Graduate youths’ perceptions regarding agricultural vocational education and training in developing their employability skills in south western Uganda

Abstract

The general objective of the study was to assess graduate youths’ perception about the extent to which agricultural vocational education and training develops theiremployability skills. Notably, agricultural vocational education aims at equipping students with technical and entrepreneurial capabilities essential for success in the agricultural sector. Many graduates of AVET programs struggle to secure stable employment due to a mismatch between the skills provided by AVET programs and labor market demands. The study therefore aimed to establish the percievd level of competences of graduates of agricultural vocational education and training in employability skills in agriculture related jobs, factors that influence AVET graduates to apply attained employability skills in the job market, and factors that influence employability of AVET graduates. The study used a descriptive research design, with a sample of 199 participants. A ruestionaire was used to gather the data, descriptive and inferential statistics were used to evaluate it. The perceived overall levels of competence among AVET graduates showed that approximately half of the graduates possessed either moderate (18.1%) or high competences in employability skills (32%). The study identified several factors influencing graduates' willingness to apply attained employability skills in the job market, including attitudes towards employability (OR = 1.491, Sig. = 0.026), influence of other people (OR = 0.874, Sig. = 0.048), and perceived behavioral control (OR = 1.301, Sig. = 0.013). Moreover, the study highlighted various factors influencing the employability of youths who graduated in AVET, such as technical competence (OR = 1.211, Sig. = 0.001), fundamental employability skills (OR = 1.412, Sig. = 0.029), personal management skills (OR = 0.807, Sig. = 0.025), and teamwork skills (OR = 1.216, Sig. = 0.041). The study revealed that about half the graduates from agricultural vocational education and training (AVET) programs generally perceive themselves as competent, particularly in technical areas such as identifying market opportunities, managing enterprises, and performing agricultural tasks. Graduates’ attitudes towards employability in agricultural realated jobs and their perceived behavioral controls influenced their willingnedd to apply attained employability skills in the job market. The factors that influenced the employability of youths who graduated in AVET (Agricultural Vocational Education and Training included; Technical competence, fundamental employability skills, and teamwork skills, most important employability skills in determing the likelihood of AVET graduates’ being employed. The study offered the following recommendations: focusing on enhancing skills in soil and water management, crop production, and livestock management; improving effective communication skills and conducting training sessions for personal management skills. Further, there is need for targeted interventions to enhance positive attitudes among AVET graduates as well as providing additional resources, guidance, to boost graduates' competences so as to influencing students' perceptions to increase their willingness to seek employment in agriculture-related jobs.