Students’ Experiences of their Leadership Development through the Leadership Subject Taught in Universiti Teknologi Malaysia

Abstract

Leadership is the process of influencing followers to achieve a goal. This study aims to explore the Afghan postgraduate students’ experiences of their leadership development through the leadership course taught in Universiti Teknologi, Malaysia. A quantitative research design was employed in the study. An online survey questionnaire with 19 items was used to collect the data. The survey questionnaire was administered to all 46 postgraduate students in Social Sciences, Humanities and Science faculties, but only 42 of them responded to the online survey. Statistical Package for Social Sciences has been used to analyze the data. Descriptive statistics were used to determine the mean, frequency and percentage. Inferential statistics such as Independent Sample T-Test and One Way ANOVA were used to find out the differences in the responses of the participants by their demographic variables, i.e., gender, year of study, faculty, work experience and age. The finding showed that the students had a positive perception of the leadership course. The participants believed that the course helped them to improve their leadership skills. The study recommends that the leadership course be taught in Afghanistan universities since it plays a crucial part in developing leadership skills in students, which is crucial for their career after graduation.