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Career Readiness

Center for Career & Vocation

Are you career ready?

Employers are looking for candidates that are prepared for the workforce. There are eight essential professional competencies they want new hires to have. Can you articulate your strengths, skills, and interests in these areas?

Discover how career-ready are you through a free assessment tool for all undergraduate students: Focus 2 Career Readiness Assessment

Career Competencies

Critical Thinking + Problem Solving

Students are able to…

  • Exercise sound reasoning to analyze issues, make decisions and overcome problems
  • Obtain, interpret, and use knowledge, facts, and data
  • Demonstrate originality and inventiveness

Skills:
Creativity | Analytical | Synthesize | Decision-making | Critical thinking | Innovation| Solutions

Professionalism + Work Ethic

Students are able to…

  • Demonstrate personal accountability and effective work habits
  • Understand the impact of non-verbal communication on professional work image
  • Demonstrate integrity and ethical behavior
  • Act responsibly with the interests of the larger community in mind
  • Able to learn from mistakes

Skills:
Integrity | Resilience | Accountability | Ethical | Initiative | Time Management | Presence

How to develop skills in professionalism + work ethic:

Oral + Written Communications

Students are able to…

  • Articulate thoughts and ideas clearly and effectively in written and oral formats
  • Have public speaking skills and able to express ideas to others
  • Write and edit memos, letters, and complex technical reports clearly and effectively

Skills:
Active Listening | Verbal | Non-verbal | Public Speaking | Writing

How to develop skills in oral + written communications

Digital Fluency

Students are able to…

  • Leverage existing digital technologies to solve problems, complete tasks, and accomplish goals
  • Demonstrate effective adaptability to new and emerging technologies.

Skills:
Productivity | Streamline | Maximize | Technology | Enhance quality

How to develop skills in digital fluency

Leadership

Students are able to…

  • Leverage the strengths of others to achieve common goals
  • Use interpersonal skills to coach and develop others
  • Able to assess and manage emotions and those of others
  • Use empathetic skills to guide and motivate
  • Organize, prioritize, and delegate work

Skills:
Strengths-based | Motivate | Collaborate | Influence | Empower | Strategic Thinking | Decision-making | Shared Goals

How to develop skills in leadership

Teamwork + Collaboration

Students are able to…

  • Build collaborative relationships with colleagues and customers representing diverse cultures, races, ages, genders, religions, lifestyles, and viewpoints
  • Able to work within a team structure and can negotiate and manage conflict

Skills:
Shared Responsibility | Empathy | Respect | Collaborative | Self-Management | Conflict Management | Shared Common Goal

How to develop skills in teamwork + collaboration:

Global Fluency

Students are able to…

  • Value, respect, and learn from diverse cultures, races, ages, genders, sexual orientations, and religions
  • Demonstrate openness, inclusiveness, sensitivity, and the ability to interact respectfully with all people and understand individual differences

Skills:
Respect | Diversity | Inclusive Language | Collaborative | Appreciative | Value | Learn | Interpersonal Communication

How to develop skills in global fluency

Career Management

Students are able to…

  • Articulate personal skills, strengths, knowledge, and experiences
  • Identifies areas necessary for professional growth
  • Able to navigate and explore job options
  • Understand and take the steps necessary to pursue opportunities
  • Understand how to self-advocate for opportunities in the workplace

Skills:
Awareness | Goal Oriented | Articulate | Adaptable

How to develop skills in career management

  • Meet with a Career Coach from the Career Center to assess and plan
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