Entrepreneurship and employability training for third-year high school students at the Quevedo Educational Unit

Abstract

Introduction: This study examines the connection between entrepreneurship training and perceived employability in third-year high school students at the Quevedo Educational Unit, using a convergent and cross-sectional mixed design. A 36-item Likert-type questionnaire was used (with an Aiken V content validity equal to or greater than .70 and α equal to or greater than .80) and was enriched with qualitative methods (interviews and focus groups) and project/pitch rubrics. The descriptives show that transversal competencies (Mean = 3.8; α = .90) and curriculum/content (3.7; α = .88) have high levels, while active methodologies (3.4; α = .85) present lower and irregular figures, especially in real-life experiences (3.1; α = .82). The correlations are moderate and positive: competencies–employability (r=.52), training–competences (r=.45), training–employability (r=.40), and employability skills (r=.52). Competencies (β=.39) are the most significant contributor in multiple regression (R²=.46), followed by training (β=.26) and experiences (β=.15). A 16-week pedagogical intervention (Canvas, Prototype, Validation, and Pitch) is suggested, which includes short internships, a fair with an external jury, and an employability portfolio, in addition to mentoring and KPIs for monitoring. It is concluded that perceived employability is positively related to training, that competencies function as an essential mechanism, and that standardizing true experiences is essential for their transfer to real-life situations.