STEM-TVET Education, Employability Skills and Industry Readiness: Evidence from Engineering Undergraduates in Malaysia

STEM-TVET education plays an important role in preparing engineering graduates for contemporary industry demands by integrating technical learning with transferable employability skills. This study examines the relationship between STEM-TVET education and perceived employability skills and industry readiness among engineering undergraduates in Malaysia. A quantitative survey design was employed with 220 engineering undergraduates from a public technical university. A structured questionnaire measured four employability-skill dimensions—technical skills, critical thinking and problem-solving, teamwork and collaboration, and communication skills—and four industry-readiness indicators: internship preparedness, perceived usefulness of internship, skills relevance to industry, and confidence entering industry. Responses were measured using a five-point Likert scale. Descriptive statistics, standard deviation, Cronbach’s alpha, and Pearson correlation analysis were used to examine perceived skill development, measurement reliability, and relationships between employability skills and industry readiness. The findings indicate high perceived levels across all employability-skill dimensions, with technical skills recording the highest mean (M = 4.21, SD = 0.58), followed by critical thinking and problem-solving (M = 4.15, SD = 0.61), teamwork and collaboration (M = 4.02, SD = 0.65), and communication skills (M = 3.89, SD = 0.69). Industry-readiness indicators were also rated highly, including internship preparedness (M = 4.18, SD = 0.57), perceived internship usefulness (M = 4.24, SD = 0.54), skills relevance to industry (M = 4.22, SD = 0.60), and confidence entering industry (M = 4.05, SD = 0.63). Reliability analysis produced Cronbach’s alpha values of 0.89 for employability skills and 0.87 for industry readiness. Pearson correlations reported positive relationships between employability skills and industry-readiness indicators. Overall, the results indicate an association between industry-oriented STEM-TVET learning, industrial training experiences, and students’ perceived preparedness for professional engineering roles. The findings provide descriptive and correlational evidence that may be useful to curriculum designers and higher education institutions seeking stronger alignment between engineering education and labour-market expectations.

STEM-TVET; employability skills; industry readiness; engineering education; industrial training

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