Abstract:

Job creation has been one of Saudi Arabia's concerns for numerous years. One of the primary goals of higher education is to provide students with the skills they will need to succeed in the job market. 21st-century digital skills are particularly important among these abilities. Therefore, the current study investigates the availability of these skills among the graduates of Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University (IAU), KSA. A questionnaire was created that includes five dimensions of digital skills (technical, information management, communication, collaboration, and problem solving) and was employed to collect data from IAU graduates regarding their level of 21st-century digital skills. The survey was given to IAU graduates of 2020 and 2021. Out of 6000 graduates, only 1200 responded to the survey. A descriptive analysis was used to analyze the data. The results indicated that these graduates have a good level of digital skills and that they possess high levels of most of the digital skills included in the survey such as saving digital files directly to the right folder and using technology for communication and collaboration. However, some of them still need support in other skills, such as programming and software development and searching as well as evaluating and organizing information in digital environments. More than 40% of the respondents reported that they have very low ability to do these activities. This study suggested supporting the digital transformation. This can be undertaken within education and training system. Furthermore, training initiatives should be offerred to employees through their professional development.

Keywords:

21st-century digital skills, higher education, KSA, Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University.