Industry Collaboration and Employability Competency Acquisition among Trainees in Agricultural Technical and Vocational Education and Training Colleges in Bomet County, Kenya

Abstract

Industry collaboration, particularly through structured dual training arrangements, has been identified as a central mechanism for strengthening employability competencies within Agricultural Technical and Vocational Education and Training (ATVET) systems, yet empirical evidence on its effectiveness within Kenyan ATVET institutions remains limited. This study's objective was to examine the influence of industry collaboration on trainees' acquisition of employability competencies in ATVET colleges in Bomet County, Kenya. A mixed-methods design was adopted, drawing on data from 248 trainees (structured questionnaire), 8 trainers and 4 administrators (semi-structured interviews), and structured observation across four institutions. Quantitative data were analyzed using SPSS v.27, applying descriptive statistics, Pearson's correlation, one-way Welch's ANOVA with Games-Howell post hoc comparisons, and multiple regression; qualitative data were analyzed thematically. Trainees rated industry collaboration lowest of the three predictor constructs examined (M = 3.58, SD = 0.96), with particular uncertainty about the structure of industrial attachment (M = 3.41) and its tangible contribution to practical skills (M = 3.43). Despite this modest implementation profile, industry collaboration recorded the strongest bivariate correlation with employability competency acquisition of any independent variable, r(246) = 0.304, p < .001, and remained the strongest unique predictor in the regression model, β = 0.278, t = 3.913, p < .001. Institutional variation was substantial, F(3, 74.89) = 11.78, p < .001, partial η² = 0.19, the largest effect size observed in the study. Qualitative and observational evidence converged to show that existing partnerships, while functional and pedagogically valuable, are informal, trainer-brokered, and institutionally fragile rather than formally documented. The study concluded that industry collaboration is the single most impactful lever for improving employability outcomes among the variables studied, but its current effectiveness rests on an unsystematic and institutionally fragile foundation, representing both the greatest opportunity and the most urgent gap for policy and institutional intervention.