First‐year students' perceptions of capability

This study investigated first‐year students' perceptions of their level of capability across several domains of generic skills and attributes. Factor analysis of students' ratings revealed that first‐years categorize skills in ways that can be meaningfully related to job performance. While there were some differences in students' perceptions of the relevance of various capabilities to success in study and work contexts, students generally affirmed their interest in developing all domains of skill. Students' perceptions of the relevance of skills to their future work was the strongest predictor of their motivation for further learning.