Designing The Graduate Employability Framework in Malaysian Higher Education Using ‎The Nominal Group Technique (NGT)‎

  • Authors

    • Roslizawati binti Taib Faculty of Social Science and Humanities, Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and ‎ Technology (TAR UMT), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0155-7436
    • Benny Thomas Vivian Faculty of Social Science and Humanities, Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and ‎ Technology (TAR UMT), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
    • Intan Nazuha binti Abdullah Faculty of Built Environment, Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and Technology ‎‎ (TAR UMT), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
    • Aiman Nabihah binti Hisshamuddin Faculty of Social Science and Humanities, Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and ‎ Technology (TAR UMT), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
    • Ramlan Mustapha‎ 3, Law Mei Yui Faculty of Social Science and Humanities, Tunku Abdul Rahman University of Management and ‎ Technology (TAR UMT), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
    https://doi.org/10.14419/zx1qzf53

    Received date: November 18, 2025

    Accepted date: December 20, 2025

    Published date: December 31, 2025

  • Graduate Employability; Nominal Group Technique (NGT); Emotional Intelligence (EQ); ‎Soft Skills; Higher Education; Malaysia

  • Abstract

    Graduates' ability to secure a job has been regarded as a significant indicator of the efficacy ‎of a higher education institution. Given that Malaysia's higher education system is unique, ‎this research aims to develop a graduate employability model using the Nominal Group ‎Technique (NGT), as it is specifically tailored to Malaysia's context. Collaboration between ‎universities, workplaces, and governments aimed to achieve a common understanding. This ‎research aims to address five core issues related to basic emotional intelligence and soft ‎skills, including expert agreement on the constituent elements of the framework to be ‎designed, comparative models of employability across different countries, and the ‎interconnections among the skills in question. Social awareness and empathy, self-control of ‎emotions, self-improvement, moral communication, and moral values, which are essential in ‎preparing graduates for the workforce, are the five highest-ranked and most important areas ‎resolved by consensus among the five NGT experts. This study demonstrates that NGT can develop more relevant research frameworks, particularly those that combine ‎the emotional, social, and ethical aspects of graduate development. The approach aligns ‎with the Malaysia Education Blueprint for Higher Education (2015-2025) and the ‎Graduate Employability Strategic Plan (MOHE, 2021), calling for universities to more ‎strategically align their teaching and other exploratory activities with emergent graduate ‎employability. This article contributes to the theorisation of employability by locating the ‎Malaysian education system in an employer's model of employability, while at the same ‎time providing practical ways of improving graduate success and meeting educational aims‎.

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    binti Taib, R., Vivian, B. T. ., Abdullah, I. N. binti ., Hisshamuddin , A. N. binti ., & Yui , R. M. 3, L. M. . (2025). Designing The Graduate Employability Framework in Malaysian Higher Education Using ‎The Nominal Group Technique (NGT)‎. International Journal of Basic and Applied Sciences, 14(8), 616-625. https://doi.org/10.14419/zx1qzf53