Developing soft skills in undergraduate students: A case at a Chilean private university

Resumen

The role of non-cognitive skills in twenty-first century’s professionals is a critical success factor in current workforce. Undoubtedly, infusing these interpersonal attributes into the curriculum is a huge challenge for Chilean Higher Education Institutions (HEI). In fact, some HEIs are currently integrating these generic skills through direct instruction, while others from a cross-curricular approach, but without having considered proper teacher training. More importantly, developing soft skills in new generations has the potential to have profound and transformative effects on the professional field. This article provides an over-view of the current state of the art in soft-skills-based education. For this purpose, a group of 55 undergraduate students of a Chilean private university were surveyed. Findings indicate that these students are not acquiring soft skills, at a competitive level, that would help them to advance in their future career.