LINKING ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE ADOPTION TO EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY OF FSR UiTM STUDENTS

Abstract

Artificial intelligence (AI) adoption is increasingly shaping how university students learn and how graduates are expected to demonstrate employability skills in technology-rich labour markets. Accordingly, the study aims to determine the levels of artificial intelligence adoption and employability skills and to examine the extent to which artificial intelligence adoption predicts employability skills in the Faculty of Sports Science and Recreation (FSR), Universiti Teknologi MARA Shah Alam. Using a quantitative cross-sectional survey design, data were collected from 327 students through a structured questionnaire measuring AI adoption and employability skills. Descriptive statistics were used to determine the overall levels of both constructs, while simple linear regression was employed to examine whether AI adoption predicts employability skills. The results indicate that students reported a high level of AI adoption and a high level of employability skills. The regression findings further reveal that AI adoption has a significant positive effect on employability skills, implying that students who engage more actively with AI tend to report stronger employability skills. These findings highlight the importance of structured and responsible AI integration in higher education to ensure that AI use supports skill development rather than merely accelerating task completion. The study provides practical insights for educators and faculty administrators to guide AI use in ways that reinforce workplace-relevant competencies and strengthen graduate readiness in increasingly technology-mediated labour markets.