Students' perceptions of graduate profile and curriculum alignment in English education
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17509/curricula.v5i2.673Keywords:
curriculum alignment, graduate profile, outcome-based education, students’ perceptionAbstract
Curriculum alignment plays a crucial role in ensuring that learning outcomes are effectively achieved in higher education. This study aims to examine students’ perceptions and understanding of the graduate profile within the framework of curriculum alignment in an English Education program. The research is conducted to evaluate whether students not only perceive the curriculum as relevant but also fully understand the intended graduate competencies. A quantitative approach, supported by open-ended responses, was employed to analyze students’ perceptions and level of understanding. The findings reveal that the majority of students hold positive perceptions of the graduate profile, while their understanding remains relatively low. This indicates a gap between students’ affective perceptions and their cognitive comprehension of curriculum objectives. In addition, students are more familiar with the role of a novice teacher than with those of a researcher and an edupreneur, reflecting an imbalance in the emphasis on competencies. These findings suggest that although the curriculum is perceived as relevant, its intended outcomes are not fully internalized.
Abstrak
Keselarasan kurikulum memegang peranan penting dalam memastikan capaian pembelajaran dapat terwujud secara efektif di pendidikan tinggi. Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengkaji persepsi dan pemahaman mahasiswa terhadap profil lulusan dalam kerangka keselarasan kurikulum pada Program Studi Pendidikan Bahasa Inggris. Penelitian ini dilatarbelakangi oleh kebutuhan untuk mengevaluasi apakah mahasiswa tidak hanya memandang kurikulum sebagai sesuatu yang relevan, tetapi juga benar-benar memahami kompetensi lulusan yang ditargetkan. Pendekatan kuantitatif digunakan dengan dukungan respons terbuka untuk menganalisis persepsi serta tingkat pemahaman mahasiswa. Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa sebagian besar mahasiswa memiliki persepsi positif terhadap profil lulusan, namun tingkat pemahaman mereka masih tergolong rendah. Temuan ini mengindikasikan adanya kesenjangan antara persepsi afektif dan pemahaman kognitif mahasiswa terhadap tujuan kurikulum. Selain itu, mahasiswa cenderung lebih memahami peran sebagai guru pemula dibandingkan dengan peran sebagai peneliti dan edupreneur, yang mencerminkan ketidakseimbangan dalam penekanan kompetensi. Hasil ini menunjukkan bahwa meskipun kurikulum dipersepsikan relevan, capaian yang ditargetkan belum sepenuhnya terinternalisasi.
Kata Kunci: keselarasan kurikulum; pendidikan berbasis capaian; persepsi mahasiswa; profil lulusan
References
Akhtar, P., Moazzam, M., Ashraf, A., & Khan, M. N. (2024). The interdisciplinary curriculum alignment to enhance graduates’ employability and universities’ sustainability. The International Journal of Management Education, 22(3), 1-17.
Ali, R., & Jamin, H. (2025). Curriculum development strategy based on Outcome Based Education (OBE) to improve the quality of education in higher education. Journal of Education and Religious Studies, 5(2), 103-109.
Barachino, H., Timmermans, A., Venhorst, V. A., & van Dijk, J. (2025). Operationalization of graduate employability interventions in higher education - a systematic review. Education and Training, 67(10), 89-110.
Bridgstock, R., Grant-Iramu, M., & McAlpine, A. (2019). Integrating career development learning into the curriculum: Collaboration with the careers service for employability. Journal of Teaching and Learning for Graduate Employability, 10(1), 56-72.
Dalangin, E. M. L. (2023). Graduate attributes, workplace readiness and students’ employability: Inputs in developing career development plan. Asia Pacific Journal of Management and Sustainable Development, 11(2), 8-18.
Dirgantara, A. J. P., Apriliani, W. A., Fadhilah, R. A., & Putri, H. A. (2025). Kurikulum Merdeka: Innovation to foster a creative and work-ready generation. Curricula: Journal of Curriculum Development, 4(1), 47-66.
Giovani, S., Jameelah, M., Puteri, N. E., Komalasari, E., & Putri, A. D. (2022). Persepsi mahasiswa Prodi Teknologi Pangan mengenai keterkaitan program program Merdeka Belajar Kampus Merdeka dengan kompetensi lulusan. Jurnal Al-Azhar Indonesia Seri Humaniora, 7(2), 125-130.
Gustiani, T., & Kardena, A. (2024). The Correlation between students’ perception on Merdeka curriculum and their motivation. International Journal of English Education and Linguistics (IJoEEL), 6(1), 126-133.
Hailikari, T., Virtanen, V., Vesalainen, M., & Postareff, L. (2022). Student perspectives on how different elements of constructive alignment support active learning. Active Learning in Higher Education, 23(3), 217-231.
Handayani, N. U., Wibowo, M. A., Christiani, S. D. K., & Ulkhaq, M. M. (2024). Implementation of outcome-based education from the perception of lecturers and students. Journal of Education Technology, 8(3), 472-483.
Irdalisa, I., Akbar, B., Fuadi, T. M., Maesaroh, M., & Kartikawati, E. (2024). Ricosre model with Question Formulation Technique (QFT): Enhancing students’ Higher Order Thinking Skills (HOTS) and science literacy. Jurnal Penelitian Pendidikan IPA, 10(3), 1175-1178.
Jaya, A., Saputri, K., Budiyanto, D., & Mujahidah, N. F. Z. (2025). Implementing Outcome-Based Education: Ensuring alignment with program outcomes in Indonesian English language teaching. Indonesian EFL Journal, 11(3), 553-566.
Kushari, B., & Septiadi, L. (2022). A learning outcome assessment information system to facilitate Outcome-Based Education (OBE) implementation. Jurnal Pendidikan Teknologi dan Kejuruan, 28(2), 238-250.
Kusumaningtyas, D. A., Manyunu, M., Kurniasari, E., Awalin, A. N., Rahmaniati, R., & Febriyanti, A. (2024). Enhancing learning outcomes: A study on the development of higher order thinking skills based evaluation instruments for work and energy in high school physics. Indonesian Journal on Learning and Advanced Education (IJOLAE), 6(1), 14-31.
Li, M., & Rohayati, M. I. (2024). The relationship between learning outcomes and graduate competences: The chain-mediating roles of project-based learning and assessment strategies. Sustainability (Switzerland), 16(1), 1-25.
Li, M., Jones, B. D., Williams, T. O., & Guo, Y. (2022). Chinese students’ perceptions of the motivational climate in college English courses: Relationships between course perceptions, engagement, and achievement. Frontiers in Psychology, 13(1), 1-13.
Mahmud, M. M., & Wong, S. F. (2022). Digital age: The importance of 21st century skills among the undergraduates. Frontiers in Education, 7(1), 1-9.
Mufanti, R., Carter, D., & England, N. (2024). Outcomes-based education in Indonesian higher education: Reporting on the understanding, challenges, and support available to teachers. Social Sciences and Humanities Open, 9(3), 1-13.
Mursid, R., Saragih, A. H., & Hartono, R. (2022). The effect of the blended project-based learning model and creative thinking ability on engineering students’ learning outcomes. International Journal of Education in Mathematics, Science and Technology, 10(1), 218-235.
Nguyen, N. D. H., Nguyen, P. V., & Pham, H. T. (2025). Student engagement in Vietnamese Higher Education (V-EIHES): The relationship between learning environment, engagement, and academic achievement. SAGE Open, 15(4), 1-20.
Nuraini, N., Tejasukmana, L. S., Yahtadi, F., & Nadya, M. T. (2023). Principles of curriculum development to improve the quality of learning with Kurikulum Merdeka. Curricula: Journal of Curriculum Development, 2(1), 87-100.
Nyagope, T. S. (2025). From university to the world of work: A higher education curriculum response. Educatio: Journal of Education, 9(1), 40-50.
Okolie, U. C., Igwe, P. A., Nwosu, H. E., Eneje, B. C., & Mlanga, S. (2020). Enhancing graduate employability: Why do higher education institutions have problems with teaching generic skills?. Policy Futures in Education, 18(2), 294-313.
Pai, S., & Upadhyaya, G. (2021). Effective implementation of outcome-based education: The role of faculty awareness. Indonesian Journal of Educational Research and Review, 4(3), 380-391.
Pandya, B., Ruhi, U., & Patterson, L. (2023). Preparing the future workforce for 2030: The role of higher education institutions. Frontiers in Education, 8(1), 1-10.
Putri, A. H., Haryono, H., & Florentinus, T. S. (2021). Outcomes-based education curriculum development in art carving training. Innovative Journal of Curriculum and Educational Technology, 10(2), 64-73.
Roßnagel, C. S., Lo Baido, K., & Fitzallen, N. (2021). Constructive alignment and learning approaches: A perceived alignment perspective. Plos One, 16(1), 1-13.
Saoula, O., Shamim, A., Ahmad, M. J., & Abid, M. F. (2023). Do entrepreneurial self-efficacy, entrepreneurial motivation, and family support enhance entrepreneurial intention? The mediating role of entrepreneurial education. Asia Pacific Journal of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, 17(1), 20-45.
Sophia, G., & Onen, D. (2024). Curriculum alignment and graduate employability: a comprehensive exploration at Makerere University. East African Journal of Education Studies, 7(4), 712-727.
Syamsudin, M. S., & Maulana, I. (2023). Outcome-based Education identifying determining factors in improving students’ learning achievement in higher education systems. Cendikia: Media Jurnal Ilmiah Pendidikan, 13(6), 968-975.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 Dwi Adinda Puspitasari, Yuyun Yulia

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

