Towards desirable skill-set acquisition by construction management students: A systematic review

The technological insurgency which characterizes the era of Knowledge-based economy coupled with the emergence of Industry 4.0 makes the future of the construction industry very promising especially for the prepared. As the World Bank report on Knowledge Economy rightly puts it, an educated and skilled population is a requisite for creating, sharing and using knowledge, a pillar of any Knowledge-based economy. This goes without saying that students in construction management education are expected to exhibit desirable skills set and competencies needed for this knowledge-based economy so as not to be rendered redundant. However, an apropos systematic assessment of both current and past studies on the subject matter needful for future endeavor is lacking. This paper puts forward a comprehensive systematic review of the desirable skill sets of future construction management students from carefully chosen articles in well-known construction management journals to address this gap. A total of 86 different skills were identified from over 40 publications and analysis made in terms of annual trends of publications, contribution of authors, countries and research institute/universities and the thematic categorization of the identified variables. Notable among the categorized desirable skill sets were digital literacy, technical skills, managerial skills and professional skills. This research expunges the current literature of desirable skill sets of construction management students for the knowledge-based economy. Furthermore, this study provides deepened understanding and valuable information to industry practitioners, policy makers as well as Institutions of Higher Learning in the inculcation of these desirable skill sets in their curricula. This study propels further research especially among construction management education researchers.