Soft skills proficiency among male and female quantity surveying graduates in public and private institutions
List of Authors
  • Chin I-Chee, Nurshikin Mohamad Shukery

Keyword
  • Soft Skills, Quantity Surveyors, Private Institutions, Private Institutions, Gender

Abstract
  • Interpersonal skills are important for quantity surveyors (QS) to execute their work efficiently. Despite many institutions in Malaysia striving to equip students with essential skills, graduates still lack the necessary soft skills for employability. There has been an increase in female QS within the surveying profession, with job responsibilities equal for both genders. There is a paucity of research regarding soft skills level among male and female QS and between graduates from public and private institutions in Malaysia. Therefore, this research aims to identify the soft skill proficiency among QS graduates from these institutions and to determine the relationship between gender and soft skills performance among QS graduates. The research focuses on Provisional Quantity Surveyors (PVQS), who graduate from institutions accredited by BQSM. Data was collected via a questionnaire survey and analysed through descriptive and comparative analyses. The findings indicate that both institutions demonstrated a very high level of agreement in soft skills proficiency, with only slight difference in scores. When comparing mean scores, public institutions exhibit a slightly higher level of soft skill proficiency. In public institutions, the top three skills were good communication skill and time management skill, team working and self-confidence, whereas in private institutions, the top three skills were critical thinking, good communication skill and problem-solving skill. By using Mann-Whitney U test in determining the significant difference in the soft skills proficiency between male and female QS graduates has indicate that there is a relationship between gender and soft skill performance of QS graduates from both institutions. From Sperman rho’s finding, it shows that there is a negative weak strength correlation between gender and soft skill performance, with a statistically significant effect. This means that while there is a relationship, it is not strong and gender is not a dominant factor in soft skills performance.

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