A. (2013). Analysis of factors affecting the stress level of engineering students from remote areas. International Journal of Engineering Education, 29(4), 926-932.
Rizwan, A., Demirbas, A., Hafiz, N. A. S., & Manzoor, U. (2018). Analysis of perception gap between employers and fresh engineering graduates about employability skills: a case study of Pakistan. International Journal of Engineering Education, 34(1), 248-255.
Rizwan, A., Farooq, S., Alvi, M. S. I., & Nawaz, S. (2012). Analysis of factors affecting the stress level of female engineering students. Global Journal of Human-Social Science, 12.
Tymon, A. (2013). The student perspective on employability. Studies in Higher Education, 38(6), 841-856.
UNFPA. 2016-17. UN population fund report. United Nations. Retrieved from http:// www.unfpa.org/swop
Walters, D. (2004). The Relationship between Postsecondary Education and Skill: Comparing Credentialism with Human Capital Theory. Canadian Journal of Higher Education, 34(2), 97-124.
Yorke, M. (2006). Employability in higher education: what it is-what it is not (Vol. 1): Higher Education Academy York.
Yorke, M. (2010). Employability: Aligning the message, the medium and academic values. Journal of teaching and learning for graduate employability, (1), 2-12.
Zajda, J. (2012). Globalisation, Credentialism and Human Capital. Educational Practice and Theory, 34(2), 45-60.
Full Text: PDF
Refbacks
- There are currently no refbacks.