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Skills?
What Skills? |
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Looking for lifeguards!!
Pool Lifeguards working at public and private swimming facilities supervise the pool, decks and adjacent areas. Usually working in pairs, Lifeguards constantly watch the swimmers in their jurisdiction, protect their safety, make sure rules are followed, give first aid, and, if required, use the rescue techniques as prescribed by the Red Cross. They also keep records, write reports, and do required pool maintenance. |
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Think about the
skills involved in working as a Lifeguard!
Where would you get these skills? Have you ever taken swimming
lessons? Do you recall your first aid lessons from school?
Sometimes it's diffcult to think about the things we have learned
at school, at boy scouts or girl guides as actual skills but
they are. From tying knots to CPR, from building a mini race
car to learning to make a pizza, these activities all lead to
your skill development and you can start to look at them as
transferable skills or employability
skills.
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Transferable skills
What Are Transferable Skills?
A transferable skill is a 'portable skill' that you deliberately
(or inadvertently, if you haven't identified them yet) take with
you to other life experiences.
Your transferable skills are often:
- Acquired through a class (e.g., a Computer class teaches you
how to use wordprocessing)
- Acquired through experience (e.g., the student government representative
who develops strong motivation and consensus building skills)
Transferable skills supplement your degree. They provide an employer
concrete evidence of your readiness and qualifications for a position.
Identifying your transferable skills and communicating them to
potential employers will greatly increase your success during
the job search.
Remember that it is impossible to complete college without acquiring
transferable skills. Campus and community activities, class projects
and assignments, athletic activities, internships and summer/part-time
jobs have provided you with countless experiences where you've
acquired a range of skills and many that you may take for granted.
Identifying Transferable Skills
While very closely related (and with some overlap), transferable
skills can be divided into three subsets:
- Working with people
- Working with things
- Working with information and data
For example, some transferable skills can be used in every workplace
setting (e.g., organizing or public speaking) while some are more
applicable to specific settings (e.g., drafting or accounting).
The following are examples of skills often acquired through the
classroom, jobs, athletics and other activities. Use these examples
to help you develop your own list of the transferable skills you've
acquired.
Working With People
- Selling - Training -Teaching - Supervising
- Organizing - Soliciting - Motivating - Mediating
- Advising - Delegating - Entertaining
- Representing - Negotiating - Translating
Working With Things
- Repairing - Assembling parts - Designing
- Operating machinery - Driving
- Maintaining equipment - Constructing - Building
- Sketching - Working with CAD - Keyboarding
- Drafting - Surveying - Troubleshooting
Working With Data/Information
- Calculating - Developing databases
- Working with spreadsheets- Accounting - Writing
- Researching - Computing- Testing - Filing - Sorting
- Editing - Gathering data- Analyzing - Budgeting
Easy Steps to Identify Your Transferable Skills
Now that you know what transferable skills are, let's put together
a list of your transferable skills. You may want to work with
someone in your career services office to help you identify as
many transferable skills as possible.
Step 1.
Make a list of every job title you've ever held (part-time, full-time
and internships), along with volunteer, sports and other affiliations
since starting college. (Be sure to record officer positions and
other leadership roles).
Step 2.
Using your transcript, list the classes in your major field of
study along with foundation courses. Include electives that may
be related to your employment interests.
Step 3.
For each job title, campus activity and class you've just recorded,
write a sentence and then underline the action taken. (Avoid stating
that you learned or gained experience in any skill. Instead, present
your skill more directly as a verifiable qualification.)
'While working for Jones Engineering, I performed 3D modeling
and drafting.'
NOT 'While working for Jones Engineering, I gained experience
in 3D modeling and drafting.'
'As a member of the Caribbean Students Association, I developed
and coordinated the marketing of club events.'
NOT 'As a member of the Caribbean Students Association, I learned
how to market events.'
Step 4.
Make a list of the skills/experiences you've identified
for future reference during your job search.
Using Transferable Skills in the Job Search
Your success in finding the position right for you will depend
on your ability to showcase your innate talents and skills. You
will also need to demonstrate how you can apply these skills at
an employer's place of business. Consult the staff at your career
services office to help you further identify relevant transferable
skills and incorporate them on your resume and during your interviews.
During each interview, be sure to emphasize only those skills
that would be of particular interest to a specific employer.
Transferable skills are the foundation upon which you will build
additional, more complex skills as your career unfolds. Start
making your list of skills and you'll discover that you have more
to offer than you realized!
Additional Tips to Help Identify Your Transferable Skills
1. Review your list of transferable skills with someone in your
field(s) of interest to help you identify any additional skills
that you may want to include.
2. Using a major job posting Web site, print out descriptions
of jobs that interest you to help you identify skills being sought.
(Also use these postings as guides for terminology on your resume.)
3. Attend career fairs and company information sessions to learn
about the skills valued by specific companies and industries.
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