Qualities of Malaysian accounting graduates and their job performance from the perspective of employers

• मुख्य लेखक: Tan, Chee Phin
• स्वरूप: थीसिस
• भाषा: अंग्रेज़ी; अंग्रेज़ी
• प्रकाशित: 2014
• विषय: HF5549-5549.5 Personnel Management. Employment
• ऑनलाइन पहुंच: https://etd.uum.edu.my/4922/1/s91583.pdf; https://etd.uum.edu.my/4922/2/s91583_abstract.pdf

Research findings suggest that graduates lack various qualities that are important in today’s job market. These include knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics that might directly influence their job performance. This phenomenon is not only common in developed countries, but also in developing countries like Malaysia. In Malaysia, for example, graduates from local universities and colleges are struggling for employment due to lack of essential skills. It is due to the lack of studies involving the qualities of accounting graduates in Malaysia that this study was carried out to fill this gap. The main objective of this study was to determine the level of Malaysian accounting graduates’ qualities from the perspective of employers and the effect on their job performance. Graduates’ qualities were measured using knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics. 325 employers from auditing firms in Malaysia were selected as the respondents in this study. Data was managed and analyzed using SPSS version 18.0. The results indicate that the majority of the respondents strongly perceived that certain qualities should be given high priority in the accounting curriculum. This study provides evidence that accountants and employers perceived alike on fundamental qualities that must be incorporated in the curriculum such as financial accounting, managerial accounting and auditing/assurance services, global/international business, taxation, accounting application system, written and oral communication skills, applying analytical techniques, critical thinking, assertiveness, flexibility, self-confidence and decisiveness. The findings also suggest that there were significant relationships between accounting graduates’ qualities and their job performance. It was found that accounting graduates’ qualities which contribute more than three-quarters to their job performance, become the most important predictor. This study suggests that the higher the qualities of the accounting graduates, the greater their performance in the workplace. The findings of this study hope to shed important information on accounting graduates’ employability issues and ways to perhaps improve the situation in the future.