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CHAPTER 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS BACKGROUND

1.1 Introduction

Work readiness is believed to be indicative of graduate’s potential in terms of long

term job performance and career advancement (Caballero & Walker, 2010). If a newly

graduate has an adequate or just a necessary preparedness for his/her work (e.g., being able

to recollect past lessons and concepts, and having a significant on-the job training

experience), he/she won’t deal with the overflow of information to be taken in and can

quickly settle in their workplace bearing a productive performance that will likely lead as

a factor to an accelerated advancement in their profession. Traditionally, academic

achievement and/or technical competence has been a key selection criterion in graduate

recruitment and selection. (Roth & Bobko, 2000). However, academic or technical ability

does not necessarily predict long term future capability. Nowadays, more importance is

being placed on graduates possessing a range of generic skills and attributes required across

all jobs. In particular, organizations are increasingly interested in the extent to which

graduate applicants possess the skills and attributes that make them “prepared” or “ready”

for success in today’s rapidly changing work environment (Caballero & Walker, 2010).

The success of the Philippine industry largely depends on the quality of education

and training. Universities need to reconsider their mission of preparing their students for

the profession in the light of changes in local and international industry; new knowledge
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and skills to adapt to changing job demands; and dealing with an increasingly competitive

international workforce.

The performance of an academic institution is partly measured by the employability

of its graduates. It has the major role to play in the development of knowledge, skills, and

competencies among students. The institution has to provide a curriculum that will match

the need of the field at the local and international level. Every year, universities all over

the country turn over into the society a graduate ready to go out into the world. But are

they prepared to face life? Is the diploma enough to guarantee that they will find a stable

job?

In our country, one university stands out in the Province of Bulacan in providing

quality education and excellent graduates. The Bulacan State University (BulSU) is an

educational institution which provides quality and accessible education that produces

highly competent professionals. More than fifty examinations topnotch has been produced

in the fields of architecture, education, engineering, nursing, etc. (Retrieved from:

http://www.finduniversity.ph/universities/bulacan-state-university/).

In the field of engineering, one of the courses offered in Bulacan State University

is the Bachelor of Science in Civil Engineering program. The said course is a broad field

of engineering that deals with the planning, construction, and maintenance of fixed

structures, or public works, as they are associated to earth, water, or development and their

processes. Programs in civil engineering include classes in math, statistics, engineering


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mechanics, and fluid dynamics, depending on the specialty. The course includes a mix of

classroom learning, work in laboratories, and fieldwork in which students gain work

experience while pursuing a degree.

In the present time there has been an approved proposal of the “Build, Build, Build”

Program in the Philippines, it is the highest budget allocation for infrastructure in our

history. As stated by Mawis (2018), public expenditure on infrastructure projects is

expected to be 8 to 9 trillion pesos from 2017 to 2022. It is said that the ‘Build, Build,

Build’ Program will pave the way to the gradual increase of the economy, providing

thousands of jobs and cutting the economic losses due to traffic congestion caused mainly

by poor road infrastructures. There shall be lots of opportunities for civil engineers to

become successful in their career, and in order to be an eminent civil engineer efficiently;

one has to focus on their foundation of learning. These acquired knowledge should be

adequate for civil engineering students to become nationally and globally prepared for the

modern advancement of building technology. But using those knowledge the right way has

to be the main point in a working environment, it’s not enough knowing something, it’s

also important knowing how to apply it.

Therefore it’s only timely and relevant for the pursuit of this research study for the

reason that the researchers, as aspiring civil engineers, have assessed if the civil

engineering graduates from Bulacan State University are prepared to meet the challenges

of a globalized world and seek to determine the graduates’ proficiency in their workplace

environment. This study will be of vital help for the future building generations to come.
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It can serve as a guide on what field in civil engineering they would like to work on or

simply a glimpse into their own future if they pursue civil engineering. The researchers

aim to provide necessary curriculum improvement for the betterment of BulSU’s learning

experience.

1.2 Statement of the Problem

The primary research question to be posed is: “How prepared are the civil engineering

graduates for employment on their desired job career related to civil engineering? As

perceived by the BulSU civil engineering graduates themselves and by their employers.”

Specifically, this research study answered the following questions:

1. What is the profile of the BulSU civil engineer respondents? In terms of the

following personal and academic characteristics:

a. Age

b. Sex

c. Year Graduated

d. Highest Educational Attainment

e. Trainings/seminars attended

f. Passer of licensure exam

2. What is the job placement profile of the respondents? In terms of:

a. Waiting time on the first job placement after graduation

b. Approaches in getting the first job

c. Years of working experience

d. Category of employment/position
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e. Category of present employer

f. Present monthly salary

3. What is the profile of the different institutions/companies hiring civil

engineers? In terms of:

a. Category of company

b. Years of service

c. Projects accomplished

d. On-going project

4. What are the firms’ minimum requirements for the new civil engineering

graduates that they will hire?

5. How do the immediate supervisors rate the job preparedness of the new civil

engineering graduates they have employed? In relation to:

5.1. Overall theoretical foundation

5.2. Ability to make structural design

5.3. Ability to prepare plans

5.4. Ability to make construction cost estimates

5.5. Mastery of using design softwares (e.g. AutoCAD, STAAD, ETABS)

5.6. Knowledge of sequencing and scheduling of activities

5.7. Familiarity with construction terminology

5.8. Oral and written communication ability

6. How do the civil engineering employees rate their work preparedness according

to 5.1 and 5.7 above?


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7. In relation to problems 5 and 6, are there significant difference between the

perceptions of the immediate supervisor and the newly hired BulSU civil

engineer in latter’s work preparedness?

8. From the point of view of the supervisors and newly hired BulSU civil engineer,

what problems did the newly employed civil engineering graduates encountered

and how were this overcome?

1.3 Objectives of the Study

The study aimed to find out the work preparedness of newly employed Bulacan

State University - Civil Engineering Graduates under 5 academic years from 2008-2009,

2009-2010, 2010-2011, 2011-2012 and 2012-2013 for employment and implications for

curricular improvement.

The study, specifically, was supported by tracing the graduates' personal profile,

determining their current activities, their current job title, the level of employment,

unemployment and underemployment, their employer or institution working at, and job

satisfaction.

The study also aimed to assess the employers and institutions about the problems

encountered/experienced by the civil engineering graduates, and determine the skills and

competencies they require in the labor market. The researchers have provided an action

plan/suggestions backed up by the data and attestation from the BulSU Civil Engineering

graduates for the improvement of BS CE program and the employment rate of graduates.
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1.4 Significance of the Study

To the Bulacan State University College of Engineering Administrative officials. The

study will be significant to the management as the result of the study could be utilized in

formulating development plans or curriculum revision to improve the quality of civil

engineering graduates that the university provides. This can be served as a guide for the

other majors of engineering in creating their assessment and might help broaden the

perspective of the administrators and faculty.

To the Faculty. This study will help the professors to improve their teaching strategies,

plan activities that stay up to date in order to meet the demands in the field and development

of personal and professional quality through faculty development trainings and seminars

that will help uplift the minds of the student to be competitive and excel in their study.

To the Alumni. The study will provide new idea to the alumni of Bulacan State University

specially the Civil Engineering graduates with regards to their employability readiness.

To the Parents. The study will make them aware of Civil Engineering Education’s status

through that they can give their full support to their children who are pursuing Civil

Engineering course and help them to become competitive globally.


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To the Students. The study will serve as their motivation to study harder in pursuing their

goals to become successful Civil Engineer and to make extra effort for their preparation

for future employment.

To the Future Researchers. This study will serve as reference to the researchers for their

future studies and as a guide for determining other educational variables to consider that

affects the working capabilities of the graduates.

1.5 Scope and Delimitation of the Study

This study was an assessment of graduates (Civil Engineering) of Bulacan State

University Malolos Campus. The investigation was centered on their preparedness for

employment and on whether their acquired skills and competence during their period in

college were significant and relevant to their occupation upon employment. This study also

aimed to cover Bulacan State University Civil Engineering graduates whether working

abroad or in locally-based companies who graduated from years 2009 – 2013 only, to allow

the graduates sufficient time to find employment.

The investigation focused on assessing the importance of the factors in civil

engineering job-roles of fresh hires, as perceived by the employers. This study collected

the perception of employers on the current level/status of fresh civil engineering graduate

hires for the factors considered as important by them. The study also aspired to connect

with construction firms that supervises BulSU Civil Engineering graduates who are

working under vertical projects only.


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CHAPTER 2

LITERATURE REVIEW

2.1 Introduction

This chapter contains articles based on various theories, literature, and studies, both

local and foreign, concerning the gaps between the practical analysis of work and the

standards of curriculum development. These reviews sought to capture the patterns in the

literature which helped in answering the research questions of this study and will be serving

as guideposts for the entire research. The reviews cited in this chapter were a basis of

pursuing the present study.

2.2 Relevant Theories & Literature

Many researchers have noticed a misalignment between knowledge, skills, and

attributes desired by employers hiring engineering graduates and the skills which

engineering graduates possess upon completing bachelor’s degree. This misalignment was

observed both on engineers holding bachelor’s degree and in Ph.D. students and graduates.

There are books and articles that the researchers utilized as tools in determining the

importance of employability skills a newly graduate must possess and for studying the

present topic which is “Work Preparedness of Newly Employed BulSU Civil Engineers in

Selected Construction Firms: An Assessment.”

One common measure in determining the health of an economy is through the

unemployment rate of the country. In the book Youth Employment in the Philippines of

Canlas and Pardalis, it was stated that in 2006, college graduates posted an unemployment
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rate of 22.4 per cent, which means that one out of four finds themselves without work

despite having a college diploma. This was alarming because it indicated wastage or

underutilization of opportunities not only on individual college graduates but also in the

country’s economy. This book focused on the youth unemployment and their difficulty in

transiting from school to work environments.

In the book The Education-Jobs Gap: Underemployment or Economic Democracy?

by D. W. Livingstone, there were two apparently contradictory social facts. First, there

were more highly educated people than ever before and their learning efforts continue to

grow rapidly. Secondly, there was mass unemployment and underemployment of capable

people. The author emphasized that inadequate education was not really the primary cause

of the education-job gaps because education systems can always be improved. The basic

problem in this book was the lack of decent jobs available.

According to the article in the City Press (16 June 2012) with a title “Young, jobless

and desperate – Degrees with no guarantees”, university degrees and diplomas no longer

hold the promise of jobs for young South Africans because hundreds and thousands of

graduates are battling to find work. Sharp says, as cited in this article, that university

qualifications were not the only qualities employers look for when recruiting. Though

university graduates are generally more employable than those non degree holders, most

graduates lack work experiences, practical knowledge and technical skills. This article

mainly wanted to view that job searching won’t be trouble-free even if you are a degree

holder.
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From the book of Sanches and Agpao entitled Contemporary Social Problems and

Issues, it was stated that educational levels and literacy rates of workers in the Philippines

were among the highest in Asia, but technical, manual and managerial are poorly developed

and in short supply. There was an over-abundance of college graduates that most especially

in Manila area were in the field of education, law and other professionals exceed in demand

to find employment appropriate to his educational training. In this book, there was a

realization that even college graduates were experiencing difficulty in their desired job

placement. They must be equipped with such trainings and programs in order to have an

edge among others.

Josh Bersin in his article entitled Growing Gap between What Business Needs and

What Education Provides, he said that we don't have a jobs crisis in the world, we have

a skills crisis. He said that there was a tremendous need for skills in the workforce, and

presents many gaps in the educational system's ability to drive these skills. The bottom line

in this book was that skills still matter even if the graduates are equipped with such

knowledge. Educational institutions should also focus and invest on training their students

for them to be prepared for the war of skills upon after graduation.

2.3 Relevant Studies

Florante Jr. Poso, “Level of Competence of Civil Engineers in the Philippines: Its

Prospects for Employment and Implications for curricular Improvement”. The study

provided two sets of questionnaire to gather the needed information for the study and utilize

frequency counts, percentages, multiple regression and z test to examine the data gathered.
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The majority of the respondents were male, young, Licensure Examination passer for Civil

engineer, working in line of civil engineering fields, attended more than 7 seminars/training

and have 7 years and above experience. The research shows that the gender, category and

type of employment, the seminars/training attended and the degree of educational

attainment of the respondents play a significant role in their level of competence while the

eligibility, age, position and years of experience are not important.

Caballero, Walker, and Fuller-Tyszkiewicz, “The Work Readiness Scale (WRS):

Developing a Measure to Assess Work Readiness in College Graduates”. The study aimed

to determine the different quality and characteristics that forming work readiness and create

a scale to assess the readiness of the graduates. The study were divided in 2 phases, the

first phase was the attributes and characteristics of work readiness, they conducted

interview in 30 participant to know their perception regarding the graduate work readiness.

The other phase was development of work readiness scale. They surveyed 251 participants

and answered all the 180 item question regarding work readiness. After analyzing the

gathered data, they came up with ten broad categories indicative of work readiness

including; motivation, maturity, personal growth/development, organizational awareness,

technical focus, interpersonal orientation, attitudes to work, problem solving, adaptability,

and resilience. The final four were also labelled personal characteristics, organizational

acumen, work competence and social intelligence for work readiness scale.

Martin et. al. “Engineering Graduates Perceptions of How Well They were

Prepared for Work in Industry”. The study showed that in the 16 participant that they

interviewed regarding their preparedness for work in industry, all of them felt that they

were well prepared. They perceived that their problem solving skills, formal
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communication skill, technical background and life-long learning skills were their strength

while leadership, practical preparation, management skills and multidisciplinary teams

were the areas of their weakness.

Makki et. al., “The Relationship between Work Readiness Skills, Career Self-

Efficacy and Career Exploration among Engineering Graduates: A Proposed

Framework”. The study aimed to establish a framework that will help the Malaysian

engineering graduates integrates work readiness skills, career-efficacy and career

exploration. The literature they examined and analyzed revealed that the set of

employability skills does not satisfy the need of employers. They found out that Malaysian

graduate were lacking in confidence and positive attitudes. The propose framework can be

used as an assessment tool to evaluate the graduates employability skill level and enhance

their confidence. That framework will also serve as a guide for better design of higher

educational curriculum in order to meet the requirement of the industry.

Abdulla Farah Warsame, “The Gap Between Engineering Education and

Postgraduate Preparedness”. The researchers came up to this case study to understand

the knowledge of engineers in engineering education, inadequacy in practical skills and

self-learning methods to become more competent and be ahead to others. They conducted

interviews with 15 chemical, civil, mechanical and electrical engineer to ask about their

way on bridging the gap between education and engineering practice. The study found

that engineering education was insufficient in providing practical skills for engineering

students. In line with this, the study provided guideline and training to strengthen their

technical and professional competencies.


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2.4 Assumptions

As before the researchers conduct their study entitled “Work Preparedness of

Newly Employed BulSU Civil Engineers in Selected Construction Firms: An Assessment”,

the group were led to the following assumptions regarding the current status of the

graduates.

First, majority of the graduates are currently employed in the companies related to

their course, maybe some are regular or contractual.

Second, most of the graduates had their first job placement months after graduation

and the major problem they usually encounter on their job was their lack of experience.

Lastly, most of the employed graduates are satisfied with the job benefits and

salaries they receive.

2.5 Definition of Variables

Variables will be used to help the researchers determine the different factors that

may or may not affect the employment preparedness of the BulSU civil engineering

graduates. Defining the variables were essential to avert uncertainty and to provide better

comprehension among readers and future researchers of this study, the following variables

were defined in accordance with their use in this study.


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Table 2.1 List of Variables

INDEPENDENT VARIABLES
DEFINITION
(Based on personal profile of BSCE
graduates)
Refers to the age of respondent when the
Age
study was conducted.

Refers to the gender of respondent

Sex whether the respondent is male or

female.

Refers to the marital status at the time of


Civil Status
study.

Refers to what year the respondent


Year Graduated
graduated between S.Y. 2009-2013.

Refers to whether the respondent passed

Licensure Exam Passer the Civil Engineering Licensure

Examination or not.

Refers to the number of weeks, months,

Waiting Time years, before the respondent landed on

his/her first job.

Refers to the branch of civil engineering

the respondent is in whether they are in


Employment Position
the field of surveying, structural, field

works, design, etc.


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Refers to where the respondent work

whether he/she works within Bulacan,


Work Location
out of the province, within the country,

or abroad.

Refers to the name of the company or


Company of Employment
firm the respondent is employed in.

Refers to the monetary benefits received


Income
by the employee/respondent monthly.

DEPENDENT VARIABLES DEFINITION

Refers to the proficiency of the


Work Preparedness as perceived by
respondents in their working
the respondents
environment based on their own opinion.

Refers to the proficiency of the

Work Preparedness of the respondents respondents in their working

as perceived by the company environment based on company’s

evaluation on them.

2.6 Theoretical Framework

In many developed countries (Oladiran, 1999), it has been noticed that some aspects

of the engineering curriculum were not covered during their undergraduate studies. The

theoretical part is widely covered during their undergraduate study in different areas of the

major. One of the challenges this industry is facing is how to meet the international
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standards, particularly in terms of professional enhancement and training of civil engineers.

Education is an investment made by the graduates in order to enhance their capabilities in

certain aspects of their lives. It is the responsibility of the school to facilitate students in

deciding and planning what job they wanted to slot in.

Further, this study provided the information needed to improve educational

programs to bring about the match between the requirements of the employment world and

study. Schomburg (2007) warns that graduates might not always be ready to classify the

relationship between the knowledge acquired during the study and their professional lives.

However, the main purpose of this paper was for the researchers to analyze the

employment status of the graduates and determine what percentage of the graduates had

acquired their first job after they graduated and after passing the licensure examination,

etc. The approach that the researchers had to satisfy was to look on the graduates’ profiles

and to assess whether or not these profiles had fulfilled their assumptions so that whatever

results they could account for would be a good means of curriculum enhancement as well

as institutional development.
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Conceptual Framework

INPUT PROCESS OUTPUT


● Minimum ● Administration of the ● Assessed status of the
requirements of the survey interview and graduates of Bachelor
CE applicants from questionnaires to of Science in Civil
selected construction generate the necessary Engineering
firms. information. ● Measure of efficiency
● Qualification exams ● Preparation of and effectiveness of
passed by the new CE evaluation instrument. the CE graduates
applicants. ● Monitoring and
● Job description of evaluating of newly
newly hired CE hired CE graduates.
graduates.
● Problems encountered
by the CE graduates
and the supervisors.
● Evaluation
report/feedback of the
supervisor on the
newly hired CE
graduates.

FEEDBACK
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2.7 Summary of Related Literature, Studies, and Theories

Measuring work preparedness was a vast subject matter, it consisted of different


attributes and characteristics of the employee. Work preparedness can be indicated in terms
of the employee’s motivation, maturity, personal growth, organizational awareness,
problem solving, adaptability, and resilience. Confidence and positive attitude also plays a
role in exhibiting an employee’s full capabilities on their employability skills. The common
problem encountered by companies or firms was that the attributes they desire don’t match
the attributes that the graduates have and the common problem that the graduates tackle is
that they have difficulty in transitioning from school to work environment.

In this chapter it was mentioned that managerial position in the field of civil
engineering are poorly developed in the Philippines. This can be related to a study
conducted that said leadership, practical preparation, and management skills were the
engineering graduates’ areas of weakness. It was because being a civil engineer manager
requires work experience, communication skills, critical thinking, multitasking, and human
relation skills or empathy towards other employees.

Most of the studies came up with the same issue that engineering education provide
insufficient practical skills for engineering students, hence the graduates’ lack of practical
knowledge and technical skills. Perhaps there can be adjustments that can be made in the
curriculum to aid the graduates bridge the gap between learning environment and their field
of work. It was suggested by Bersin (2012) to educational institutions that they should
focus and invest in training their students to hone their competence in their desired work.
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CHAPTER 3

METHODOLOGY

3.1 Introduction

This chapter presents the research methodology that has been adopted in the study.

It also described the research design that was chosen, the subject of the study, the

instruments used for data collection, the procedures that are followed to carry out the study,

data analysis scheme which include the application of statistical tool for treatment of data

yielded, and the criteria used to evaluate the gathered data. The study will utilize descriptive

research design.

3.2 Research Design

This study used a descriptive research design in which according to Shuttleworth

(2018), it is a scientific method which involves observing and describing the behavior of a

subject without influencing it in any way. This study focused on the evaluation of work

preparedness of BulSU’s civil engineering graduates from year 2009 to 2013 as perceived

by the graduates and their employers. The research design was non-experimental,

quantitative, and descriptive. The graduates as well as their employers was considered as

respondents. Cross sectional survey was used and a questionnaire was provided that served

as an aid to request for the personal and job profile of the graduates.

The researchers contacted the graduates by getting the list of their names in the

registrar’s office and reaching out to them by the use of social media and/or meeting up

with those graduates who agreed that are nearby and in their spare time. Administering of

the questionnaire to each respondents was through online process (e.g. E-mail, and
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Facebook) and the said questionnaire was created using Google Forms. Respondents were

requested to complete the questionnaire within 2 weeks after receiving it and a follow up

reminder was sent through the respondents after a week to avoid overlook. Any data

collected are treated with utmost confidentiality by the researchers.

Only selected companies was chosen because of the short time frame. Evaluation

forms for the company in assessing the graduates were also provided by the researchers.

However, if the company chooses to use their own evaluation form and permits the

researchers to keep hold of it, they can freely do so added with the evaluation form given

by the researchers for the sake of uniformity in data gathering and data analysis.

3.3 Testing and Design Procedure

The respondents of the study were BS Civil Engineering graduates from school

year 2009 to 2013. The names of the graduates were collected from the Alumni’s Office

and Registrar’s Office. The study aimed to use the total population of the graduates. The

researchers used a questionnaire as the main instrument in the study. The questionnaire

was composed of questions regarding the respondent’s profile, job placement, work-

related values, and relevance of skills developed in Bulacan State University.

The respondents was informed about the purposes of the study and were invited to

participate in the survey with the assurance that the data they provided in the survey are

being treated with utmost confidentiality and shall solely be used for the purpose of this

study. The questionnaires were administered by the researchers through online survey

and directly to the respondents. The study aimed to achieve 100 percent of retrieval

rating.
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3.4 Evaluation Procedure and Criteria

Some qualitative information in the questionnaire were analyzed using cross

tabulation and frequency tables. Similarly, four points Likert Scale with responses Very

Good (VG), Good (G), Poor (P), Very Poor (VP) and Strongly Agree (SA), Agree (A),

Disagree (D), Strongly Disagree (SD) to measure the quality and adequacy of the Bachelor

of Science in Civil Engineering Program offered in Bulacan State University and another

Very Relevant (VR), Relevant (R), Slightly Relevant (SR) and Not Relevant (NR) was

used to collect the responses of the graduates about the relevancy of the Civil Engineering

Curriculum to the actual world of work. Lastly, Very Highly (VH), Highly (H), Fairly (F),

Poorly (P) was used to determine the work preparedness of the graduates relative to some

areas of their jobs. These information were analyzed to calculate means and standard

deviation considering the weight of the points from 1 - 4. In the quantitative data analysis,

tools like frequencies, cross-tabulations, mean comparison was used.

Likert Scale

Scale Scale Range Verbal Interpretation


4 3.50 - 4.00 Very Good
3 3.49 - 2.50 Good
2 2.49 - 1.50 Poor
1 1.49 - 1.00 Very Poor

Scale Scale Range Verbal Interpretation


4 3.50 - 4.00 Very Relevant
3 3.49 - 2.50 Relevant
2 2.49 - 1.50 Slightly Relevant
1 1.49 - 1.00 Irrelevant
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Scale Scale Range Verbal Interpretation


4 3.50 - 4.00 Strongly Agree
3 3.49 - 2.50 Agree
2 2.49 - 1.50 Disagree
1 1.49 - 1.00 Strongly Disagree

Scale Scale Range Verbal Interpretation


4 3.50 - 4.00 Very Highly
3 3.49 - 2.50 Highly
2 2.49 - 1.50 Fairly
1 1.49 - 1.00 Poorly

Sampling Technique

A stratified sampling was used in this study. By using sampling technique for the

selection of representatives. The total number of BS civil engineering students from each

batch to get the proportionate sampling. The researchers created a total sample by selecting

the appropriate proportion of the participants from batch of graduates. It was important that

the total number of sample was determined first by using:

Slovin’s Formula

𝑁
n=
1 + 𝑁𝑒 2

n = sample size
N = given population size
e = margin of error
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Data Processing and Statistical Treatment

The data were collected by the use of instruments that was developed for the

purpose of this study. The responses from 249 graduates and 18 employers were first

coded then entered into the multipurpose commercial statistical algorithm Minitab

version 16.

Qualitative informations in both questionnaires were analyzed using cross

tabulation and frequency tables. Similarly , sets of four points Likert Scale with responses

“Very Good”, “Good”, “Poor”, “Very Poor” ; “Very relevant”, “Relevant”, “Not

relevant”, “Irrelevant” ; “Strongly Disagree”, “Disagree”, “Agree”, “Strongly Agree” ;

and “Poorly”, “Fairly”, “Highly”, “Very Highly” were used to collect the responses of

graduates about the quality and relevancy of the BS Civil Engineering Program that they

received which will then be analyzed using the evaluation criteria.

In the quantitative data analysis, tools like frequencies, percent, and mean

comparison were basically used. Descriptive statistics was used to describe the level of

agreement in the assessment of the employability of the graduates. In addition to these

analytical tools, two-sample t-test and two-proportion test were also considered as per the

nature of data and necessity of analysis. Using the Minitab software, the P-value can be

computed which is to be compared to the significance level (denoted as α or alpha). If the

p-value is greater than the significance level, the decision is to fail to reject the null

hypothesis. If the p-value is less than or equal to the significance level, the decision is to

reject the null hypothesis.


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Custodiosa A. Sanches and Fe B. Agpao, Contemporary Social Problems and Issues

Thirdedition 1997, New Galaxy Lithographic Arts and Printing Press, p.196

Martin, R., Maytham, R., Case, J., & Fraser, D., (2005) Engineering graduates’

perceptions of how well they were prepared for work in industry, European Journal of

Engineering Education, 30:2, 167-180,.

Canlas, M. E. L., & Maria Cristina, R. (2009). Youth employment in the Philippines.

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Caballero, C., Walker, A., & Fuller-Tyszkiewicz, M. (2011). The Work Readiness Scale

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Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability.

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Makki, B. I., Salleh, R., Memon, M. A., & Harun, H., (2015). The Relationship between

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Poso, J. (2017), Level of Competence of Civil Engineers in the Philippines: Its Projects

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