Determinants of the need for postgraduate training

Abstract

This paper establishes the determinants of professionals’ postgraduate training needs. A quantitative survey of a sample of 492 professionals from Valle del Cauca, Colombia was conducted. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling to verify the research hypotheses. The results show that the factors affecting the need for postgraduate training are individuals’ perceptions about their level of skill development and about the benefits of professional development. The findings suggest that career advancement is the most valued outcome of postgraduate training. Fieldwork was conducted with a sample of professionals located in the Valle del Cauca in Colombia, so it is important to continue validating the hypotheses in other regions to enable a comparison of results from different contexts. The study contributes to an understanding of the relationship between the variables and the explanation of the determinants of professionals’ perceptions of the need for postgraduate training. It also provides elements for decision-making in the strategic design of postgraduate training offerings. Considering the scarcity of research on the variables that determine the need for postgraduate training, this study provides one of the first theoretical and empirical validations of a perceptual measurement scale of professional training needs in Latin America.

Keywords

Educational needs postgraduate training professional skills perception of training structural equations

Business systems, especially in developing economies, face great challenges in entering the knowledge-based economy and achieving competitiveness. In this sense, the development of human capital is essential for economic advancement (Drucker, 2005), the improvement of efficiency, and social development. However, there is little theoretical and empirical evidence to determine postgraduate training needs and gaps for the development of the competencies required in the current competitive dynamics.

This research study was carried out from the perspective of professionals, and it identifies the factors that determine the needs for postgraduate training, considering that labor markets require advanced cognitive skills that are achieved through the consolidation of the bases of human capital (World Bank, 2019). In this context, Bowles and Gintis (2014) state that the perception of need that people have in accessing better positions with better benefits determines their choice of training. Similarly, the development of capacities and competencies contributes both to productivity and performance, as well as to quality and the generation of knowledge-intensive employment (ILO, 2017; Organization of American States (OEI), 1996; Vargas et al., 2017).

Considering the theoretical evidence, the research aimed to establish the variables that determine the needs for postgraduate training in professionals from Valle del Cauca, Colombia. In this regard, the hypothesis is that, if we know the perception of the level of development of competencies and the perception regarding the contribution of training to professional development, then the need for postgraduate training can be determined.

To test this hypothesis, an exploratory correlational study was conducted with a sample of 492 people with a university degree in different professions in Valle del Cauca. The data were obtained using an online form through a market research firm. The majority of the participants were administration (27%) and engineering (20%) professionals. Other professionals were from the areas of education (3.7%), law (3.0%) and health (2.6%). The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling.

The results indicate that the factors explaining the need for postgraduate training in professionals are the perception of the level of development of competencies (DC) and the perception regarding the benefits of postgraduate training for professional development (BFP). In this regard, according to the high weight load, the most important BFP factor is “a postgraduate degree allows one to rise hierarchically in the organization” and the most important DC factor is “the degree to which one considers their competency developed”.

The article is divided into four parts. The first part comprises the introduction and the theoretical references that support the research. The second part presents the analytical methodology based on structural equation modeling (SEM) used to develop the objectives. The third part presents the results obtained from the data analysis using structural equations to validate the hypotheses. The fourth part presents the conclusions and the theoretical references that support the research.

Postgraduate training needs

The importance of postgraduate training has to do not only with the training of professionals and scientific research (Martin and Etzkowitz, 2000), but also with the social demands made to universities in the “Third Mission”, according to which they should strive to transfer the results of their teaching and research processes in a pertinent and contextualized way (Bueno and Casani, 2007). In the words of Aguirre et al. (2019: 12), this involves an “increase in the competencies of graduates to achieve high performances in diverse environments and with a global vision supported by ICT”. Graduates thus need to develop a capacity to work in interdisciplinary ways (Nyquist and Woodford, 2000). An important factor is that “a population’s education level largely determines its quality of life” (Acosta et al., 2019: 36). Furthermore, professional qualification facilitates access to the labor market (Manacorda et al., 2010).

Professional development is a motivation factor for workers, and the productive sector incorporates it in its organizational culture (Areas Galicia, 2001; Lipowsky, 2011; Nieves Zubillaga, 2013). Several researchers stress that the concept has developed because of the needs of the productive sector (Miranda Padilla et al., 2015), which focuses attention on human capital (Rodríguez Gómez, 2009). However, in the higher education sector professional development training implies scientific, technical and labor training. Education integrates the social, cultural and economic dimensions of human beings (Llerena Companioni, 2015; Morin, 2004).

Jaramillo Salazar (2009: 132) considers that “Human competency and institutional capacity are increasingly closely related”. Thus the Ministry of National Education of Colombia, in Executive order 1001 (2006), differentiates the professional Master’s degrees that “delve into an area of knowledge and the development of competencies that allow the solution of problems or the analysis of particular disciplinary, interdisciplinary and professional situations” from research Master’s degrees, which “are characterized by developing competencies that allow participation in research processes, generation of new scientific and technological knowledge, and their possibility of transitioning to a doctoral program” (Jaramillo Salazar, 2009).

Regarding the above, several researchers stress the need for postgraduate training that can respond to “relevant, current social needs and perspectives, to the identification of scientific, technological, socioeconomic and cultural trends” (De la Cruz-Soriano et al., 2014: 112). This is how curricular proposals for the various advanced training cycles that are put on the market must respond to the social and economic problems of the country (Castro and Bernaza, 2004: 2; Estrada and Benítez, 2006: 49–58; Núñez Núñez Jover et al., 2006: 5–20).

Bowles and Gintis (2014) explain professional development through human capital theory and state that training is provided in light of the perceived need of individuals to improve the benefits they will obtain when they acquire a new and better position. Further, training is determined by the needs of the productive sector. Thus, this study considers the benefits that postgraduate training can generate as a variable affecting the need for training of professionals.

Contribution of postgraduate training

One aspect to consider is that postgraduate training allows the subject to respond to the different industrial and technological challenges that the working world poses. For this reason, universities must establish collaborations “with the productive sectors” (Aguirre et al., 2019: 11) in such a way that they can respond to “the new modifications of knowledge, which develop in the professional the capacity to assimilate new information, to generate innovation” (Rodríguez Reyes, 2017: 109). In light of the continuous challenges and the degree of responsibility of universities with regard to professional training and competence development, there is a need for “a whole set of strategies and efficient and effective measures to show that the processes of certification of competencies are really effective” (de Almeida Souza, 2008: 689).

Based on the foregoing, a new production paradigm is proposed that focuses on assumptions such as interdisciplinarity, heterogeneity and the intensification of relationships between knowledge generators. The new challenges require intellectual capital to respond to the variables of the environment and an understanding of the context and needs of the region that will lead to the execution of various research activities (De Frutos-Belizón et al., 2019). This means that organizations must focus their efforts on collective capacity and knowledge in such a way that responses to social and ecological problems can be effectively supported (MacDonald et al., 2019). An important element in this process is an understanding of how management practices can help to develop people’s capacities (Salazar, 2019).

Development of professional skills

Another important factor to take into account is that a company must be able to respond to the challenges and demands of its environment, and so to generate competitive advantage – since, to respond successfully to those challenges and demands, it must continually renew its strategies and optimize its resources (Näyhä, 2020), alongside the continuous evolution of knowledge and technology.

This need constitutes a major responsibility for higher education institutions, since the postgraduate training offered must transcend the academic experience; that is, it must provide training for the performance of the individual in his or her job. This, in turn, implies an “emphasis on the improvement of personal skills and organization” (Tejada Fernández and Navío Gámez, 2005: 1). It is pertinent to note the observation of Betancurt Amariles (2010) who, paraphrasing Marín (2004: 216), indicates that “competencies are developed and updated in the different contexts in which each human being acts”. Furthermore, Tejada (2003: 6) had already drawn attention to this issue when he stressed that the development of professional competencies should “place greater emphasis on the globality of the individual’s capacities and reconstruct the contents of the training in a more productive, less academic logic, and more oriented to solving problems”.

Methodology

The research takes a pragmatic, functionalist or instrumentalist approach, which, according to Vázquez et al. (2001), is characterized by considering science as an instrument to make theoretical postulates that are generally more reliable. The pragmatic method aims to “interpret each notion by tracing its respective practical consequences” (Johnson and Onwuegbuzie, 2004: 17). In other words, it allows the connection of the proposed theoretical model with the practical utility that postgraduate training has for individuals with regard to their professional development.

A quantitative, non-experimental methodology was used due to the impossibility of control and replication of the variables to be studied with a cross-section since the information was obtained at a single time (in 2019) in the selected population (professionals in the department of Valle del Cauca, Colombia).

The scope is exploratory and correlational since existing studies related to the research objectives for the professional population segment are limited. Similarly, we considered that perceptual measures are commonly used in management- and strategy-related studies, especially when the variables investigated are difficult to measure or are not available (Sapienza et al., 1988, cited by Annunziata et al., 2018).

To respond to the objective, a literature review and subsequent data collection in the field were carried out to validate the following research hypotheses:

H0: If the perception of the level of development of competencies and the perception regarding the benefits of postgraduate training for professional development are known, then the perceived need for postgraduate training is known.

Drawing on previous research (Aguirre et al., 2019; Betancurt Amariles, 2010; Bowles and Gintis, 2014; Manacorda et al., 2010; Rodriguez Reyes, 2017; Tejada Fernández and Navío Gámez, 2005; ILO, 2017; OEI, 1996; Vargas et al., 2017), this study proposes the following variables to determine the perception of the postgraduate training needs of professionals:

H1: If the perception of the level of skills development is known, then the perceived need for professional training is known.

H2: If the perception regarding the benefits of postgraduate training for professional development is known, then the perceived need for professional training is also known.

The hypotheses were verified with structural equation modeling (SEM) which, according to Ruiz et al. (2010), allows the effect and the types and direction of the relationships between multiple variables to be calculated; that is, the model can be used to propose causal structures between the variables. Thus, to establish the analytical model, we started with specification of the variables to be included in the theoretical model (path analysis), which is shown in Figure 1. The validation of the model was done through factor analysis.

Figure 1.

Theoretical model.

To determine the questionnaire, a literature review was carried out and it was determined that the most applicable model, in accordance with the proposed objective, was “guidelines for the identification and narrowing of human capital gaps for the country’s departmental productive stakes” (CAF, Private Competitiveness Council UNDP, 2015). To check the validity of the questionnaire, the construct validity method (factor analysis) was used. For the reliability of the factors, Cronbach’s alpha coefficient was calculated, and in both cases was positive (> 0.700). A seven-point Likert scale was used, in which 1 was the lowest rating and 7 the highest, when referring to the measurement of the items analysed for each factor.

The perception factor of the contribution of postgraduate training to professional development (CDP) was measured by the five items presented in Table 1 and the perception factor of the level of competency development (DC) was measured by the four items presented in Table 2.

Table 1.

Perception of the contribution of postgraduate training to professional development (BFP).

Code	Item
Q20.1	A graduate degree contributes to personal growth.
Q20.2	A postgraduate degree contributes to professional qualification.
Q20.3	A postgraduate degree improves the chances of accessing a better income.
Q20.4	A graduate degree allows one to rise in the hierarchy of the organization.
Q20.5	A graduate degree improves job performance.

Note: Items measured on Likert scale, 1–7.

Source: Created by the authors based on the human capital gaps model (CAF et al., 2015).

Table 2.

Perception of the level of competency development (DC).

Code	Item
Q34.A	Degree to which you consider that you have developed competency.
Q34.B	Degree to which you consider that competition is important to a company.
Q34.C	Degree to which you consider that formal education has contributed to the development of competency.
Q34.D	Degree to which you consider that work experience has contributed to the development of competency

Note: Items measured on Likert scale, 1–7.

Source: Created by the authors based on the human capital gaps model (CAF et al., 2015).

To verify the measurement model, confirmatory factor analysis was performed to test the relationship between the latent variables and their respective items. The measurement model examined the relationship between the questionnaire items and the constructs to demonstrate that the concepts were adequately measured. The data were analyzed using SPSS.

According to Brown (2006) and Kline (1994), the factorial load is a value between 0 and 1 which establishes the relationship between the latent variables and the observed variable. For Kline (1998), when the factorial load is less than 0.3 it is refuted because it is considered low. When it is between 0.3 and 0.6 it is considered acceptable. If it is higher than 0.6, it is considered desirable. The validation of the relationships in the model and the hypothesis testing were done using structural equations. The data were analyzed by EQS.

Sample

To verify the hypotheses in the field, a stratified probabilistic sample was selected with two criteria: (a) individuals were professionals, and (b) individuals resided in Valle del Cauca. According to calculations of the professional population from reports and censuses (Gobernación del Valle del Cauca, n.d.; Ministerio de Educación Nacional de Colombia., 2017; OECD and Eurostat, 2018), the sample was drawn from a population of approximately one million people in Valle del Cauca, Colombia. A total of 492 valid samples were obtained, which represents a confidence level of 97% and a margin of error of 5%.

Results

Validation of statistical model in the population of professionals

The statistical model was validated through factorial analysis using SPSS software (IBM Corp., 2015) and EQS (Multivariate software, 2016). Figure 2 presents the modeling of the problem, where the need for postgraduate training (VTI) is determined by the following:

• Factor 1: Perception of the benefits of postgraduate training for professional development (BFP).

• Factor 2: Perception of skills development (DC).

Figure 2.

Statistical model to establish the intention of postgraduate training. Note: Created by the authors using EQS software.

Exploratory factor analysis

To identify the factors that explain the research question, exploratory factor analysis was carried out with SPSS software to verify the number of factors that really explain the problem in the empirical application. The analysis was planned on the basis of the variables to be analyzed and the number of samples obtained. Subsequently, the correlation matrix was verified such that there would be a significant number with scores higher than 0.3 as a requirement of the analysis model and Cronbach’s alpha of > 0.700.

Once the general correlations between all the variables of the questionnaire had been established, the reduction of dimensions was carried out, as well as the KMO index, which had an acceptable value of 0.876 (> 0.5). In the same way, the diagonal of the anti-image correlation presents the variables with values greater than 0.5, as shown in Table 3.

Table 3.

Anti-image correlation matrix.

	Q20.1	Q20.2	Q20.3	Q20.4	Q20.5	Q34.A	Q34.B	Q34.C	Q34.D
Q20.1	0.840^a	−0.469	−0.046	0.112	−0.262	−0.049	0.069	−0.067	−0.040
Q20.2	−0.469	0.873^a	−0.134	−0.210	−0.063	−0.045	−0.135	0.050	0.047
Q20.3	−0.046	−0.134	0.846^a	−0.560	−0.072	0.040	−0.005	−0.183	0.014
Q20.4	0.112	−0.210	−0.560	0.824^a	−0.241	0.005	−0.002	−0.028	−0.015
Q20.5	−0.262	−0.063	−0.072	−0.241	0.929^a	0.018	−0.025	−0.051	−0.064
Q34.A	−0.049	−0.045	0.040	0.005	0.018	0.861^a	−0.510	−0.377	−0.137
Q34.B	0.069	−0.135	−0.005	−0.002	−0.025	−0.510	0.827^a	0.136	−0.480
Q34.C	−0.067	0.050	−0.183	−0.028	−0.051	−0.377	0.136	0.885^a	−0.342
Q34.D	−0.040	0.047	0.014	−0.015	−0.064	−0.137	−0.480	−0.342	0.876^a

Source: Created by the authors with SPSS software.

Finally, the validity of the factor analysis was carried out through the rotated component matrix (Table 4), which presents the structuring of the two main components that explain the problem, eliminating those with a value lower than 0.5. It was also verified that each component was made up of at least three items.

Table 4.

Rotated component matrix.

	Component
	1	2
Q34.A	0.895
Q34.D	0.887
Q34.B	0.883
Q34.C	0.767
Q20.4		0.817
Q20.3		0.806
Q20.2		0.771
Q20.5		0.736
Q20.1		0.685

Note: Extraction method: principal component analysis. Rotation method: Varimax with Kaiser normalization.

Source: Created by the authors with SPSS software.

In conclusion, the exploratory factor analysis indicates that the scale used to identify the perception of postgraduate training needs through the BFP and DC factors is reliable.

Model goodness of fit

To determine the goodness of fit, we used factorial analysis with structural equation modeling (SEM) of the variables that determine the perception of postgraduate training needs, using EQS Software. Table 5 presents a summary of the results with correlations, means, standard deviations, and reliability of the model. The mean value is between 5.94 and 6.04; the standard deviation between 0.87 and 1.20; Cronbach’s alpha is greater than 0.7; and the correlation value of the latent variables is between 0.556 and 0.671, which is close to the value accepted in the literature (p < 0.05).

Table 5.

Correlations, means, standard deviations and reliability (N = 492).

Variables	Mean	Standard Deviation	Cronbach’s alpha	Correlation
BFP	6.04	1.20	0.860	0.556
DC	5.94	0.87	0.924	0.671

Source: Created by the authors with SPSS software.

Structural analysis

To determine the reliability of the scale, the Cronbach’s alpha values were calculated and, being greater than 0.7, are satisfactory for this study (Nunnally and Bernstein, 1994). In addition, the average extracted variance (AVE) index was calculated; the minimum value of the AVE should be ≥ 0.50 and CRI is ≥ 0.70 (Fornell and Larcker, 1981). Table 6 presents a summary of the results, showing the reliability of the scale.

Table 6.

Summary of reliability of the scale.

Latent variables	Cronbach’s alpha (by dimension)	Extracted variance (AVE	Composite reliability index (IFC)
F1: Perception of the benefits of postgraduate training for professional development (BFP)	0.86	0.748	0.936
F2: Perception of the level of competency development (DC)	0.924	0.871	0.964

Source: Created by the authors with data from the confirmatory factor analysis.

Once the reliability of the scale was validated, the structural model was evaluated, yielding positive results not only for the adjustment values of the model (see Table 5) but also for the load values that explain the model (standardized beta), as represented in Figure 3, which is the result of the theoretical (Figure 1) and statistical (Figure 2) models.

Figure 3.

Structural model results. Note: Created by the authors based on the results of EQS Software.

For the BFP factor, the most important variable, with a weight load of 0.800, was “a postgraduate degree allows you to be promoted hierarchically in the organization”. This was followed by “a postgraduate degree improves the possibilities of accessing a better income” (0.797),“a postgraduate degree contributes to professional qualification” (0.763), “a postgraduate degree improves job performance” (0.712) and “a postgraduate degree contributes to personal growth” (0.642). For the DC factor, the most important variable, with a weight load of 0.904, was “the degree to which they consider the competency has developed”. This was followed by “the degree to which they consider competency is important for a company” (0.891),“the degree to which they consider work experience to have contributed to the development of competency” (0.890) and “the degree to which they consider that formal education has contributed to the development of competency” (0.788). These results show the existence of direct and positive relationships between the BFP and DC factors (Hair et al., 1999).

Conclusions

The purpose of this study was to identify the factors that determine the need for postgraduate training in professionals. We proposed the hypothesis that, if we know the perception of the level of development of competencies and the perception regarding the benefits for professional development, then the need for postgraduate training can be determined.

The findings show a positive relationship between the variables analyzed, and so the hypothesis is verified. The variables that have the greatest impact on the perception of postgraduate training needs are also evident: these are “a postgraduate degree allows one to be promoted hierarchically in the organization” for the BFP factor and “the degree to which they consider that they have developed the competency” for the DC factor.

The results obtained enable a better understanding of the relationship between the perception of the benefits of postgraduate training for professional development and the perception of the development of competencies in explaining the perception of postgraduate training needs for professionals from the theoretical as well as the empirical viewpoint. Thus the study provides empirical evidence that supports the theoretical conceptualization of authors such as Aguirre et al. (2019); Betancurt Amariles (2010); Manacorda et al. (2010); Rodríguez Reyes (2017); and Tejada Fernández and Navío Gámez (2005).

Given that the fieldwork was carried out with a sample of 492 professionals located in Valle del Cauca in Colombia, it is important to continue validating the hypothesis in other contexts so that results can be compared. It would also be useful to analyze relationships between other variables, such as the economic sector in which the individual works, the size of the company or even the social and economic environment. Such research could contribute to the strategic design of postgraduate training offerings as well as helping us to understand how workers decide to continue with their professional qualification. This study has relevance for other knowledge areas, including organizational psychology and the sociology of work, and research into other contextual factors that affect professionals’ perceptions regarding the need for postgraduate training.

Footnotes

Declaration of conflicting interests

The author(s) declared no potential conflicts of interest with respect to the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article.

Funding

Universidad Pontificia Bolivariana, (014A-01/18-03P), Cámara de Comercio de Palmira, (014A-01/18-03P)

ORCID iD

Isabel Cristina Quintero-Sepúlveda

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