Vocational Education and Employability: The Nigerian Situation

Abstract

Vocational education is the form of education whose primary objective is the acquisition of skills and attitudes for gainful employment in a specific occupation or professional area. On the other hand, Employability skills are those essential skills required to secure and retain a job. These skills are required by young undergraduates to prepare them to meet the needs of various occupations after graduation. Today, the quality of graduates in terms of requisite skills development such as communication, technical abilities, human interaction, social, conceptual and analytical capacity, is on a rapid decline. This paper therefore seeks to look into the possible relationship between vocational education and the acquisition of employability skills. It also discusses basic requirements of employers worldwide in this regard. For our young graduates to be found as being employable, employability skills should be incorporated into the curriculum of Nigerian tertiary institutions.

Keywords: Vocational Education, Employability Skills, Graduates