The Structural Relationship between Core Competencies, Career Adaptability, and Career Barriers of College Students

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to analyze the relationship between college students' SUPER core competencies, career adaptability, and career barriers, so that college students can recognize the linkage between core competencies for career development and education in the future. For this purpose, SUPER core competencies, career adaptability, and career barriers were measured for 309 university students at J University. The measured results were analyzed with a structural equation model using the SPSS ver 25.0 and AMOS ver 25.0 programs. The analysis results are as follows: First, some core competencies were higher among female students than male students, high in medical science colleges, and low in business colleges. The age problem of career barriers was higher in male students and third year students, and the lack of job information, lack of interest and future anxiety were higher in medical science colleges and lower in culture and tourism colleges. Second, the ‘skewness’ and ‘kurtosis’ criteria were satisfied by verifying whether each variable satisfied the normal distribution. Also, the correlation of each variable showed that core competency and career adaptability had a positive relationship, core competency had a negative relationship with career barriers, and career adaptability and career barriers had a negative relationship. Third, as a result of analyzing the estimability and fit of the structural regression model for the verification of the research model, a good fit was shown, and the suitability of each variable was confirmed through confirmatory factor analysis. Fourth, the core competency for career adaptability was statistically significant and had an explanatory power of 49.8%. Core competencies for career barriers were not statistically significant. Career adaptability to career barriers was statistically significant and had an explanatory power of 37.8%. This means that the higher the level of core competencies, the higher the career adaptability, and the higher the career adaptability, the lower the career barriers. Based on the results of this study, the conclusions are summarized as follows. First, there are differences in some factors of SUPER core competency, career adaptability, and career barriers according to gender and major. Thus, an approach to core competency and career barriers by gender and college is required. Second, universities should provide opportunities to college students through subjects and non-course curriculum so that they can achieve the core competencies required in the society of the 4<sup>th</sup> Industrial Revolution. Third, in order to strengthen and improve the core competencies of college students, it is also necessary for instructors to inform college students of a system that can recognize what core competencies are lacking, as well as to enlighten them on specific methods and guidelines for their cultivation.