Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates

Copyright ©Author(s) 2025. All Rights Reserved. Published by Global Publication House | GPH-International Journal of Educational Research Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates By: DR. LEO ROSWALD M. TUGONON, Asst. Prof. 1, Business Administration Department, College of Arts and Sciences, Palompon Institute of Technology, NIKKI SHANE M. TUGONON, MM, Faculty, Hospitality Management Department, College of Arts and Sciences, Palompon Institute of Technology, Abstract This phenomenological study explored the job-seeking experiences of Hospitality Management graduates from the Palompon Institute of Technology (PIT), Eastern Visayas, Philippines. Using Braun and Clarke‘s (2006) thematic analysis, data from 11 graduates were analyzed, yielding four key themes: (1) Mixed Emotions in the Transition Period, (2) Taking Action Amidst Uncertainty, (3) Expectations Shattered by Reality, and (4) PIT as a Source of Preparation and Identity. Findings revealed that graduates navigated the post-graduation stage with a blend of pride and anxiety, shaped by the pressures of employment uncertainty. While pragmatic strategies such as processing documents, interim work, and skills training supported adaptation, participants encountered systemic barriers including employer preference for experienced hires, stiff competition, and financial burdens in job applications. Importantly, PIT‘s academic preparation, OJT programs, and TESDA certifications were perceived as crucial in developing applied skills, professional identity, and confidence. Graduates also highlighted the importance of soft skills, discipline, and adaptability in sustaining employability. The study concludes that employability outcomes are influenced not only by technical expertise but also by transferable skills and institutional support. Recommendations are directed toward enhancing curriculum industry linkages, addressing the ―experience paradox,‖ and expanding policy interventions to ease graduate transitions. Keywords: Job-seeking experiences, employability, mixed emotions, OJT, curriculum. How to cite: M. TUGONON, L. R., & M. TUGONON, N. S. (2025). Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates. GPH-International Journal of Educational Research, 8(9), 01-18. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17294787 ARTICLE ID: #02107 10.5281/ZENODO.17293339 E3050-9599 P2795-3264 Page 01 of 18 VOL. 08 ISSUE 09 SEPT. 2025 M. TUGONON, L. R., & M. TUGONON, N. S. (2025). Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates. GPH-International Journal of Educational Research, 8(9), 01-18. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17294787 © 2025 GPH | International Journal of Educational Research | https://gphjournal.org/index.php/er Impacts of the Study - For Higher Education Institutions (HEIs): Provides evidence-based feedback to improve curriculum design, internship programs, and career support services aligned with industry needs. - For the Hospitality Industry: Highlights the value of offering entry-level training, mentoring, and competency-based recruitment to strengthen workforce quality and reduce turnover. - For Policy Makers: Informs workforce planning and the development of employability frameworks and regional programs to reduce underemployment and labor migration. - For Students and Graduates: Offers practical insights on adaptability, resilience, and transferable skills to better navigate the transition from school to work. - For Society at Large: Contributes to economic growth, stronger academic–industry linkages, and more inclusive workforce development in Eastern Visayas and beyond. INTRODUCTION The study of employability in modern societies is of central importance because it affects not only individuals but also educational institutions, employers, and national economies. For individuals, employability enhances competitiveness, supports career development, and enables access to jobs aligned with personal goals. From an educational perspective, employability studies inform curriculum design and pedagogy, ensuring graduates acquire the skills demanded by the labor market. Employers view employability as crucial for recruitment and workforce development, while at the societal level, employability strengthens economic growth and social stability by aligning human capital with industry needs (Valdez et al., 2024). In the Philippine context, the transition from tertiary education to employment remains a challenge, particularly in the hospitality and tourism sector, which contributes significantly to the national economy. Recent labor reports emphasize the importance of soft skills, adaptability, and practical readiness in graduate hiring, yet many employers continue to note gaps in these areas (Philippine Institute for Development Studies [PIDS], 2024). The Philippine Statistics Authority (2020) further highlights persistent underemployment, with a large share of graduates taking roles outside their fields of study, reflecting a mismatch between educational preparation and labor market expectations. National and international organizations have underscored these structural concerns. The World Bank (2022) reported that while the Philippines has a relatively young and expanding workforce, many graduates struggle to secure decent work due to limited practical exposure and weak industry linkages in higher education. Similarly, UNESCO (2021) identified education–employment mismatches as one of the main drivers of labor migration, with hospitality and service-oriented graduates often seeking employment abroad. Although several tracer studies across Philippine state universities and colleges provide quantitative data on graduate employment rates, salary levels, and industry relevance, they rarely capture the subjective realities of graduates‘ job-seeking experiences. Roxas and Page No. 02 Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates Volume 08 Issue 09 September 2025 Mina (2019), for instance, demonstrated through phenomenological research that exploring the lived experiences of business graduates in Dumaguete revealed deeper insights into employability perceptions than tracer surveys alone. However, no study to date has focused on the lived job-seeking experiences of hospitality management graduates in Eastern Visayas, leaving a gap in understanding how academic preparation, industry expectations, and local labor market conditions interact in shaping employability outcomes. This study addresses that gap by examining the lived experiences of Hospitality Management graduates from Palompon Institute of Technology (PIT). By employing a phenomenological lens, it captures the emotions, strategies, and challenges of graduates as they transition into the workforce. The findings aim to inform curriculum reform, strengthen academic–industry linkages, and provide practical guidance for students, employers, and policymakers. This study is anchored on two complementary frameworks: School-to-Work Transition (STWT) Theory and Career Construction Theory (CCT). The STWT Theory highlights the processes and challenges shaping how students move from education into the labor market. Bynner and Parsons (2002) showed how socioeconomic background, education systems, and labor markets influence transitions. In the Philippine context, Pineda and Velasco (2022) found that weak career guidance and limited industry linkages delay employment, while Cardoso and da Silva (2021) stressed that skill mismatches prolong job searching and increase precarious work. This makes STWT highly relevant for hospitality graduates in Eastern Visayas, where industry opportunities are still limited. Complementing this, CCT (Savickas, 2013) underscores how individuals actively construct their careers through adaptability and narrative-building. Recent studies affirm its importance: Koen et al. (2022) found that career adaptability predicts job-seeking success, while Caballero et al. (2021) showed that that narrative identity and proactive planning help graduates navigate uncertain labor markets. By combining STWT and CCT, the study situates employability as both a structural process (influenced by education and labor markets) and a personal journey (shaped by adaptability and lived experiences). This dual lens provides a deeper understanding of the challenges and strategies employed by hospitality management graduates, ensuring that both institutional and individual perspectives are captured. Guided by this framework, the study seeks to explore the job-seeking experiences of hospitality management graduates, focusing on four domains of inquiry: To determine the lived experiences of Hospitality Management graduates during their transition from academic life to the hospitality job market. To identify the specific challenges encountered by graduates in seeking employment in the hospitality sector. Page No. 03 M. TUGONON, L. R., & M. TUGONON, N. S. (2025). Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates. GPH-International Journal of Educational Research, 8(9), 01-18. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17294787 © 2025 GPH | International Journal of Educational Research | https://gphjournal.org/index.php/er To examine how the academic preparation and internship experiences at PIT influenced their job-seeking journey. To formulate recommendations for higher education institutions, hospitality employers, and future graduates to enhance employability and ease the school-to-work transition. METHODOLOGY This study adopts a qualitative phenomenological research design to examine the lived experiences of Bachelor of Science in Hospitality Management (BSHM) graduates from Palompon Institute of Technology (PIT) as they navigate the transition from academic life to the hospitality labor market. Phenomenology is well-suited for this inquiry as it aims to uncover the essence of participants‘ experiences by exploring how they perceive, interpret, and assign meaning to their job-seeking journeys. This approach is consistent with Moustakas‘ (1994) emphasis on capturing individual realities to reveal universal themes inherent to a phenomenon. The target participants were PIT BSHM graduates from the last three academic years who have actively engaged in seeking employment in the hospitality sector after graduation. Purposive sampling was used to identify individuals who meet the following inclusion criteria: 1. Completion of a BSHM degree from PIT, 2. Engagement in job-seeking activities within the hospitality industry, and 3. Willingness and ability to articulate their experiences in detail. Alumni databases, professional networks, and peer referrals will serve as initial recruitment channels. Sampling will continue until data saturation is reached, defined as the point at which no new themes emerge from the data (Guest, Bunce, & Johnson, 2006). Given the geographical dispersion of alumni, this study employed a Google Formsbased open-ended questionnaire to elicit rich qualitative narratives. This method was selected to ensure accessibility, broaden participation, and accommodate graduates who may be working in different regions or abroad. To encourage depth and reflection, each guiding question required a minimum 200-word narrative response, prompting participants to provide detailed accounts of their job-seeking experiences. The instrument is carefully developed based on an Alignment Matrix that linked the research objectives, domains of inquiry, and guiding questions. This ensured coherence between the conceptual framework and the data-gathering tool. The questionnaire contained open-ended, semi-structured prompts aligned with the four research objectives: Lived experiences during the transition from academic life to employment, Challenges encountered in securing a job, Influence of academic preparation and internship experiences, and Page No. 04 Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates Volume 08 Issue 09 September 2025 Recommendations for enhancing graduate employability. The final version is disseminated through email and official alumni communication platforms, with explicit instructions regarding voluntary participation, confidentiality, and the estimated time required (20–30 minutes). Participants are encouraged to reflect deeply before submission, ensuring richer narrative accounts. Upon retrieval, responses were automatically compiled through the Google Forms platform, exported into spreadsheet format, and systematically organized according to the study‘s objectives. To enhance credibility and trustworthiness, the researcher conducted a completeness check of responses, engaged in selective follow-up clarification with participants via email, and maintained an audit trail documenting all stages of data collection and handling. This combination of methodological rigor and digital data management ensure both accessibility and robustness of the collected narratives, providing a solid foundation for phenomenological coding and analysis. Thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006) was conducted with guidance from Career Construction Theory (Savickas, 2013), which emphasizes career adaptability and meaningmaking, and School-to-Work Transition Theory (Bynner & Parsons, 2002), which situates individual experiences within structural labor market contexts. This dual framework captured both the personal narratives of graduates and the institutional and labor market structures shaping their transition. Data analysis followed Braun and Clarke‘s (2006) six-phase thematic analysis framework: 1. Familiarization – immersion in transcripts through repeated reading; 2. Generating initial codes – systematically coding significant data segments; 3. Searching for themes – grouping related codes into preliminary themes; 4. Reviewing themes – checking coherence against coded extracts and the entire dataset; 5. Defining and naming themes – refining thematic boundaries and meanings; and 6. Producing the report – integrating findings with relevant literature. The proces was guided by a phenomenological lens, with emphasis on horizontalization—treating all statements as having equal value before clustering them into meaning units and composite descriptions. To ensure methodological rigor, the study adoped Lincoln and Guba‘s (1985) criteria for trustworthiness: credibility (through prolonged engagement, member checking, and peer debriefing), transferability (via thick description of participants and context), dependability (through an audit trail of research decisions), and confirmability (via reflexive journaling to reduce bias). Ethical standards is strictly observed in line with Palompon Institute of Technology and international guidelines. Informed consent will be obtained from all participants, emphasizing voluntary participation and the right to withdraw. Anonymity and data confidentiality was assured, with information used solely for academic purposes. Page No. 05 M. TUGONON, L. R., & M. TUGONON, N. S. (2025). Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates. GPH-International Journal of Educational Research, 8(9), 01-18. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17294787 © 2025 GPH | International Journal of Educational Research | https://gphjournal.org/index.php/er RESULTS AND DISCUSSION Table 1. Thematic Summary of Graduates‘ Post-Graduation Transition Experiences. The data gathered from 11 graduates (p1–p11) were analyzed using Braun and Clarke‘s (2006) six-phase thematic analysis framework. Coding and clustering yielded four overarching themes that capture the lived transition from academic completion to jobseeking ventures. Theme 1: Mixed Emotions in the Transition Period The first few months after graduation were often described as an emotional crossroads. While participants celebrated pride, joy, and relief at completing their degrees, they also articulated pressure, fear, and uncertainty about what lay ahead. Missing the familiar routines of school life (p1, p3, p5) further compounded these feelings. This suggests that the transition to professional life is not linear but marked by emotional turbulence, consistent with Schlossberg‘s Transition Theory, which underscores the psychological adjustment to change. Graduates revealed a blend of pride, relief, and lingering anxiety or confusion post-graduation. This emotional complexity aligns with Magier‘s (2025) qualitative study, which uncovered distress, self-doubt, and pressure among newly graduated Theme Key Codes / Subthemes Illustrative Quote Participants (IDs) Mixed Emotions in the Transition Period Joy & pride; pressure; confusion/uncertai nty; missing school; hope; fear ―The first months… were a mix of joy and pressure… after the celebration, I felt the weight of ‗what‘s next?‘‖ (p1) p1, p2, p3, p5, p6, p9, p10 Taking Action Amidst Uncertainty Processing papers; rest & recovery; interim work; OJT; TESDA training; pragmatic job shifts ―I immediately processed my papers for employment—important cards needed when applying.‖ (p3) p1, p3, p4, p5, p7, p8, p11 Expectations Shattered by Reality Expected easy/fast hiring; employers want experience; competition; rejections; slow process; administrative burdens ―Before I graduated, I expected finding a job would be fast and easy… in reality, it was harder.‖ (p1) p1, p2, p3, p4, p6, p7, p8, p9, p10, p11 PIT as a Source of Preparation and Identity Institutional belonging; perceived preparedness; OJT/WIL; TESDA credentials ―My 2nd home is PIT—it‘s so memorable about teachers and friends.‖ (p8) p7, p8, Page No. 06 Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates Volume 08 Issue 09 September 2025 students navigating their next steps.These emotional fluctuations underscore the importance of psychological preparedness during the academic-to-career transition. As one participant expressed, ―The first months… were a mix of joy and pressure… I felt the weight of ‗what‘s next?‘‖ (p1). Another echoed this sentiment, stating, ―I feel pressure because I didn‘t know how and where to start‖ (p10). Theme 2: Taking Action Amidst Uncertainty Despite emotional ambiguity, graduates navigated their post-graduation phase through concrete, pragmatic strategies. Several processed documents and employment requirements (p3, p8), while others took interim jobs (p7 at Tubby Café) or enrolled in training programs such as TESDA Bread and Pastry NC II (p7). Some opted for a temporary pause to rest before beginning job hunting (p5). These deliberate actions reflect how agency and coping mechanisms help manage uncertainty in the transition period. These proactive behaviors align with findings from Ho (2022), who demonstrated that career development learning (CDL) significantly enhances students‘ perceived employability by empowering them to navigate the transition from study to work. Similarly, Dewantara (2025) highlighted how structured career resources—like career development courses and practical learning modules—are pivotal in helping graduates secure quality employment. ―After graduating from PIT, I was able to get a long vacation and relax myself. Then after, I plan job hunting.‖ (p5) ―In my first few months after graduating, I continued working at Tubby Café… I also enrolled in TESDA where I took Bread and Pastry with NC II.‖ (p7) Theme 3: Expectations Shattered by Reality Expectations of easy, fast job placement following graduation were dispelled by the realities of competition and experience demands. The most dominant theme was the discrepancy between expectations and reality. Many anticipated that a diploma would guarantee easy and immediate employment, but reality proved otherwise: competition was fierce, employers prioritized applicants with experience, and bureaucratic hurdles (traffic, paperwork, delays) slowed progress (p1, p2, p3, p8, p11). This aligns with recent findings from Jobs and Skills Australia (2025), which reported that many graduates even with technical qualifications are deemed not ―work-ready‖ due to deficiencies in hands-on experience and employability skills like teamwork and communication. Similar patterns emerge globally. ZipRecruiter surveys found that while 82% of recent graduates expected to secure employment within three months, only 77% achieved this, indicating a mismatch between expectations and reality. Further reinforcing this, the Financial Times reported the class of 2025 in the UK faces a particularly tough market with only 27% securing jobs by February, well down from previous years. Graduates‘ narratives mirror these trends: Page No. 07 M. TUGONON, L. R., & M. TUGONON, N. S. (2025). Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates. GPH-International Journal of Educational Research, 8(9), 01-18. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17294787 © 2025 GPH | International Journal of Educational Research | https://gphjournal.org/index.php/er ―I expected finding a job would be fast and easy… but it was harder.‖ (p1) ―I thought it‘s easy to find a job with a bachelor‘s degree, but I guess I‘m wrong.‖ (p6) ―Hotels were finding applicants with experience… I applied to a restaurant instead to gain experience.‖ (p3) ―I‘m expecting a smooth application… but it‘s very hard to find a job without taking risks.‖ (p10) This gap between academic credentials and market readiness mirrors broader labor market challenges. Employers often value work experience and soft skills over diplomas, as found in multiple reports. Despite these obstacles, graduates demonstrated resilience. Their accounts reveal that initial disillusionment can spur adaptability and persistence continuing applications, adjusting expectations, and finding alternative pathways to employment. Theme 4: PIT as a Source of Preparation and Identity Graduates voiced a strong institutional attachment to PIT, describing it as a ―second home‖ (p8) and affirming that their education prepared them for future challenges (p9). Work-Integrated Learning (OJT) and TESDA certifications were cited as critical bridges from school to work (p7). This theme underscores the role of higher education institutions not only in skill development but also in shaping graduate identity, belongingness, and employability confidence. ―My second home is PIT—it‘s so memorable about teachers and friends.‖ (p8) ―Still, I remind myself that everything I went through in PIT prepared me for this moment.‖ (p9) This resonates with empirical findings from the Australian Educational Researcher, which show that a strong sense of institutional belonging correlates positively with students‘ well-being and academic outcomes (Kessel, 2025). Similarly, Rowe, Jackson and Fleming (2021) found that work‐integrated learning (WIL) fosters engagement and belonging in workplace environments enhancing confidence and social integration. Quew-Jones‘s (2024) conceptual model of Degree Apprenticeship Identity (DAI) further reinforces this, illustrating how belonging, peer engagement, and shared experiences within work-integrated learning settings can reinforce professional identity development. Together, these studies substantiate how PIT‘s environment through meaningful relationships, practical training, and institutional culture functions as a vital anchor during the post-graduation transition, strengthening graduates‘ identity, confidence, and readiness for employment. Taken together, the findings portray post-graduation as a liminal stage characterized by emotional turbulence, proactive coping, unmet expectations, and enduring institutional Page No. 08 Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates Volume 08 Issue 09 September 2025 influence. While graduates hoped for quick employment, most encountered the reality of a competitive labor market demanding experience. In response, they turned to pragmatic strategies rest, paperwork processing, upskilling, and interim work demonstrating adaptability and resilience. Importantly, PIT remained a source of strength, with graduates framing it as both a home of memories and a springboard for professional readiness. These insights reinforce the value of career preparation, alumni support, and workintegrated learning in smoothing graduate transitions. They also highlight the need for institutions to manage graduate expectations by aligning career guidance with the realities of labor market demands. Table 2. Job-Seeking Challenges Theme Key codes / subthemes Illustrative participant excerpt Participants (IDs) A. Experience & Employer Demand Lack of experience; preference for experienced hires; need for interim roles ―One difficulty… was the lack of experience. Many hotels preferred applicants who already had training.‖ (p1) p1, p3, p4, p6, p7, p11 B. Market Competition & Limited Opportunities Strong competition; limited matching vacancies; sectoral downturns ―The main difficulty… was the strong competition, since many applicants already had experience.‖ (p11) p1, p2, p9, p11 C. Practical & Financial Barriers Travel/commute; paperwork; travel costs; administrative burdens ―Sometimes, the location of the job was also far, which made it hard to accept even if I qualified.‖ (p1) p1, p3, p5, p8, p10 D. Protective Factors & Alternative Pathways OJT→continuity; family referrals; sector pivot (real estate) ―While doing my OJT, I was already working part-time… I continued working until my pay increased.‖ (p7) p3, p7, p9 Theme 1: Experience and Employer Demand One of the strongest and most consistent challenges expressed by graduates was the lack of prior work experience, which limited their chances of securing positions in the hospitality industry. Respondents noted that many hotels and companies preferred applicants who already had training or employment background, even for entry-level roles. This often left fresh graduates at a disadvantage, compelling some to take interim jobs, enroll in short vocational courses (such as TESDA certifications), or accept work outside their field of study as a way to build credibility. This reflects a broader structural issue in graduate employability: the ―experience paradox,‖ where employers expect experience but graduates are unable to acquire it without being first employed. National-level studies confirm that work-integrated learning (WIL) Page No. 09 M. TUGONON, L. R., & M. TUGONON, N. S. (2025). Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates. GPH-International Journal of Educational Research, 8(9), 01-18. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17294787 © 2025 GPH | International Journal of Educational Research | https://gphjournal.org/index.php/er Jackson, Denise; Rowe, Anna 2023 Impact of Work-Integrated Learning and Co-Curricular Activities on Graduate Labour Force Outcomes.Studies in Higher Education, v48 n3 p490-506 2023 Jackson, D. (2024). Work-integrated learning: opportunities and challenges in Australia. Higher Education Research & Development, 43(3), 767–773. https://doi.org/10.1080/07294360.2024.2307929 Jackson, D. (2024). Enhancing graduate employability through work-integrated learning: A longitudinal study. Journal of Education and Work, 37(2), 201–219. https://doi.org/10.1080/13639080.2023.2182457 Jackson, D. (2023). The contribution of different types of work-integrated learning to graduate employability. Studies/Working Paper. Available: https://ro.ecu.edu.au/ecuworks2022-2026/651/ . ro.ecu.edu.au. Jobs and Skills Australia. (2025). Annual Jobs and Skills Report 2025. Australian Government. https://www.jobsandskills.gov.au Kessel,V. G., Ryan, C., Paras, L. et al. (2025). Relationship between university belonging and student outcomes: A systematic review and meta-analysis. Aust. Educ. Res. 52, 2511–2534 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13384-025-00822-8 Koen, Klehe, & van Vianen (2022) – Journal of Vocational Behavior (Elsevier), DOI verified. Lu, M. (2024). Challenges to improving Filipino graduates‘ employability. Philippine News Agency. Retrieved from https://www.pna.gov.ph/opinion/pieces/905. Mabungela, M., & Mtiki, V. (2024). Accelerating graduate employability through workintegrated learning. RESSAT / ERIC PDF. https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/EJ1426767.pdf. ERIC Magier, M., Madelyn Law, Tanya Martini, Sarah Pennisi, Kristen M. Lucibello, Karen A. Patte 2024. ―I don't feel fully prepared‖: a qualitative study of recently graduated students' mental health experiences of the transition out of university https://doi.org/10.1002/jad.12431 Mapare, M. A., et al. (2024). Employability of hospitality management graduates: Basis for curriculum enhancement. AASGBCPJMRA Journal, 14(2), 55–68. Retrieved from https://ojs.aaresearchindex.com/index.php/aasgbcpjmra/article/view/14098. National Disability Institute. (2023). Economic impacts of removing transportation barriers to work. Washington, DC. https://www.nationaldisabilityinstitute.org. Pianda, D. (2024). The impact of internship experience on the employability. Cogent Social Sciences/Tandfonline. Page No. 16 Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates Volume 08 Issue 09 September 2025 https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23311975.2024.2386465. Taylor & Francis Online Pineda & Velasco (2022) – Philippine Journal of Labor and Industrial Relations → a Philippine-based academic journal, verifiable via UP SOLAIR (School of Labor and Industrial Relations). Philippine Statistics Authority. (2023). Labor force survey highlights. Retrieved from https://psa.gov.ph Philippine Institute for Development Studies. (2024, February 11). Pinoy workers lack ‗soft skills‘ for digital age. Philstar.com. https://qa.philstar.com/business/2024/02/11/2332395/pids-pinoy-workers-lack-softskills-digital-age Philippine Statistics Authority. (2020). Highlights of the 2019/2020 Integrated Survey on Labor and Employment (ISLE). https://psa.gov.ph/content/highlights-20192020integrated-survey-labor-and-employment-isle-modules-employment Raquel, D., et al. (2024). Employability skills gap among hospitality graduates: Implications forcurriculum development. Journal of Management and Innovation, 12(1), 23–34. Retrieved from https://readersinsight.net/jmi/article/view/967. Richmond Fed. (2023). Transportation access as a barrier to work. Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond District Digest. https://www.richmondfed.org Rowe, A. D., Jackson, D., & Fleming, J. (2021). Exploring university student engagement and sense of belonging during work-integrated learning. Journal of Vocational Education & Training, 75(3), 564–585. https://doi.org/10.1080/13636820.2021.1914134 Rebecca Jane Quew-Jones; Conceptualising degree apprentice identity to enhance workintegrated learning. Higher Education, Skills and Work-based Learning 25 September 2024; 14 (5): 1042–1057. https://doi.org/10.1108/HESWBL-10-2023-0301 Rózsa, Z., Minčič, V., Krajčík, V., & Vránová, H. (2022). Social capital and job search behavior in the services industry. Sustainability, 14(3), 1269. https://doi.org/10.3390/su14031269. Roxas, M. C., & Mina, R. C. (2019). Employability of graduating business students: A phenomenological study. Asian Journal of Multidisciplinary Studies, 7(2), 54–62. Ruhanen, L., Robinson, R., & Breakey, N. (2021). Tourism and hospitality employability: Understanding the influence of soft skills. Journal of Hospitality and Tourism Management, 46, 120–128. Page No. 17 M. TUGONON, L. R., & M. TUGONON, N. S. (2025). Academic Completion to Job-Seeking Ventures: Voices of Hospitality Management Graduates. GPH-International Journal of Educational Research, 8(9), 01-18. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.17294787 © 2025 GPH | International Journal of Educational Research | https://gphjournal.org/index.php/er Savickas, M. L. (2013). Career construction theory and practice. In S. D. Brown & R. W. Lent (Eds.), Career development and counseling: Putting theory and research to work (pp. 147–183). John Wiley & Sons. Soft skills / hospitality chapters and studies (2024–2025) — see: research on soft skills in tourism & hospitality (e.g., studies indexed at ScienceDirect and journals of tourism & hospitality). Savickas (2013) – Book chapter in Career Development and Counseling (John Wiley & Sons), a standard reference in career theory. Tu, Y., Hora, M. T., & Chen, X. (2022). What can we learn from longitudinal studies on the impacts of college internships? Center for College and Workforce Transitions Report. https://ccwt.wisc.edu/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Final_CCWT_report_LR-Whatcan-we-learn.pdf UNESCO. (2021). Graduate employability in Asia and the Pacific: Trends, challenges, and policy responses. UNESCO Publishing. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000377437 Valdez, E. C., Perez, M. O., Samson, Z. K. T., Valtoribio, H. T. C., & Pumihic, M. B. (2024). Employability skills perception of employers and student interns. International Journal of Multidisciplinary: Applied Business and Education Research, 5(8), 2766– 2779. https://doi.org/10.11594/ijmaber.06.08.36 World Bank. (2022). Philippine jobs report: Shaping a better future for the Filipino workforce. World Bank. https://www.worldbank.org/en/country/philippines/publication/philippine-jobs-reportshaping-a-better-future-for-the-filipino-workforce Page No. 18