The influence of the perceived value of the university degree on the self-perception of the employability of the student in Benin

Abstract

In a context of scarcity of hiring, universities continue to train students so that they are employable. However, after the training, most of the students wonder about their employability. The purpose of this research is to assess the influence of the perceived value of the university degree of young students on their self-perception of employability. To achieve this, we have constituted, through a survey by WhatsApp forums, a sample of 662 volunteer students, both in public and private universities recognized by the Ministry of Higher Education of Benin. For data processing, we used structural equations that allowed us to analyze the significance of the links between our research variables. The results show that the perceived usefulness of the university degree, as well as the reputation of the university and the motivations for choosing a course strongly influences the perception of self-employability of students. Our results were compared with those of other research. We have here proven that in the context of underdeveloped countries like ours, more and more students no longer see themselves as able to find a job, based exclusively on their diplomas. They therefore prefer to reorient themselves towards activities capable of giving them financial autonomy. However, this research admits limits, particularly with regard to the choice of the sampling mode but also the mixing in terms of public and private universities.

Keywords: Perceived value; University diploma ; employability; university reputation

JEL Classification : M12 : M50

Paper type: Empirical research