Non-technical Skills in Undergraduate Degrees in Business: Development and Transfer

Abstract

The development of discipline-specific skills and knowledge is no longer considered sufficient in graduates of Bachelor level degrees in Business. Higher education providers are becoming increasingly responsible for the development of a generic skill set deemed essential in undergraduates. This required skill set comprises a broad range of non-technical skills encompassing analytical/reasoning skills and ‘soft skills’, widely considered to be transferable across a range of scenarios including the classroom and the workplace. Yet graduate skill gaps persist in Australia; questioning the extent to which this required skill set is truly generic and thus transferable from higher education to the workplace. The process of, and ensuing problems with, transfer from the classroom to workplace contexts is discussed and future research needs identified.