Beyond Discipline and Technical Knowledge: Industry Perspectives on the Business Curriculum

Abstract

A survey of business people, Victoria University business studies alumni and business academics revealed a strong preference for curricula, learning activities and assessments that develop professional skills and personal attributes, adding value to the student learning experience and developing graduate capabilities beyond discipline and technical knowledge. This research underscores evidence on the importance of both the cognitive and dispositional dimensions of critical thinking and the skills and attributes of effective problem solvers. Employers are increasingly looking for balanced graduates: capable, motivated, self-aware, effective communicators with a sense of a future in which work and business will be dynamic and ever-changing.