The one skill all students should acquire to boost employability
Ensuring that you remain curious and continue to learn long after you leave university is one of the most useful skills students can acquire
Nancy Gleason
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WhichÌýskills should you developÌýbeyond the knowledge you gain during your degree at university?
Many people will tell you that you need to be a problem-solver, that you need to develop critical thinking, data analysisÌýcapabilitiesÌýand inquiry skills. There areÌýalsoÌýmany important emotional intelligence skills, such as empathy, self-awareness and motivation.Ìý
And it’s true;Ìýall these areÌýimportant andÌýwill be looked upon favourably by employers. However, in order to thrive once you graduate from universityÌýthe most important competency you can develop is a mindset for lifelong learning.ÌýÌý
Lifelong learning requiresÌýcuriosity, initiative, reflectionÌýand knowledge transfer. With a constantly changing and disrupted world, skills are becoming more outdated more quickly and soÌýit is important to ensure you keep learning to keep up.
This will help youÌýcontribute to society, remain employedÌýand progress in yourÌýcareer.Ìý
How to boost your career prospects as a university student
Your student experience is on hold; career development doesn’t have toÌýbe
Starting a business at university
The key to thriving after university is to develop the skills to be an active learner. This means articulating your learning strategies,Ìýthinking about what it means to be a self-directed learnerÌýand reflecting onÌýwhat motivates you.
Being a self-directed learner involves having the skills to determine what tasks are being asked of you (in school, by a boss, or in your own start-up)Ìýand how you will go about performing those tasks. You also need to reflect on how you learn byÌýasking yourself what is working wellÌýand what needs to change to be more effective, efficient, and sustainable.Ìý
While at university you can find support for developing lifelong learning skills from librarians,Ìýtutors, academic advisers, residential staff, teaching assistantsÌýand many other places.ÌýÌý
Lifelong learning is an essential skill you can develop, assessÌýand improve while atÌýcollege. Maintaining your motivation for learning by deploying active learning strategies will help you understand our changing world and your role in it.
