Communication and Soft Skills for Youth Employability in Indian Higher Education: A Psychological Perspective Aligned with the Vision of Viksit Bharat 2047

Abstract

The aspirations put forward in Viksit Bharat 2047 put human capital at the heart of India's trajectory towards a knowledge-driven, globally competitive economy. While there has been a lot of progress on making higher education available and attracting more students, the problem of employability of graduates continues to be a major concern. Although there is emerging evidence that this divide can't primarily be attributed to lack of domain-specific knowledge, rather it can be explained as a result of a lack of focus on communication and soft skills, such as teamwork, adaptability, problem-solving, ethical behaviour, and emotional intelligence (World Economic Forum, 2020; Yorke, 2006). This paper examines the impact of communication and soft skills on youth employability in Indian higher education context using the literature on employability studies, human capital theory, and psychological perspectives. It is a belief that good social skills of communication and soft skills are really mental traits that we learn through our social relationships, self-regulation, moral reasoning, and emotional awareness (Bandura, 1986; Goleman, 1995). Nevertheless, they are often ignored in academia, which usually relegates the competencies to a secondary, or ‘nice-to-have’ role in the way higher education curricula view them or value them less than as an intrinsic part of what is taught and assessed. The study applies theoretical framework with existing empirical research to examine institutional practices, pedagogical mechanisms, and student experiences for skills development. It poses vital issues about the design or pedagogical approach to skill acquisition in our present age and advocates for education that is psychologically relevant and based on communication. From these perspectives, this paper argues that creating environments that value effective communication alongside soft skills through integral reflective experiential pedagogies is not only vital for employability, as well as towards realizing the national objectives of inclusive advancement, ethical leadership, and societal integration as described by Viksit Bharat 2047.