Computer skills were identified and grouped as follows: operating systems, graphical user interface, word processing, spreadsheets, and databases. Responses from 47 of 420 employers rated proficiency in all of these groups essential. Database skills were particularly highly rated. (SK)

A study identified what 55 South Georgia employers considered to be important items on a resume and compared those preferences to those of national hiring officials. Results indicate that levels of importance attached to specific items vary and applicants must tailor their resumes to specific employers. (JOW)

Managers from 47 Kansas City companies identified skills and knowledge important for their international employees. Oral and written communication ranked highest, followed by exporting, customs, marketing, business etiquette, and protocol. Employees with high school education had markedly different overseas assignments than did college graduates.…

A survey identified business preferences and practices of 46 employers related to the online job application process; 28% had format preferences; 28% accepted resumes via their websites; 78% found electronic follow-up letters acceptable. Implications for instruction in business communications courses were derived. (JOW)

The basic educational requirements desired by businesses of new employees and the relationship of the computer to their work were determined through site visits to 17 businesses. Employers wanted microcomputer proficiency, excellent communication skills, analytical and interpersonal skills, and background in word and data processing and…

Responses from 1,695 (out of 5,213) surveyed Texas employers provided information, presented in rank order, in the following categories for entry-level jobs: sources for obtaining applicants, reasons for rejecting applicants, causes for terminating employees, employment preparation areas in which improvement is needed, and goals for public…

Findings from research at Northern Illinois University on marketing positions were used to identify job levels and promotion criteria in food marketing, general retail merchandising, and wholesaling. Interviews with business executives in the three areas provided the marketing occupational information needed in vocational distributive education…

Included in this feature section are selected articles on various aspects of the business education program. (JS)

Impact on distributive education cooperative programs due to the legislation increasing the minimum wage effective January 1, 1978, indicates that the change could greatly restrict future cooperative placements, thereby reducing distributive education enrollments. Employer strategies (for example, reducing student work hours) to overcome wage…

Responding employers from two business samples (286 of 2,700 and 67 of 400) perceived a lack of desired competencies in entry workers. High school graduates rated no higher than 3.07 and college graduates 3.89 on a 7-point scale. Social competencies (sociability, responsibility, self-management, integrity, self-esteem) were thought in need of most…

Summaries of forty-eight business education research studies completed in 1977 (all but one a doctoral or independent study) are compiled for twenty-two subject areas. Although the quantity is small, these summaries should present a normal picture of the nature and scope of research in business education in 1977. (MF)