Communication Skills and its Impact on the Marketability of UKM Graduates

Organizations have always placed emphasis on the public’s voices as an effort to continue enhancing their service towards society. University’s performance and its relevance in a nation is highly dependent on the marketability of its students. The ability to widely distribute their students and to heighten their mobility in society and in the work field importantly reflects the overall performance of the University. The Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia placed eight compulsory soft skills courses every student has to pass before they can graduate. This was done to ensure that all of Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia’s students are exposed with all dimensions of soft skills throughout their studies as they play a crucial role in enhancing students’ marketability. Perceptions from 35 final year students, 2 lecturers, 3 Private Sector representative and 20 first year students towards the beneficial roles of these skills were conducted via interview. It’s agreeable that communication skills are the most favorable to determine the marketability of UKM students. Low command of both Bahasa Melayu and English are one of the contributing factors to this. UKM graduates are seen to be less sensitive towards recent issues around the world thus they’re not confident to participate in a group discussion. This article will reveal problems and strategic ways to encounter challenges, by enriching UKM students with different learning experiences of good communication skills and its impact towards their marketability after they graduate.