Employability Skills
What are ‘Transferable Skills’? – ‘Transferable Skills’ are different to the skills that you might learn for a specific job, like operating machinery, using computer software or learning how to treat a broken arm – ‘Transferable Skills’ are not taught or learnt but developed over time and are really important for helping you prepare for the future, as they are required in almost any job role or industry that someone might want to get into. Some examples of ‘Transferable Skills’ are:
- Communicating well with others
- Project Management
- Confidence
- Teamwork
- Leadership
- Creativity
- Planning and Organisation
- Time Management
- Presentation
- Managing conflict with other people
- Self-motivation and hard work
- Building positive relationships
- Negotiation and compromise
As the world of work changes and new jobs appear all the time, qualifications will still be important, but developing ‘Transferable Skills’ will also be vital to succeed in the future! The World Economic Forum ‘Future of Jobs’ report suggests that emotional intelligence (working well with and understanding other people), creativity and people management will be amongst the top skills needed for most jobs by 2020!
How can I get these ‘Transferable Skills’?
Recent research from The Prince’s Trust and HSBC has found that many young people feel unprepared for entering the world of work after leaving school due to not spending enough time on developing their ‘Transferable Skills’ through school or part-time work (https://www.sec-ed.co.uk/news/princes-trust-report-urges-us-to-focus-on-soft-skills/)
Here at Queens’ School, we help our students to develop their ‘Transferable Skills’ in a variety of different ways, including:
- Careers education sessions to help boost self-awareness and motivation.
- Enterprise projects and competitions to provide opportunities to develop teamwork, communication, creativity and project management skills.
- The Student Leadership Team and Prefect programme, to give students a chance to take on a position of responsibility and enhance their confidence and presentation skills.
Use the Start programme to keep a record of your skills.