This study aims to assess the impact of creative skills on students' career readiness, and analyze the role of skill

skills in the field, Self-management skills, Creative method skills, Collaboration - communication skills, Context

exploitation - support skills all have a positive influence on creative skills. The study contributes theoretically

by clarifying the mediating role of creative skills in the relationship between soft skills and career readiness.

In the context of the fashion and garment industry rapidly shifting towards digitalization, sustainability and

flexible supply chains, equipping students of the Faculty of Fashion Design and Garment Technology at Hanoi

University of Industry with a set of structured creative thinking skills is an urgent requirement to be ready to

enter the real working environment. Creative thinking in design is not only associated with aesthetic ideas but

also the ability to solve complex problems, integrating technology, materials and market context; effective

sustainability standards and the resources of the workshop-enterprise-digital data ecosystem to transform ideas

into viable, environmentally responsible solutions and improve career readiness (Csikszentmihalyi, 1999).

In Vietnam, studies related to creative thinking and career readiness of students have been conducted in a number

of fields such as business, health and education. However, the number of in-depth studies in the context of

specialized training of the Faculty of Fashion Design and Garment Technology is still limited, especially at

applied-oriented universities such as Hanoi University of Industry. Moreover, most of the previous studies have

only approached the problem from a qualitative perspective or general survey, without going into in-depth

analysis of specific components of creative thinking (such as re-framing the problem, generating ideas,

evaluating - selecting ideas, testing prototypes, critical thinking) as well as the level of influence of each of these

components on students' career readiness, as in the studies of Do, TM (2023) and Viet, TSCQ, & Trung, TSNT

In the context of higher education and the labor market operating in a volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous

readiness through enhancing their ability to adapt, solve problems and innovate in their work. Internationally,

contemporary theoretical frameworks have provided a solid foundation to explain this connection. The dynamic

component model of creativity and innovation in organizations emphasizes the intersection of domain

competence, creative process, and task motivation in a supportive context, thereby explaining how individual

creative capacity translates into job performance and career prospects (Amabile & Pratt, 2016). At the individual

development level, the Four Cs model shows that creativity is a continuum from academic to professional levels,

implying that nurturing and accumulating creative experiences in an educational context is a prerequisite for

programs—including divergence/convergence techniques, problem reframing, and solution planning—have

transferability to career contexts (Scott, Leritz, & Mumford, 2004). Meanwhile, studies applying Design

Thinking in education show that this approach helps learners develop the competencies of user understanding,

iterative experimentation, and multidisciplinary collaboration—core components of career readiness in the

modern workplace (Liedtka, 2018). At the level of psychological-learning mechanisms, Self-Determination

Theory asserts that satisfying the needs for autonomy, competence, and social connectedness fosters intrinsic

motivation, thereby supporting creative persistence and enhancing career outcomes such as initiative,

adaptability, and career self-efficacy. (Deci & Ryan, 2000) At the same time, evidence on the role of

metacognition shows that the ability to monitor and regulate thinking processes is associated with complex

methods, instead of being tested as a separate construct with a direct impact on career readiness. Domestic

surveys reflect a consensus between students and employers on the importance of creativity for employability

and job adaptation, but the combination of variables makes it difficult to separate the specific influence

mechanism of creative thinking. Pedagogical interventions such as project-based learning, experiential learning

or integrating Design Thinking often show simultaneous improvements in creativity, collaboration and learning

studies use pre-posttest designs with medium sample sizes, lack control groups, and rarely use structural

modeling to test the direct relationship between creative thinking and career readiness. In addition, creativity

scales in many domestic studies are short, self-reported in general terms, or not standardized according to

specialized scales such as creative self-efficacy or creative behavior inventory, leading to limitations in

comparing results and inferring training policy recommendations. Comparison with the international

background shows a clear gap: while theoretical frameworks and empirical evidence abroad are relatively mature

intervention-evaluation loop will create a foundation for training policy recommendations and enhance the

ability to transform students' creativity into competitive advantages in the labor market.

Based on the research of Amabile, (2016), Beghetto et al. (2009) Clarke, M. (2018) the author proposes the

following research model

Figure 1. Research model

H1: Creative thinking skills have a positive impact on career readiness of students at the Faculty of Fashion

Design and Garment Technology, Hanoi University of Industry.

A review of the literature suggests that creativity is a functional component associated with performance,

collaboration provide key indicators of career readiness in the apparel product development chain (Goldschmidt,

Hochman, & Dafni, 2010). From a labor market perspective, employers prioritize signals of

(Jackson & Chapman, 2012).

H2: Fundamental thinking skills (KNTDNT) have a positive influence on Creative thinking skills (KNTDST)

of students at the Faculty of Fashion Design and Garment Technology, Hanoi University of Industry.

According to cognitive models of creativity, conceptual thinking (critical thinking, logic, analysis–synthesis,

evidential reasoning) supports both the idea generation and evaluation stages, helping to structure the problem,

establish criteria, and refine solutions (Runco & Acar, 2012; Cropley, 2006). In the studio and product

development context, conceptual thinking helps to balance material, technical, cost, and user needs constraints,

thereby enhancing the originality and feasibility of ideas (Dorst, 2011; Lawson, 2005). Empirical evidence

shows that structured training in conceptual thinking increases the richness, flexibility, and originality of creative

output, and strengthens learners’ creative self-efficacy (Scott, Leritz, & Mumford, 2004; Ma, 2009; Tierney &

processes (Dorst, 2011). Anecdotal and empirical evidence shows that technical competence enriches the idea

repertoire, enhances flexibility in transforming and combining solutions, thereby improving the quality of

creative output (Weisberg, 1999). In the design studio context, mastering tools, prototyping methods and sewing

techniques helps students quickly iterate and refine, enhancing originality and suitability to user requirements.

Therefore, the impact coefficient of KNCMLV on KNTDST is expected to be positive and significant when

tested using a regression model/SEM with appropriate operationalization scales.

H4: Self-motivation skills (SMS) have a positive influence on Creative Thinking Skills (CTS) of students at the

Faculty of Fashion Design and Garment Technology, Hanoi University of Industry.

Research has shown that intrinsic motivation and the ability to self-regulate goals, effort, and emotions help

sustain persistence, risk-taking, and experimentation – key antecedents of creativity (Amabile & Pratt, 2016).

Evidence suggests that effective communication and diverse collaboration increase knowledge exchange,

constructive conflict, and remote association—mechanisms that promote the originality and usefulness of ideas

review and empirical evidence also indicate that integrating contextual information and support networks is

the impact coefficient of BKN on DKN is expected to be positive and significant in regression/SEM models.

SPSS and PLS-SEM software with the following steps: testing the reliability of the scale using Cronbach's Alpha

coefficient, exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and testing the linear structure

model. These analyses aim to assess the suitability of the research model, the level of influence between variables

and determine the statistical significance of the hypothesized relationships.