LAS COMPETENCIAS BLANDAS DEL PROFESIONAL ECONÓMICO-ADMINISTRATIVO: NIVEL ADQUIRIDO DURANTE FORMACIÓN UNIVERSITARIA PARA SATISFACER LA DEMANDA DEL MERCADO LABORAL

Abstract

The constant changes in work scenarios constitute a challenge for universities as they have to train students who respond to the requirements of the labor market. This research was aimed at determining the perception that graduates of economic-administrative careers have about the level of soft skills acquired during their academic training and their relevance for their job employability. For the case study, a methodology with a quantitative approach is used, with a non-experimental, cross-sectional design where graduates from a public university in the northwest of Mexico participated. To obtain data, a virtual instrument with a Likert-type scale was applied. The results show that the participants report having an adequate level of soft skills such as the development of critical thinking, problem solving, time management, teamwork, effective communication, social interaction, adaptation to change, leadership, among others. However, it is detected that they lack decision-making skills and, above all, a low level of English proficiency. This type of analysis is an approach that helps detect which soft skills academic institutions should strengthen in students, in order to improve their employability and facilitate their job placement by covering the real demand of companies.