<![CDATA[This study examines the influence of soft skills, hard skills, and internship experience on the work readiness of Generation Z, while exploring the role of psychological well-being. The research is motivated by the rising unemployment rate among university graduates, reflecting a mismatch between academic competencies and labor market demands. Using a quantitative approach, data were collected from Generation Z students and analyzed with Structural Equation Modeling–Partial Least Squares (SEM-PLS). The study’s novelty lies in its integrated model that simultaneously investigates the effects of soft skills, hard skills, internship experience, and psychological well-being on work readiness. The results show that soft skills positively and significantly influence work readiness. Hard skills and internship experience significantly improve psychological well-being, whereas soft skills have no significant effect on psychological well-being. In addition, psychological well-being neither significantly affects work readiness nor mediates the relationships between soft skills, hard skills, internship experience, and work readiness. These findings suggest that Generation Z work readiness is primarily determined by competency-related factors rather than psychological mechanisms. Therefore, higher education institutions should prioritize soft-skill development and relevant internship programs to better equip students for labor market demands, while future research should explore other psychological and contextual factors influencing work readiness]]>
