The Mismatch between Undergraduate Marketing Education and Employers' Requirements in Portugal

Abstract

The debate on what should be offered by universities concerning their marketing education curricula in order to serve the market needs, specifically the employers' has been widely present in the literature. Its relevance derives from the fact that employers are one of the most important stakeholders of higher education institutions, given their responsibility in the career of graduate students. In this chapter we intend to contribute to the understanding of the state of undergraduate marketing education offered by Portuguese universities and assess whether there is a mismatch between marketing education and market needs. A better understanding of the mismatch and its implications can lead to better marketing education programs, increasing not only the acceptance and employability of students but also the transfer of innovative marketing knowledge to companies. The findings show that there is indeed a gap between what is being offered by the academia and what is requested by the job market, in terms of marketing, that could be higher than 50% of the requirements expected by employers.