Want to make interactive content? It’s easy in Genially!

Over 30 million people build interactive content in Genially.

Check out what others have designed:

GRETA THUNBERG

Horizontal infographics

FIRE FIGHTER

Horizontal infographics

STEVE JOBS

Horizontal infographics

ONE MINUTE ON THE INTERNET

Horizontal infographics

SITTING BULL

Horizontal infographics

Transcript

Introduction to Employability Skills

Start

Employability intro & overview

Joining the world of work gives you the opportunity to put what you have learnt in college into practice. This virtual work experience programme will help you develop awareness about yourselves, give you some vital experience of the working world, and help you develop strategies to cope in this new world of work.With the right support, you should be aiming for the best possible start when entering into employment. Learning about employability skills is very important because employability skills are transferable; you can adapt them to whichever situation you find yourself in. They also give you a much better idea of what to expect from being in a job, and how you can prevent stress by being prepared.

View

View

What are employability/transferrable skills?

Let us begin by thinking about what employability skills are. Employability skills are the ‘soft’ skills (also known as transferable skills) needed to make an individual appear more employable. These skills will form the basis of your CV or job application, as they show that you’re able to deal effectively with the demands of work. Some examples of employability skills are:

Selfmanagment

Teamwork

Positive attitude

Thinking Skills (initiative)

Communication

Resilience

Willingness to learn

Why are employability skills Important?

It’s important to remember: Employability is a set of skills, knowledge and personal attributes that make an individual more employable. Transferrable employability skills are important because the labour market is intensely competitive, and employers are looking for people who are flexible, have initiative and have the ability to undertake a variety of tasks in different environments.Employers are demanding skills from graduates which are outside their subject area of study at school, college and university. Indeed, some employers have placed less importance on graduates’ actual qualifications in favour of the more generic skills which they have acquired.

This virtual work experience programme has many positive benefits. Let's start by thinking about just a few:

Thinking Skills (initiative) - to have the ability to think objectively, analysing and evaluating an issue to form a well-rounded judgement. Within a workplace setting, thinking skills are important when promoting creativity, open-mindedness, and problem-solving

It will get you thinking about your future - the time will soon arrive when you will have to make decisions about your future, and for many people, that will involve finding a job after finishing their education. This programme will help equip you with the necessary skills, information and advice to feel confident about applying for jobs, as well as the knowledge you may need to make informed choices and decisions when entering the world of work.

Self-management - is so important in the workplace because it helps you contribute to a better work environment for yourself and your coworkers. In a workplace setting, self-management revolves around time-management, punctuality, attendance, and preparation; but other examples of self-management skills could include self-confidence, persistence, patience, perceptiveness, and emotional regulation

Communication- the process of exchanging information and ideas. In a workplace setting, effective communication is critical in getting the job done, as well as building a sense of trust and increasing the productivity of employees

Employers see a qualifications and achievements as necessary, but not solely sufficient for them to be recruited these days. Achievements outside the boundaries of their discipline - extracurricular activities such as work experience, volunteering, and involvement in clubs and societies, for example - are seen as having equal importance as the knowledge and experience acquired through academic study.Therefore it is vital that you have an understanding of Employability expectations - that way you can begin to weigh your strengths and areas for improvement!

There are other things you need to think about when entering the world of work too:

  • Passion - being passionate about your job will help you feel happy and fulfilled, and also make it easier to get up and go to work each and every day.
  • Location - you’ll need to think about where you want to work and how you will get there.
  • The Workplace - is the job you want to do in a place that you would be happy and comfortable working in?
  • Work/life balance - it is really important to make sure you don’t overwork yourself and leave some time for pleasurable things in life.
  • Professionalism - it is so important to do things right. So, that means always being on time, always looking presentable, trying hard, and trying to establish good working relationships with colleagues.

Positive Attitude - if just one member of a team has a negative outlook, it can quickly influence the whole team, making everyone's morale suffer. In a workplace setting, the importance of a positive attitude cannot be underestimated - you feel better when you surround yourself with positive people because they encourage you to be ambitious, work hard and stay focused, as well as raising your confidence. Positivity begets more positivity!

Teamwork - enables a workforce to break difficult tasks down into simpler ones, then work together to complete them faster. In a workplace setting, a teamwork environment promotes an atmosphere that fosters friendship and loyalty. These close-knit relationships motivate employees and lead them to work harder, cooperate and be supportive of one another. Individuals possess diverse talents, weaknesses, communication skills, strengths, and habits - all should be taken into account when promoting teamwork

It will help you up-skill on virtual programmes - as well as developing essential workplace skills, you'll gain experience, skills and knowledge of virtual programmes. As more organisations plan to work remotely in the long term, you'll develop valuable technical skills.

Working life is different from anything you might have experienced before! There will be new things you will have to learn:

  • You might have a job list/task sheet when in the workplace.
  • You will need to do your BEST – you may need help to achieve this initially.
  • You will need to understand your strengths and how they can help you do a good job.
  • You will need to know your responsibilities and understand how you will get them done efficiently.
  • You might need a uniform for work.

It will help you stand out to prospective employers - many employers look for work experience on a candidate's CV. By undertaking this work experience programme, you're making yourself more appealing to a prospective employer by demonstrating your initiative and motivation.

It will help you boost your soft skills - whilst you're on this programme, you're responsible for your organising and managing your own time. These are essential skills in the workplace and will look great on your CV.

Resilience - the ability to cope with ups and downs and bounce back from challenges. In a workplace setting, this can be particularly applied to employees' abilities to manage anything from a tough workload to frustrating colleagues

Willingness to learn - to know new things and to improve yourself. In a workplace setting, willingness to learn means you are a person who wants to be more qualified and wants to be up to date with changes and tendencies in your professional area

It will give you some very valuable, street-wise advice - not only will this programme help you with the skills you'll need to get a job, but it will offer some very valuable advice about important post-employment considerations: budgeting, saving, banking, debt management and understanding your payslip.