Graduate Employability of Management Students in India: A Critical Review and Bibliometric Analysis

Abstract

Purpose: The aim of the paper is to provide a critical review and multi-tool bibliometric analysis of graduate employability in management education, specific to India. The study reviews 85 papers (2003-2025) selected using PRISMA and introduces the Multi-Level Employability Framework (MLEF) as an integrative theoretical framework aimed at answering the structural factors behind issues impacting employability of management students in India.

Design/Methodology/Approach: Scopus and ABDC-indexed papers were searched using PRISMA, which provided 540 preliminary records, reduced to 85 articles. The tools used were: VOSviewer (v1.6.20) used to map key words co-occurrences; bibliometrix used to plot strategic themes; a country affiliation analysis across 22 countries; and ABDC 2022 quality distribution list. Cross-validation was done by deploying a dual-network diagram that compared an author co-citation and keyword co-occurrence networks.

Findings: Six thematic clusters were found. The biggest cluster (n=19, 22.4%), was the India and Emerging Economies cluster, which is a rarity as most studies favour western scholarship over emerging countries. The dominance towards supply-side of talent pool, i.e., quality of institutions, curriculum etc. is bibliometrically validated. The dual-network analysis shows that grit and cultural intelligence have standalone empirical support, but are marginal to the mainstream models of employability, even though they have been found to be relevant to the outcomes of Indian management graduates.

Originality/Value: This is an original work not published anywhere.