Great Expectations

Skills are understood as key issues in the labour market and conceptualised as individual attributes needed to perform competent work. The distinction between hard and soft skills is one of the most used theoretical conceptualization – hard skills being understood as technical skills, required of professionals, and soft skills being seen as personal traits which are not specifically related to the function. One hundred years after the publication of Mann's A Study of Engineering Education (1918), and as employers expect a new level of readiness from new hires, the focus is on bridging the soft skills gap. However, most of the literature delves into mismatched expectations of both industry and educators, and little documentation can be found regarding the skills that future employees believe their employers will require.