Mohammed Ali A Al Mallak

Doctor of Philosophy, (Accounting)
Study Completed: 2018
Massey Business School

Citation

Thesis Title
Generic skills in accounting education in Saudi Arabia

Read article at Massey Research Online: MRO icon

The lack of generic skills among accounting graduates is an issue of ongoing concern as the gaps between the needs of employers and the skills of graduates hinder the economic development in Saudi Arabia. Based on International Education Standards 3 and 4, Mr Al Mallak examined five categories of generic skills: intellectual, personal, organisational and business management, interpersonal and communication, and ethics. Further, using Bui and Porter’s (2010) theoretical framework, he assessed within-group and between-group gaps of four stakeholder groups (final year students, accounting graduates, educators, and employers) and the factors hindering the development of generic skills. His study contributes to the literature on generic skills in non-western nations, where not much of the current literature is focused. The results provided evidence of skills gaps, highlighted areas of concern in the Saudi graduates’ skill development in accounting education and had implications for the human capital of the nation.

Supervisors
Professor Fawzi Laswad
Associate Professor Lin Mei Tan