WASHINGTON, D.C.
Two-thirds of employers (63 percent) say college graduates lack essential skills to succeed in today’s global economy, according to a new report by the National Leadership Council for Liberal Education and America’s Promise, or LEAP, and the Association of American Colleges and Universities.
College graduates will need much more cross-disciplinary knowledge and an advanced set of communication and analytical skills to apply their knowledge to real-world problems, says the report. It also urges a more thorough application of liberal education in American colleges and universities.
“The quality of learning, not the possession of a diploma, will determine whether the next generation can keep our economy and democracy strong,” says AAC&U President Carol G. Schneider. “It’s time to stop channeling students into narrow tracks that prepare them for an initial job but not for tomorrow’s challenges.”
As examples, Scheider says engineers need to know how to communicate across diverse cultures and scientists need to understand the ethical implications of their work.
Other findings of the poll say that 76 percent of business leaders want colleges to “place more emphasis” on teamwork skills in diverse groups; 82 percent want emphasis on science and technology; and more than 70 percent of employers want colleges to emphasize critical and analytical reasoning, as well as creativity and innovation.
Wayne C. Johnson, Hewlett Packard’s vice president of university relations worldwide, says that too often college graduates come into HP with the technical knowledge “but what is missing is using the right side of the brain — where communication and creativity takes place.”
