Guidelines for Developing Quality of Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University Graduates to Meet Employers’ Expectations

Abstract

The objectives of this  study were: 1) to study the opinions and satisfaction of the employers on the  quality of STOU graduates in foundation skills, professional competencies, personal attributes, enterprise/ business/organizational skills, and technical/domain-specific knowledge and skills; 2) to identify ideas and suggestions of the employers, the graduates, instructors and supporting staff of STOU for improving the quality of the graduates ; and 3) to propose a set of guidelines for developing the quality of STOU graduates to meet the employers’ expectations. The research samples comprised 363 employers, 572 bachelor’s degree graduates from all faculties, 59 lecturers, and 50 staff members from related offices of the University, totally 1,044 people.  Research instruments were four sets of questionnaire for 4 sample groups  and two interview forms.  The  data from the field study and related literature were synthesized to develop the set of guidelines for improving quality of the graduates. The draft set of guidelines was presented to 10 distance education experts in a focus group seminar as suggestions for improvement.   The data were analyzed using the frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and content analysis.

The objectives of this  study were: 1) to study the opinions and satisfaction of the employers on the  quality of STOU graduates in foundation skills, professional competencies, personal attributes, enterprise/ business/organizational skills, and technical/domain-specific knowledge and skills; 2) to identify ideas and suggestions of the employers, the graduates, instructors and supporting staff of STOU for improving the quality of the graduates ; and 3) to propose a set of guidelines for developing the quality of STOU graduates to meet the employers’ expectations. The research samples comprised 363 employers, 572 bachelor’s degree graduates from all faculties, 59 lecturers, and 50 staff members from related offices of the University, totally 1,044 people.  Research instruments were four sets of questionnaire for 4 sample groups  and two interview forms.  The  data from the field study and related literature were synthesized to develop the set of guidelines for improving quality of the graduates. The draft set of guidelines was presented to 10 distance education experts in a focus group seminar as suggestions for improvement.   The data were analyzed using the frequency, percentage, mean, standard deviation, and content analysis.