DETERMINATION OF DIFFERENTIAL ITEM FUNCTIONING OF AN EMPLOYABILITY READINESS SCALE FOR UNIVERSITY UNDERGRADUATES IN NORTH-CENTRAL NIGERIA

The study determined the differential item functioning of the items of the Employability Readiness Scale for University Undergraduates (ERSUU) in North-Central Nigeria. The disparity in the level of employability skills possessed by undergraduate students in term of the university attended and the higher rate of unemployment among female graduates in comparison to the males prompted the study. The population of the study comprised 33,980 final year university undergraduates in 2021/2022 academic session. A sample of 1,093 students was drawn from the population using a proportional stratified sampling technique. A 43-items Employability Readiness Scale for University Undergraduates (ERSUU), which measured the level of possession of employability skills (communication skills, information and communication skills, analytical skills, team spirit skills, lifelong learning skills, creativity skills and entrepreneurial skills) was developed and validated by the researcher and was used for data collection. The data collected were analyzed using ordinal logistic regression to determine if items of the scale function differentially in terms of the gender of the students. Seven experts from different fields judged the relevance and adequate representation of the items of the ERSUU in terms of the universal content of the constructs measured. The index of logical validity of 0.95 and the reliability coefficient of 0.92 were established for the ERSUU. It was found that none of the items of the scale discriminate against any group of students in terms of gender. The study recommended that the scale could be used to measure the possession of employability skills of undergraduates before transition into the world of works.