Competencies and attributes needed by accounting graduates (alumni) in the world of work (perceptions of Politeknik Negeri Lampung accounting alumni and perceptions of the employer)

The objective of this research was to test perceptions of accounting graduates fromPoliteknik Negeri Lampung and employers to various competencies and their attributes. Theperceptions of accounting graduates and employers were ranked to produce competence types(attributes) that were categorized into two skills; generic and technical skills. The researchrespondents were graduates of the Accounting Study program in Politeknik Negeri Lampungand representatives from employer or company managements. The hypothesis was tested witha one-tailed paired t-test and ranking was done based on the mean score from each skill. Theresearch result showed that the accounting graduates considered generic skill was overall moreimportant than technical skill, even though individually technical skill was more important thangeneric skill and it was proven by the highest mean score at technical skill according to theaccounting graduates‟ perceptions. This research also found that overall the employerconsidered generic skill was more important than technical skill, even though individuallytechnical skill obtained the highest mean score according to employer perceptions