Pre-Training Perceptions and Expected Career Outcomes: A Preliminary Study of Industrial Training Readiness, Expectations, and Concerns Among Students at Politeknik Sultan Idris Shah, Malaysia

Abstract

Industrial Training is a compulsory component of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) in Malaysian polytechnics, providing students with structured workplace exposure prior to professional employment. Despite its recognised importance, limited research has explored how pre-training perceptions collectively shape anticipated career outcomes within the Malaysian polytechnic context. This preliminary study examined the level of and relationships among three pre-training constructs — readiness and knowledge, expectations of organisational support and work environment, and concerns about Industrial Training — and their associations with expected skills and career development outcomes. A quantitative ex-post facto design was adopted, involving 33 Semester 5 students at Sultan Idris Shah Polytechnic, Selangor, Malaysia, selected through simple random sampling. Data were collected using a 20-item structured questionnaire on a five-point Likert scale, adapted from established work readiness and employability frameworks. Reliability analysis produced an overall Cronbach’s alpha of .962, confirming excellent internal consistency. Descriptive findings revealed that all four constructs were rated at a very high level (M = 4.39–4.64), reflecting broadly positive pre-placement orientations. Pearson correlation analysis demonstrated significant positive relationships between all three independent variables and expected career development outcomes: readiness and knowledge (r = .661, p < .001), organisational support expectations (r = .621, p < .001), and concerns (r = .533, p = .002). Multiple regression analysis indicated that the three predictors collectively accounted for 49.6% of the variance in expected career outcomes, F(3, 26) = 8.519, p < .001, Adjusted R² = .438. Although individual predictors did not reach statistical significance, likely due to multicollinearity arising from the small sample size, the overall model remained statistically robust. These findings provide initial directional evidence that pre-training perceptions encompassing readiness, workplace expectations, and psychological concerns are meaningful early driving factors of anticipated career development pathways. Future research with larger, multi-institutional samples is recommended to confirm and extend these preliminary findings.