Graduate Employability in Tanzania’s Digital Era: A Systematic Integrative Review of Digital Competencies, Transferable Skills and University–Industry Linkages

Abstract

Graduate employability has become a strategic concern as digitalisation changes the knowledge, skills and forms of work expected of university graduates. In Tanzania, expansion of higher education has occurred alongside persistent concerns about skills mismatch, limited practical exposure and uneven transition from university to productive employment. This article systematically integrates recent Tanzanian evidence on three interdependent foundations of employability: digital competencies, transferable skills and university–industry linkages. A structured integrative review was undertaken using peer-reviewed studies, authoritative policy documents and institutional evidence published mainly from 2020 to 2026, complemented by seminal employability and human-capital literature. The synthesis shows that employability is weakened when digital preparation remains concentrated at basic operational levels, when soft skills are treated as peripheral rather than embedded learning outcomes, and when industry engagement is episodic rather than institutionalised. Tanzanian evidence indicates that intermediate and advanced digital skills are particularly important for self-employment, while communication, problem solving, integrity, independence and adaptability are valued by employers. University–industry collaboration can improve curriculum relevance, work-based learning, practical competence and career transition, but financing and bureaucratic barriers reduce its effectiveness. The article proposes an Integrated Graduate Employability for Inclusive Growth Framework in which digital competencies and transferable skills operate as graduate-level capabilities while university–industry linkages function as an enabling institutional mechanism. The review argues that Tanzania should move from qualification- centred employability to capability-centred employability supported by digitally responsive curricula, authentic assessment, work-integrated learning and systematic employer participation.