Mismatch between Higher Education and Employment in Malaysian Electronic Industry: An Analysis of the Acquired and Required Competencies

摘要

The relationship between tertiary education and employment is an important issue that concerns a number of interested parties that include education providers, national education policy makers, industry operators, the undergraduates and their families. In this study, the education and employment relationship were studied from the aspect of the mismatch of acquired (AC) and required (RC) competencies of the electronic engineers in the electronic industry. The competencies were studied from the generic and subject-specific aspects. Respondents from the Malaysian Penang Development Corporation Industrial Areas were involved in this research. The research samples comprised managers, human resource managers, production managers and test managers. Two sets of questionnaires were administered to the participants. The findings clearly showed that there is a common agreement among the managers (employers) on the existence of an AC-RC competencies mismatch. A paired sample t-test between the AC and RC competencies of the soft and hard skills showed they were significantly different. The size of the mismatch of the competencies in ascending order for the soft skills are: ICT skills, Personal qualities, Thinking skills, Interpersonal skills, Management skills, and Communication skills. In the hard skills categories, the size of the mismatch ascends in the order 'Practical usage of the software tools', 'Circuits construction', 'Operate, troubleshoots systems and equipment', 'Process, control and installation', 'Quality and reliability testing'. The overall mismatch of the soft skills was significantly greater than that of the hard skills. The findings of this study highlight the need for the Malaysian Higher Education system to take drastic action to close the gap between tertiary education and employment.