Abstract
The Spanish higher education system needs to adapt to the requirements of the European Higher Education Area and to this end, it is necessary for higher education institutions to improve the quality of university education, leading to an increase in competency-based learning activities aimed at developing the skills of graduates. Since university graduates face a large number of requirements when entering the labour market, they need to develop and constantly update the appropriate skills to carry out their work properly. This paper aims to address two fundamental questions. First, do engineering graduates need acquired skills in Total Quality Management (TQM) to perform their jobs successfully? Secondly, which job profile requires the highest level of Total Quality Management training and knowledge? We carried out different multivariate statistical analyses using a sample of engineering graduates who had been in the labour market for two years. The results show that knowledge of this type of management philosophy is necessary for adequate job performance. The job profile requiring the highest level of skills in TQM is described.
Highlights
The idea of competence-based training (CBT) has been widely researched in recent years, mainly relating it to business excellence models (BEMs) [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8]
Especially those who have studied a branch of engineering, face many different demands during their transition to the labour market, and there are often mismatches between the skill levels obtained by graduates and those required in the workplace
The aim of this study is to determine the level of Total Quality Management (TQM) training and knowledge needed by engineering graduates to perform their jobs properly after joining a company, as well as to define the main aspects to be taken into consideration
Summary
The idea of competence-based training (CBT) has been widely researched in recent years, mainly relating it to business excellence models (BEMs) [1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8]. Supervisors or employers of graduates must be able to decide when a graduate may be trusted to bear the responsibilities of performing a professional activity, given the level of competence they have attained They must be able to identify the competencies or skills required of university graduates by the labour market and, the impact they might have on a company’s success. Hartog (1992) defines competencies as the talents, skills, and capabilities of higher education graduates contributing to multi-factor productivity gains [9] Graduates, especially those who have studied a branch of engineering, face many different demands during their transition to the labour market, and there are often mismatches between the skill levels obtained by graduates and those required in the workplace. A gap has appeared between the skills and capabilities of graduates and the requirements of the work environment in an increasingly mobile and competitive society [14,15]
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