Effective graduate employability and graduates lack of preparedness for the workforce has been the topic for discourse by employers and scholars. It has been widely debated and discussed on academic platforms and forums in light of new survey findings that indicate an acute deficiency in highly essential attributes such as graduate’s problem-solving ability and exposure to real-world scenarios. This is a considerably significant issue that impacts the future of our nations human resource development through unresolved unemployment issue. Thus, this research serves to suggest for service-learning courses to be adapted in the Malaysian higher education institutions as a means to address some of the deficiencies in graduate readiness. The study indicates how service-learning courses can expose students to real-world social issues and ultimately enhance work-readiness through broadening currently demanded skill sets. Undergraduate students in a service-learning course across three semesters from a local private university were asked feedback through a survey on how they felt about the course and how much it could aid potential graduates in specific areas. Additionally, comments from reflective forms were also captured for the qualitative component of this study. Findings reveal that students perceived the service-learning course positively despite being a mandatory general studies unit and gained useful demonstrative attributes in the service-learning process for future employment, indicating that the exposure and experience added value to their professional development. The contribution of this study would be highly beneficial to the consideration of service-learning programs in university to replace basic community service programs to thoughtfully incorporate professional development outcomes and serve as a practical training ground so graduates are better equipped for the demands of the current workplace.
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In-Text Citation: (Paul et al., 2022)
To Cite this Article: Paul, A., Abdullah, H., & Liaw, J. O. H. (2022). Students Service-Learning Experience and Perception of Graduate Preparedness for The Workplace. International Journal of Academic Research in Business and Social Sciences, 12(11), 1 – 20.
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