10th U6+ Consortium of African Universities International Conference

The impact of the Industrial Revolution (4th and 5th IR) necessitates the urgent need for a digitally competent and innovative administrative workforce. But, in Nigeria, there is a mismatch between the competencies required by the industries and the graduates. This study focus on the skills gap among educational administration graduates in Nigeria, and proffers innovative strategies for modern work readiness that will align with the administrative needs of the 21st century. The population comprises faculty staff and graduates of educational administration. Stratified random sampling was used to select 200 students and purposive sampling was used to sample 50 lecturers. Research structured questionnaire was designed and trial-tested in an area outside the scope of the study. The data were coded and interpreted for thematic analysis. A descriptive tool, Cronbach Alpha statistics was used to test the data. Correlation coefficient of 0.84 indicated validity and reliability. Mean, Standard Deviation and T-test interrogated the research questions and hypothesis to guide the discussion. The study is hinged on Human Capital and Constructive Theories. The proponents of these theories opine that education and training are investment that increases individual’s productivity and learners construct knowledge actively not passively. The findings revealed that there is a significant skills gap between academic achievement and industry expectations, especially in digital proficiency, critical thinking, strategic planning, pedagogical shortfalls and modern leadership skills. The study recommends that the current curriculum should be redesign to integrate practical course work. The town and gown relationship should be strengthening through strategic partnership with industries and modern pedagogies should be embraced by the lecturers of educational administration. The study concludes that educational administration graduates can be transformed into employable, competent and digital literate leader’s if innovative strategies are employed.