EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS FOR THE DIGITAL AGE: A LITERATURE REVIEW OF INDUSTRY EXPECTATIONS FROM POST-GRADUATE STUDENTS

This paper analyzes twenty years of academic research (2005-2025) to investigate the alignment of employability skills developed during postgraduate education with the changing requirements of industry in the digital era. The objectives are to: (1) examine academic and industry viewpoints on employability competencies; (2) evaluate the degree to which current postgraduate training aligns with employer expectations; and (3) ascertain the essential skills necessary for professional success in modern organizational environments. The review shows that employability has changed from being mostly about grades to being about a wider range of skills, such as communication, critical thinking, adaptability, professional behavior, and digital fluency. Even though there have been many changes to the curriculum and new teaching methods like Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) and Project-Based Learning (PBL), there is still a big difference between what happens in schools and what happens in the real world. This misalignment is exacerbated by disparate stakeholder expectations and inconsistent implementation mechanisms within higher education systems. Based on these ideas, the paper suggests a conceptual way to close the gap between academia and industry and describes how to create a prototype employability training module for PGDM students. By bringing together twenty years of research, the study helps to clarify the employability gap in the digital age and provides information for evidence-based curriculum redesign in postgraduate professional education, as well as a customized training module.