Drawing on human capital theory and student engagement theory, this study examines the relationship between vocational training strategies (VTS) and college students’ perceived employability (PE), with a specific focus on the mediating role of student engagement (SE) and the potential moderating effects of student characteristics and institutional support. Data were collected via a cross-sectional survey from 462 valid responses across 10 higher education institutions in Zhejiang Province, China. Quantitative analyses included descriptive statistics, reliability and validity testing, exploratory factor analysis, correlation analysis, multiple regression, and bootstrapped mediation analysis. Results show that vocational training strategies are positively associated with perceived employability (? = 0.532, p < 0.001), explaining 33.0% of the variance in the outcome. Student engagement partially mediates this relationship, with the indirect effect accounting for 41.2% of the total effect (indirect effect = 0.219, 95% CI [0.172, 0.274], p < 0.001). The full model explains 50.1% of the variance in perceived employability. All measurement scales demonstrate strong reliability (Cronbach's ? > 0.89) and construct validity (AVE > 0.50, CR > 0.90), with satisfactory sampling adequacy (KMO = 0.948, ?² = 10,650.94, p < 0.001). No significant moderating effects of student characteristics or institutional support were detected in the present sample. These findings contribute to the theoretical understanding of how vocational training translates into employability perceptions, and provide practical implications for higher education institutions seeking to enhance graduate career readiness.
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