Exploring transferable skills for students
As you start to think about your future career, it’s important to explore what you’re good at and how the skills you’ve developed could help you prepare for further study or work.
Without even realising, you are developing and demonstrating new skills every day. From planning what books or equipment you’ll need for your school day, to managing a busy workload of homework, reports and assignments. Even getting yourself to school, college or an apprenticeship on time and interacting with your classmates or colleagues will equip you with the necessary skills for a successful future career.
Watch our Daily Reel to help you think about your transferable skills and how you develop them during your academic career and personal lives. It introduces the Universal Skills Builder Framework to explore core skill areas and give practical examples of how you may use these currently or draw on them in different professions in the future.
In this 15 min summary, you’ll learn:
- What transferable skills are and why they are important
- What skills employers are looking for
- The difference between hard and soft skills
- How analysing your skill set can help you to make decisions
Why Understanding Transferable Skills Matters
- Enhanced Employability: Transferable skills are highly valued by employers across various industries. When students and young people recognize and develop these skills, they become more competitive candidates in the job market. Whether applying for their first job or seeking to advance their careers, a strong foundation of transferable skills can set them apart from other applicants
- Adaptability in a Changing Job Market: The job market is continuously evolving, with emerging technologies and shifting economic trends. Transferable skills provide a safety net, enabling students and young people to pivot and adapt to changing circumstances. These skills allow them to transition between industries or roles, reducing the risk of unemployment due to job obsolescence.
- Career Flexibility and Growth: Understanding transferable skills empowers students and young people to make informed career choices. They can explore a broader range of job opportunities, as these skills are not limited to specific roles or industries. This flexibility enables them to pursue diverse career paths and experience personal and professional growth throughout their lives.
Here’s a short clip from Stockport employers talking about how they use communication skills as part of their job:
Transferable Skills for Students needed from Future Talent in Stockport
We’ve produced a range of tools to help you understand the latest trends and skills priorities here in Stockport to help you make informed decisions about your upcoming job choices, available training pathways and future career options.
Preparing for the Future with the Universal Skills Builder Framework
Whilst good grades are important, school or college teaches you a lot more than just subject knowledge and passing exams. The Universal Skills Builder Framework underpins a lot of the curriculum-based and careers-led learning that takes place in secondary schools and further education. It’s a collection of eight key skills that employers highly value that are important for your future career. Hear from local employers about how these skills are used in their everyday job roles.
Relating your Transferable Skills from the classroom to the workplace
Not sure what skills you have? Even less confident about how they can be transferred from school or college to real life in a job? We explain more about how you’ll have gained skills during your academic career without realizing it and give examples of how you could relate these to future jobs. We also look at the specific skills you might develop from subjects like Maths or Languages and what jobs they could lead you to.
Transferable Skills for Life – Free Training Courses after School or College
Developing your skills and learning new things doesn’t stop when you leave full-time education. Training (on the job or outside of work) will likely continue throughout your entire career. It’s an important way to stay competitive in your career journey, but also a route to take on more interesting job roles, work your way up or even secure a promotion. But how much do you know about the free or partially funded courses available to you when you finish school or college?
Tools for Schools
As part of Post-16 Careers Week, we’ve also produced a range of tools for teachers to use in secondary schools and colleges, but also for students, parents and carers to access at home – sparking ideas and starting conversations about future careers. Here’s some new resources for this year all about developing Transferable Skills in Stockport.
