Assessing Quality Generic Skills amongst Students in Higher Learning Institution in Malaysia

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to identify the presence of generic skills amongst students and to study their relationship with academic performance. The instrument used in this study is divided into three sections; the demographic profile of the students, the generic skills they possess, and the generic skills implemented in their field of studies. All data were collected through a questionnaire survey of 974 respondents. A stratified random sampling method based on programmes of studies was used to represent the population. The respondents were asked to give their evaluation based on the five constructs of generic skills consisting of basic fundamental skills, people-related skills, conceptual/thinking skills, personal skills & attributes, and job related skills. All the data were analysed using SPSS programme version 11.0 by applying statistical description, t-test, ANOVA, Pearson correlation and multiple regression. The findings of this study indicate that generic skills do have a significant influence on students’ academic performance. Another finding of the study shows that there are differences in generic skills acquired by students of different programmes.