ABSTRACT

This study was carried out on Assessment of Graduates’ Employability in Lagos State. Popular opinion is that Nigerian graduates are generally not employable because they lack the required skills needed by the employers. Hence, the shortage of highly skilled personnel to meet employers’ needs and the high rate of youth unemployment in the country. Meanwhile, various factors like unqualified lecturers, inadequacy of study facilities, employer discrimination and preference, poor funding and irrelevant curricula have been blamed as the reason for this anomaly. This study is a descriptive survey of the perceptions of graduates and employers across fields of work on the employability of Nigerian graduates. The target population for the study included all Nigerian graduates of tertiary institutions in Lagos State. A purposive sampling technique was used to select graduate job seekers, graduate employees and employers of labour across major sectors who had interviewed and employed Nigerian graduates. Findings revealed that substantial percentage of the sampled respondents believed that the graduates were employable. Meanwhile, 35.9% actually disagreed that average interviewed employee had the needed skill to be employed. This paper therefore, concludes that Nigerian higher institutions, the private sector and government need to collaborate on a system to intensify exposure of Nigerian undergraduates to job- training schemes, the world of work, practical trainings and entrepreneurship education.

CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION

1.1 Background of the Study

The source of quality in education would include well maintained buildings with all required gadgets being conducive to learning, outstanding lecturers, high moral values, excellent examination results, specialization, the support of parents, business, local community and non-governmental organization’s support, adequate facilities, the application of the latest technology, strong and purposeful leadership, care and concern for pupils or students, a balanced curriculum that is, the curriculum that matches the employers’ demand in the labour market (Adeyanju and Olaniyi, 2015).

The quality of graduates in Nigeria is on a rapid decline, especially in the area of valuable skills including; communication, technical abilities, human interaction, social, conceptual, and analytical capacity (Anho, 2011).

The word “graduate” is used broadly in this study to refer to individuals with any form of post matriculation qualification or tertiary diploma or certificate (Pauw et al., 2008). In all modern economies, universities are places where specialized human resources are developed. Therefore, they play a crucial role in generating human capacities for leadership, management and the technical expertise. In the present-day knowledge-based economies that have emerged following globalization and information technology revolution, universities are expected to play a pivotal role by generating, harnessing and transmitting knowledge for sustainable development and improved standard of living. Unfortunately, it does appear that universities in Nigeria are yet to be equipped to carry out these responsibilities effectively due to limited access to university education and human capacity deficiencies. For example, Nigerian Institute of Personnel Management, NIPM, (cited in Anho, 2011) noted that the quality of graduates from Nigerian Universities is declining rapidly. Anho also cited the report of National Employers Consultative Association (NECA) which decried the quality of Nigerian University graduates who they argue “do not meet the demands of industry”.

Anho (2011) noted further that the National University Commission (NUC) 2000 organized a curriculum review debate in collaboration with other stakeholders in the education and observed graduates who left schools between 1995 and 2000; they found out that standards have declined in those critical skills. Consequently, the NUC in its statutory responsibility embarked on conducting comprehensive curriculum review exercises to address current and future high-level manpower needs, so that the products from the system can compete well with their counterparts around the globe. The mechanism for improving and sustaining quality and high standards in the universities has been set by the Federal Government of Nigeria. However, the actual implementation is yet to yield any meaningful results as the quality of university graduates whether from the field of Law or other disciplines has continued to generate intensive debates and worries.

In today’s competitive and challenging global world with diverse demands, many countries are facing serious problems with graduate employability (Adesina, 2013). As a result, the higher education sectors are under immense pressure from governments, employers, and parents to produce quality graduates that can be economically engaged at the individual, national and global levels (Teichler, 2007). Such graduates should possess a combination of attributes that will enable them to take an adaptive and proactive approach to their careers (Bezuidenhout, 2011).

Eurosat (2013) noted that employability is about having the capability to gain initial employment, maintain employment and obtain new employment if required. For the individual, employability depends upon assets in terms of knowledge, skills, and attitudes; the way these assets are used and deployed; the presentation of assets to potential employers, and the context within which the individual works, e.g. labor market and personal circumstances.

This is therefore a key challenge to tertiary institutions in Nigeria, which produces over 300,000 graduates annually; a number that should ordinarily meet the country’s human capital resources needs (Oyesiku, 2010). But employers willing to pay well to attract skilled workers are increasingly finding it difficult to fill job vacancies. Akanmu (2011) opines that product of the Nigerian University system have at different forums been challenged to test their suitability or otherwise to secure few available white-collar jobs. He went further to say that the situation is not only sympathetic but embarrassing that the vast human material resources available to the country had not been trained and utilized to the advantage of the country. Thus, the undertaking of this study will beam a searchlight on the employability of law graduates in Lagos State universities.

1.2 Statement of Problem

Employers of labor in Nigeria often complain that graduates are poorly prepared for work. They believe that academic standards have fallen considerably over the past decade and that a university degree is no longer a guarantee of communication skills or technical competence. As a result, university graduates are commonly viewed as “half baked.”

One of the most aching challenges confronting Nigeria today is the issue of unemployment. It has become so severe that policy-makers, parents, and youths, especially graduates alike are having sleepless nights over it. The issue has been on the front burner of national discourse in recent years. The unemployment question is even aggravated by the increasing number of graduates being churned out annually by tertiary institutions made up of Universities, Polytechnics, monotechnics, and Colleges of Education (Educational and Employability Survey Report, 2014).

More worrisome is the problem of graduate employability, which has rendered many Nigerian graduates unemployable. This is because, while it is one thing for tertiary institutions to produce graduates, it is another for the products of these schools to meet up with employers’ requirements, skills, or competencies for employment. Employers of labor often complain that some of these graduates though professionally or technically qualified are unemployable, in that they lack the requisite, essential skills or competencies needed in the job or for sustainable employment. These skills create a gap in their knowledge (Sodipo, 2014).

The problem of graduates’ employability remains a continuing policy priority for higher education (HE) policymakers in many economies. These concerns have been given renewed focus in the current climate of wider labour market uncertainty. Policymakers continue to emphasise the importance of ‘employability skills’ in order for graduates to be fully equipped in meeting the challenges of an increasingly flexible labour market. This study reviews some of the key empirical and conceptual themes in the area of graduate employability over the past decade in order to make sense of graduate employability as a policy issue. The current education system does not appear to be producing graduates with generic and essential skills, hence the continuous increase in the rate of youth unemployment. (Phillips Consulting, 2014)

Stories and jokes abound in Nigeria regarding the supposed shortcomings of university graduates. Yet empirical information and reports are rare. What is the real situation? Is graduate employability a serious problem? How do employers assess the qualifications of current degree-holders? How well do graduates perform when they are able to obtain employment? This study will fill in the gap by critically assessing the employability of law graduates in Lagos State universities.

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The broad objective is to assess the employability of Nigerian graduates, using Lagos State as a case study. The specific objectives are:

1. Identifying the factors that determine the employability of Nigerian graduates.

2. Assessing the perception of graduate employees/job seekers and employers of labour on graduate employability.

3. Analysing the extent to which Nigerian graduates are unemployable.

1.4 Research questions

What factors determine the employability of graduates of tertiary institutions in Nigeria?

What are the employers’ perceived skills required of graduates of tertiary institutions in Nigeria?

What is the extent to which possessed skills of Nigerian graduates differ from the required skills by employers?

In what ways can the employability of Nigerian graduates be enhanced?

1.5 Research hypothesis

Hypothesis 1:

H_0: The employability level of Nigerian Graduates is not significantly below standard.

H_1: The employability level of Nigerian Graduates is significantly below standard.

Hypothesis 2:

H_0: Possessed skills of Nigerian Graduates do not significantly determine their level of employability.

H_1: Possessed skills of Nigerian Graduates significantly determine their level of employability

1.6 Significance of the Study

Previous researchers have been very divergent in their views about the relationship between employability and law graduates in Lagos State universities. This study will therefore be of great significance as it will add to the already existing literature.

The outcomes of the research study will serve as feedback to the education sector especially the departments of Teacher Training and Development and Curriculum and Evaluation. The study will influence policy formulation about the training of teachers/lecturers in the future.

The outcomes of the study will also be useful to university students, like students in the field of educational management when doing likely research. The study would be significant to policymakers and implementers at large, as they would make use of the findings and recommendations of this study.

1.7 Scope of the study

This study was carried out on the assessment of graduates’ employability. The study particularly focused on Lagos State.