Abstract
Acquisition and development of key transferable skills is an important requirement for all graduate employees. The aim of the current study was to investigate a potential skills shortage in bioscience students and, if revealed, explore ways of addressing it. A research questionnaire, which included mixed methodology, was used to collate information from a cohort of students across levels four, five, and six enrolled on biological and biomedical science undergraduate programs. A total of 131 students participated in the study. The questionnaire was designed to establish students’ confidence using packages such as the Microsoft Office Suite and whether they required additional support with certain programs; further areas explored students’ self-assessment of key skills such as written communication, referencing, self-confidence, presentation skills, and team working. No statistically significant gender differences (males n = 49; females n = 82) were observed in participant responses (p > 0.05). Of the total number of students included in the survey, 91% rated themselves as competent using Word and 64% felt least confident using statistical software and performing statistical analysis in Microsoft Excel. Comparing responses by year of study revealed no statistical differences in reported abilities (p > 0.05). These findings indicate areas of potential key skills shortages, particularly using data handling software, which may not be sufficiently addressed if prior knowledge is incorrectly assumed. Nearly half of students (50% of level six students) who were graduating felt unprepared performing statistical analysis in Excel. Inclusion of an IT component to support skills development in data handling software at Level 4 is recommended and teaching key software packages are necessary. Furthermore, opportunities for students to develop their presentation skills and report writing abilities are required. This in turn should improve the student experience and develop the transferable skills, which are increasingly sought by employers.
Highlights
Acquisition and development of key transferable skills are an important requirement for all graduate employees
The findings revealed technology was embedded into courses, some students may face technological issues involving the use of computers and specific programs; such as SPSS, which is used to conduct statistical analysis
The results indicated that 73% studied chemistry, 96% studied biology, 51% studied mathematics, 27% studied physics, 18% studied statistics, 15% studied IT/ICT, and 3% studied accounting
Summary
Acquisition and development of key transferable skills are an important requirement for all graduate employees. Soft skills such as team working, personal skills, and the ability to work well with others are critical, as they allow new graduates to make an immediate contribution to a business (Bennett, 2002) It was quoted in the report of Sir Ron Dearing (1997) “There is much evidence of support for the further development of a range of skills during higher education, including what we term the key skills of communication, both oral and written, numeracy, the use of communications, and information technology and learning how to learn. Students’ mathematical ability is an area, which has received attention within the literature. Tariq (2002) reported a decline in basic numeracy skills among firstyear bioscience undergraduate students, and later reported many disciplines, including the physical and biosciences, found their undergraduates were unprepared for the mathematical demands of the curriculum (Tariq, 2009; Tariq and Durrani, 2009)
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