There are plenty of things you can do to help develop your skills and be prepared during the year.
1. Complete the Saints Skills Awards
The Saints Skills Awards are a great way to build up students' employability skills through the Skills Builder Award or the Skills Spotlight Award. Each award will help to enhance your employability, either by developing a range of skills or by learning how best to articulate these skills. These skills are highly valued by employers and look great on your CV. You can complete the Skills Builder Award through the Graduate Attributes Platform by clicking on the ‘award’ icon in the left-hand menu. You can complete the Skills Spotlight Award by signing up through the Careers Centre’s platform CareerConnect.
2. Brush up on your study skills with our online resources
Whether you want to revisit time management, how to cite and reference, ideas for structuring essays, or hone your presentation skills (and much more besides) you can find out how via CEED’s online study skills resource hub.
3. Log your activities on the graduate attributes platform to reveal your skills profile and increase your employability.
Reflecting on your activities inside and outside of the classroom this semester will allow you to build up your personal skills profile which will enhance your employability and benefit you whenever you need to apply for an internship or job. Take some time to familiarise yourself with our graduate attributes and how the graduate attribute platform works and log everything you’ve done – assignments you’ve completed; tutorials you’ve contributed to; lab work you’ve completed; student roles you’ve taken on; sports, society and hall activities you’ve been part of; volunteering you’ve done, and more. It all counts towards developing your graduate skill set that sets you apart.
4. Dip into CEED’s recommended reading list
CEED has partnered with our friends in the Library to recommend a number of books you can digest to help with your academic and professional skill development.
- Pocket Study Skills: Time Management
- Pocket Study Skills: Getting Critical
- Pocket Study Skills: Reading and Making Notes
- 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
- Make it stick: the science of successful learning
5. Develop your IT skills with Microsoft Imagine Academy
Take some time to explore the wealth of resources open to students through the Microsoft Imagine Academy. Word, Excel, Powerpoint and Access are all covered. It could even be the catalyst for you working towards a Microsoft Office Specialist Certificate!