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|a Prior studies have examined the historical evolution, multiple stakes, measurements and operation models of graduate employability, and the researches on graduate employability have gradually shifted to the perspective of employers with wider labor market uncertainty and higher education massification. However, there is still a gap in research on the demand for graduate employability by employers in NDI that work closely with higher education in scientific research. Namely, it remains unclear what really matters in the processes of employers’ recruitment decisions in NDI. Drawing on Yorke’s definition and CareerEDGE model, this study defines graduate employability as a set of achievements—skills, understandings and personal attributes—that makes graduates more likely to gain employment in NDI, including “emotional intelligence”, “knowledge and skills”, “generic skills”, “work experience”, “character and personality”. Owing to the importance and arduousness of NDI historical mission and main tasks, we argue that employers pay more attention to graduate employability in the recruitment process. Empirically examining based on 831 questionnaires from employers of NDI in China, we show that employers prefer graduates with higher levels of “cooperative innovation ability”, “knowledge and skills”, “stress management and adaptation” within Chinese national defense-related programs. Particularly, although employers in NDI have always emphasized employees’ loyalty and dedication, “character and personality” of a graduate does not have a direct effect on employer hiring preference, but instead the effect of cooperative innovation ability and knowledge and skills are fully moderated by character and personality. © 2022 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland.
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