THE EMPLOYERS’ EXPECTATION TOWARDS SOFT SKILLS COMPETENCIES OF QUANTITY SURVEYING GRADUATES IN MALAYSIA

• Published in: Malaysian Construction Research Journal
• Main Author: Sekak S.N.A.A.; Akbar A.R.N.; Junus Y.M.; Zolkafli U.K.; Sa’ad S.R.M.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Construction Research Institute of Malaysia 2023
• Online Access: https://www.scopus.com/inward/record.uri?eid=2-s2.0-85201189474&partnerID=40&md5=8297d2cf4898052d56e679096d51cf86

Modernising technology in the construction industry will create a changing demand for Quantity Surveying (QS) skills. As the number of QS graduates keeps increasing each year, competition for employability is high amongst graduates. Both hard skills and soft skills are extensively demanded in the job industry. However, the job market is leading QS graduates to acquire competitive soft skills such as leadership, communication, problem-solving, and teamwork. Although soft skill competencies are acknowledged to increase graduates’ employability, the specific expectations of employers towards Quantity Surveying graduates remain unknown. This research aims to bridge this gap by exploring the employer expectations towards soft skills competencies of quantity surveying graduates. This research is carried out to determine the soft skills development in Malaysia, the employer expectation of soft skills amongst QS graduates and the challenges of soft skills amongst QS graduates. A set of questionnaires has been distributed to 132 registered quantity surveyor consultant firms in Selangor. The findings show that the most preferred soft skills are willingness to learn and integrity skills, followed by ethical behaviour and teamwork skills. Thus, the soft skills competency of QS graduates in Malaysia should be reviewed and improved to cater to the construction industry's needs. © 2023, Construction Research Institute of Malaysia. All rights reserved.