Husain, S H; Shahruddin, S; Norazman, N; Salim, N A and Mustaffa, M (2025) A systematic literature review on formulating the employability skill set for entry-level building surveyors. International Journal of Construction Management, 25(14), pp. 1660-1674. ISSN 1562-3599
Abstract
Qualified professionals with relevant competencies and skills are crucial for the continuous improvement of professional practice in response to job demands and technological changes. This study aimed to identify and formulate the current and future employability skills that employers value when graduate building surveyors apply for entry-level positions, from a global perspective. A systematic review of the databases such as ScienceDirect, Scopus, and Web of Science (WoS) identified a total of 42 relevant papers. This review was conducted following the guidelines of the systematic literature review (SLR) and the PRISMA Statement (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses). Upon closer examination of these articles, five major themes emerged: knowledge and understanding, cognitive skills, functional work skills, personal and entrepreneurial skills, and ethics and professionalism. These five themes were further divided into 11 sub-themes and 36 skill elements. Despite the novelty of this article, several recommendations are made for conducting further real-world studies to gain a broader perspective on the employability skills required. Such studies should consider the views from students, graduates, employers, and university lecturers in the context of employability skills for building surveyors, thereby promoting professional competency in the built environment and construction industry practices.
| Item Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | building surveyors; built environment; employability skills; employment; graduates; systematic literature reviews |
| Index terms: | professional practice, database, ethics, continuous improvement, meta-analysis, employability, science, professionalism, employment, building surveyor, built environment, technological change, systematic literature review, job demand, construction industry practice |
| Subjects: | research evaluation and metrics, infrastructure and transport systems, profession, human resources and leadership, data management, management, performance measurement, specialized education, innovation studies, ethical practice, professional development |
| Topics: | Digital Applications, Quality Management, Human Resources, Urban Studies, Information Management, Research Practice, Education, Roles and Professions, Business Strategy |
| Descriptive scope: | 5 PCTEA |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here