Competency Development in University Business Students: A Multiperspective Analysis

University business schools work to produce graduates who are knowledgeable in each of the business disciplines (e.g., accounting, management) as well as subject matter related to their chosen major or concentration area. B-schools also seek to develop some of the key professional competencies that are needed by individuals working in business. There are other competencies that may be important in business but are either impossible or impractical to develop in a university environment, and graduates must develop those competencies after beginning their business careers. We investigated three research questions relating to the importance, trainability, and development of 22 professional competencies in business school students. 1. Do students, faculty members, and HR professionals agree on the relative importance of the competencies? 2. To what degree do faculty members and HR professionals believe each of the competencies is trainable in a college setting? 3. To what extent do students and faculty members believe that students currently receive learning, practice, and feedback to develop the competencies while in college