Self-assessment instrument to measure the competencies of Namibian graduates: Testing of validity and reliability

Namibia has been reported to be one of the countries with the highest unemployment rates. In this work, the reliability and validity of the self-assessment instrument used to measure competencies of graduates in Namibia were assessed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and second-order confirmatory factor analysis (CFA). The EFA results demonstrated that the twenty indicators can be categorized into five factors, namely, “management and resilience”, “professional and communication”, “teamwork and critical thinking”, “self-control”, and “achievement motive”. The CFA results showed that all of the factors and indicators are highly reliable with good construct validity. Students and graduates could employ this validated self-assessment instrument to assess or diagnose a pattern of strengths and weaknesses in their own competencies and provide themselves with a realistic and objective estimate of their employability, as well as help them increase effectiveness in their workplace.