Sustainable Development of Soft Skills with the Purpose of Enhancing the Employability of Engineering Students

Irina Gerasimova and Irina Oblova ()
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Irina Gerasimova: Department of Foreign Languages, Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University, 199106 St. Petersburg, Russia
Irina Oblova: Department of Foreign Languages, Empress Catherine II Saint Petersburg Mining University, 199106 St. Petersburg, Russia

Sustainability, 2025, vol. 17, issue 6, 1-23

Abstract: Engineering students’ readiness for professional activity is not limited by their academic qualifications, technical skills, and further use of theoretical knowledge in practice. However, it is equally important for students to be able to defend opinions, substantiate their position, and possess career adaptability and employability resources in the course of their career. This mixed-method study utilizes the social cognitive theory and a metacognitive approach to reveal the possibilities of sustainable employability enhancement. The employability of students relies on various internal determinants within individuals. This paper describes the personal and social skills of the students and their needs in English and provides suggestions on simultaneously scaling up employability and English proficiency within English classes. The study methodology includes the English for specific purposes course instructional design (ESP) and measurement methods evaluating its effectiveness. An empirical study was conducted on a sample of 200 second-year engineering students learning ESP. The findings of the research indicated that engineering students enrolled in the optional ESP course succeeded in enhancing their soft skills along with their progress in English, compared to students who only had traditional lessons.

Keywords: sustainable education; employability skills; readiness for professional activity; engineering students; English for specific purposes (ESP); career development learning; career adaptability and employability resources; career adapt-abilities scale (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: O13 Q Q0 Q2 Q3 Q5 Q56 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
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