Part 1 transferable_skills

JUL – DIS 2011
23126Z: PERSONAL SKILLS
DEVELOPMENT
Part 1:
TRANSFERABLE SKILLS
Prepared by:
Pn. Noor Zilawati Sabtu
Jabatan Sains Kuantitatif
KPM Beranang

TRANSFERABLE SKILLS
Generic (or general) transferable skills are those skills, abilities and personal
attributes which you can use in a wide range of activities, both in and out of
employment, and that are not specific to the subject you studied.
There exist many transferable skills, but most can be summarized under four main
headings:
•communication and presentation skills (oral, written and graphic);
•teamwork or interpersonal skills (e.g. negotiating, listening, sharing,
empathizing);
•management or organizing and planning skills (including self management
skills such as integrity, honesty and ethical behavior); and
•intellectual and creative skills (such as problem solving and 'thinking beyond the
square').
Skills that you have developed in a specific subject area at university (e.g.
sociology, psychology, archaeology) may be transferred from that context into
another (e.g. another topic or a community role or a employment-related task).

TRANSFERABLE SKILLS – AN EXAMPLE
Let's discuss that more fully though the example of writing.
The ability to communicate effectively in writing is an example of a
transferable skill area that you may have develop through different kinds of
exercise at university. These could include those assignments that require
you to write essays, fieldwork reports, laboratory reports, or text for posters.
Whilst you may develop your ability to communicate in writing in a particular
context (for example, within your particular disciplinary area or within the
context of university assignments) your various abilities can be transferred
across (used in) several contexts. You will probably find that you need to,
or will, develop these skills to progressively higher levels in your work and
community life to produce, for example, policy papers, annual reports,
published articles, or books and to present your ideas at conferences,
board meetings or public forums.

TRANSFERABLE SKILLS – THE IMPORTANCE
Why are they important?
1.Transferable skills empower you to use and effectively apply the specific
knowledge you develop through higher education. For example, expertise
with 'MS-Excel' or 'SPSS' enables you to use and present discipline-
specific data effectively.
2.Transferable skills enable you to perform different work or professional
roles from those for which you have been educated. For example, well-
developed transferable skills might allow the social work professional to
move from social work practice into hospital policy.
3.Transferable skills are mutually supportive. For example, interpersonal
skills (such as how well you listen) are often closely connected to your
ability to communicate effectively (such as how much impact your written or
spoken word has on others).

What do employers say about transferable skills?
Employers often differ as to the skills they expect of graduates as well as
the way they prioritise those skills. Many major employers also have their
own competency-based system for recruitment, in-house training and
promotion decisions. For example, in its recruitment and promotion
decisions, one large, well-known firm operating in Australia focuses on six
'Personal Qualities', in particular:
1. personal impact.
This means having presence and credibility, making a strong impact, being
good with words, and having polished communication skills and influence.
2. relating to people.
Are you an effective relationship builder and networker, who can
empathise, consult, listen, respect, give consideration, use tact and
diplomacy, who can promote consensus and is concerned about team

CONTINUE…
3. self motivation.
The self-motivated person is someone who readily tackles demanding
tasks, willingly offers to get involved, and seeks out new/extra
responsibilities.
4. quality orientation.
Are you someone who takes pride in the quality of your work and are seen
by others to have integrity and business ethics?
5.adaptability.
This refers to the ability to respond appropriately to continually changing
circumstances. It suggests a person who welcomes suggestions for doing
things differently and is regarded by others as being open to change.
6. Resilience. This means being able to cope with stress, work under
pressure, show stamina and tenacity whilst remaining stays cool headed.

CONTINUE…
What transferable skills do you have?
You may be one of those fortunate people who has a well-developed sense
of your own abilities and the ability to make those known to other people.
However, because transferable skills are often developed implicitly within
university topics, some students and graduates do not realize the extent to
which they have developed skills through study and other aspects of
university life (e.g. part-time work, extracurricular activities). Very often, this
problem becomes most evident when graduates respond to requests for
information from prospective employers at the end of their studies.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
CONTINUE…
What transferable skills do you have?
You may be one of those fortunate people who has a well-developed sense
of your own abilities and the ability to make those known to other people.
However, because transferable skills are often developed implicitly within
university topics, some students and graduates do not realize the extent to
which they have developed skills through study and other aspects of
university life (e.g. part-time work, extracurricular activities). Very often, this
problem becomes most evident when graduates respond to requests for
information from prospective employers at the end of their studies.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Transferable skills 'menu‘
There are a number of activities which you may undertake, both at KPM
Beranang and outside - for example, in the workplace, as a community
volunteer, in a social or sports club and within the family - from which you
can draw to create your own transferable skills 'portfolio'. The experiences
you encounter on- and off-campus will enable you to develop these skills
both at a basic and advanced level. It is important to remember that
development of your portfolio of skills is a lifelong process. You will not
encounter the experiences you require to develop all skills in each topic or
extracurricular activity you undertake. Your skill development will occur
over time, through the many activities you undertake, and in developmental
stages, from the attainment of a basic level of competence in particular
skills to more advanced achievement. The following 'menu' of transferable
skills elaborates those skills KPM Beranang expects of its graduates.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Continue…
The menu outlines what those skills mean and suggests some activities
('sources of opportunity') in which you might develop them. You will be able
to draw on these 'sources of opportunity' to demonstrate (provide evidence
of) your own achievements in your skills portfolio. It is important to note that
the menu is neither comprehensive nor prescriptive. It is meant instead to
be a guide to help you reflect on the level of competence you have
achieved in each of the four main skill areas.
1.Communication and presentation skills
2.Teamwork or interpersonal skills
3.Managing or organising/planning skills (including self-management)
4.Intellectual (analytical, design or problem solving) and creative
skills

DEVELOPING SKILLS
1. Communication and presentation skills
Having communication and presentation skills means being able to express ideas
and information either in written form (e.g. on paper, on computer, using
graphics) or orally. Communication skills are often closely connected to
interpersonal skills (e.g. your sensitivity to others, enthusiasm, how well you
listen).

DEVELOPING SKILLS
1. Communication and presentation skills
Having communication and presentation skills means being able to:
•Speak in an interesting way, with confidence, formally and informally, on a
one-to-one basis and/or in a group setting.
•Present ideas effectively in a formal situation using appropriate technological
aids to understanding (e.g. overhead projectors, slides, video, or audio
cassettes, computer applications).
•Articulate relevant ideas and opinions in discussion.
•Use and define terms adequately/correctly.
•Communicate appropriately with professional colleagues and with the public,
displaying sensitivity to the needs of the audience being addressed.
•Give and receive constructive feedback.
•Utilise a foreign (non English) language.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
1. Communication and presentation skills – Continue…
Sources of opportunity to develop your communication and presentation skills
include:
•Contributing to small group (tutorial and seminar) discussions.
•Giving a tutorial, seminar or conference presentation.
•Involvement in public speaking groups, debating clubs, political associations;
chairing meetings; participating in role playing exercises.
•Contributing to public forum discussions.
•Participating in exercises where you are required to provide feedback to other
students' work-in-progress presentations, or to their tutorial presentations.
Some people may have developed their feedback skills to an advanced level
through their work experiences (e.g. in assessing the reports, theses, or
fieldwork of others).
•Undertaking formal foreign language tuition.
•Developing your foreign language skills experientially (e.g. through using a
[non-English] language at home/with friends).
•DIY foreign language tuition (e.g. self teaching through tapes/CD ROMs).

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Writing/report writing skills
Having writing/report writing skills means being able to:
• Write/report findings in a grammatically correct, well reasoned, succinct and
structured manner.
• Cite information sources correctly.
• Use appropriate terminology.
• Use relevant graphics (e.g. graphs, charts, pictures, maps) as part of an argument
or in a report.
• Use relevant numerical and statistical information as part of an argument or in a
report.
Sources of opportunity to develop your writing and report writing skills include:
• Producing essays, project reports, thesis/dissertations, poster presentations at
conferences.
• Subject-specific appropriate terminology will be developed over time as you develop
your subject knowledge competence.
• Writing, including report-writing skills, may also be developed in the workplace.
• Use of numerical and statistical information will be developed by preparing and
using flow charts, maps, graphs, tables, grids, formulae etc. and by calculating

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Word processing and other computer skills
Having word processing and other computer skills means being able to:
• Use word processing packages and other applications to present visual and
written information.
• Employ other Information Technology (IT) skills appropriate to your work
context such as databases, spreadsheets, GIS, and WWW design.
• Use e-mail, the internet, electronic library catalogues, and other information
retrieval systems.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Sources of opportunity to develop your word processing and other computer skills
include:
• Using software such as 'Word', 'Word Perfect', and 'PowerPoint' for simple letter
writing or to present essays, tutorials, theses, and to support oral presentations.
• Integrating IT tools into your research/work by making use of (or creating)
databases and spreadsheets (e.g. using SPSS for statistical analysis of
research data);
• Using Geographic Information Systems (GIS).
• Using e-mail for communicating with friends or tutors, to request information or
send documents, or to establish mailing lists.
• Using the internet to retrieve information (e.g. using WWW to get details of
university topic materials and other Flinders-related information or by
undertaking simple or complex WWW searches for research.
• Using the library's on-line catalogue (Investigator) or other University's
catalogues (e.g. Universities of Adelaide, South Australia) or other electronic
resources (e.g. data bases such as Ovid, FirstSearch or Lexis Nexis) for
research purposes.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
2. Teamwork and Interpersonal Skills
This set of skills enables people to manage their relationships with other
people. They are the skills used to deal with others and include, for
example, negotiating, reasoning, explaining, listening, directing, accepting
direction, sharing and being open, handling and resolving conflict, being
assertive, empathising, networking, and getting on with all sorts of people.
Someone with teamwork skills will have the ability to work in a team
environment, including those environments where the team is made up of a
variety of people and disciplines.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
2. Teamwork and Interpersonal Skills – Continue…
Capacity for cooperation and teamwork
Having the capacity for cooperation and teamwork means being able to:
• Listen effectively to, and cooperate and work with, others; and to
incorporate a 'give and take' attitude to achieve group results.
• Present, discuss, and defend views as well as negotiate solutions when
opinions differ within a group setting.
• Share ideas and responsibility.
• Understand your own and others' role in a group.
• Recognise and utilise skills and knowledge of team members.
• Recognise your own strengths and limitations as well as those of
others.
• Take initiative in a group where appropriate.
• Accept direction.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
2. Teamwork and Interpersonal Skills – Continue….
Capacity for cooperation and teamwork
Sources of opportunity to develop your cooperative and teamwork skills
include:
• Participating in small groups (tutorials, workshops) and in group work
and group projects (at University, in the workplace or the community).
• Being involved in activities where consensus is sought (making
decisions with others) or where members' values require clarification
(where members have/may have different value assumptions).
• Undertaking the facilitating role in tutorials/meetings in which you
participate.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Management and supervisory skills
Having management and supervisory skills means:
• Being able to lead or represent a group where appropriate. This
requires being able to think strategically (to achieve an overall goal),
listen, give direction (e.g. establish an agenda [prioritised]), make
unpopular decisions, operate under stress, supervise, motivate and
encourage others, delegate, promote productive cooperation, and
represent the views of others.
• Having the capacity to manage people and resolve conflicts.
• Being able to manage group resources.
• Being able to develop networks and make contact with new people.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Management and supervisory skills
Sources of opportunity to develop your management and supervisory skills
include:
• Being a project leader or research team leader.
• Undertaking a leadership position of a social, sporting or community
group.
• Being employed in an supervisory position at work.
• Being a student representative on University committees (e.g.
ConCom).
• Involvement in group projects or negotiation exercises.
• Management of family finances, of social/sporting/community group or
business finances (e.g. as Treasurer).
• Networking/making new contacts at conferences, meetings.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Capacity to appreciate different viewpoints and cultural perspectives
Having the capacity to appreciate different viewpoints and cultural
perspectives means being able to:
• Understand group dynamics within and between groups, institutions, or
companies.
• Empathise with, and appreciate, differences arising from language,
culture, social history, opportunity or place.
• Work successfully in multi-disciplinary and cross cultural settings.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Capacity to appreciate different viewpoints and cultural perspectives
Sources of opportunity to develop your capacity to appreciate different
viewpoints and cultural perspectives include:
• Working in groups
• Studying topics with a global perspective, which provide some
understanding of how the world works economically, culturally, and
ecologically.
• Participating in multi-disciplinary teams or in tutorials associated with
cross-disciplinary topics.
• Being involved in exercises/situations which involve exchanges
between people from different cultures, language groups, regions, and
social backgrounds.
• Travelling.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
3. Managing or organising/planning skills (including
self-management)
People with management and planning skills have the ability to organise
their work, work out priorities sensibly, make realistic plans, and
manage time and resources effectively. They are able to work on high
priority tasks first and to delegate roles to other people. People with
personal management skills have self-discipline, are able to motivate
themselves, work with minimum supervision, be punctual and
professional, and will be characterised by integrity, honesty and ethical
behaviour. Self-management skills also include the ability to cope well
with change (e.g. being able to learn new skills and procedures, being
prepared to challenge basic assumptions, being adaptable).

DEVELOPING SKILLS
self-management) – Continue….
Capacity to work with minimum supervision
Having the capacity to work with minimum supervision means:
• Being self-reliant yet also knowing when to ask for help
• Being an independent thinker
• Being able to manage or organise yourself
• Having the self confidence to know what you are doing is appropriate and of
high standard
• Behaving ethically despite the absence of any other members of your moral
community
• Accepting responsibility for your own work and acts
• Carrying the moral community into your self-management (good citizenship)
• Taking initiative for your own learning
• Doing what you say you will do despite the obstacles (integrity and
perseverance)

DEVELOPING SKILLS
self-management) – Continue…
Capacity to work with minimum supervision
Sources of opportunity to develop your capacity to work with minimum supervision
include:
• Undertaking thesis/dissertation/individual project research.
• Active participation in the opportunities for learning offered through topics you
undertake.
• Maintaining a reflective journal.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Time management
Being able to time manage means being able to:
• Spread your workload/balance your workload between university commitments/
family/employment.
• Work to deadlines.
• Set realistic time frameworks for achievement of goals.
• Deal efficiently and quickly with tasks.
Sources of opportunity to develop your time management skills include:
• Completing assignments by their due date.
• Revising for examinations.
• Completing recommended reading for each topic.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Management/supervisory skills
Having management/supervisory skills means being able to:
• Set and recognise priorities, sort out what is important and what is urgent
(ranking of priorities).
• Ration scarce financial and other resources amongst competing claims.
• Establish course(s) of action to meet specific goals - to plan realistically, design
strategies, implement plans/strategies, have contingency plans, monitor,
evaluate (show a clear and attainable framework for achievement).
Sources of opportunity to develop your management/supervisory skills include:
• Planning and organising activities involving more than one person (e.g.
conferences, group projects).
• Strategic planning activities (through workplace/community groups).
• Designing, planning and completing essays or a thesis.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Adaptability/capacity to cope with change
Being adaptable/having the capacity to cope with change means being able to:
• Deal with the unexpected, cope with change and be prepared to act in new
ways.
• Learn new skills and procedures.
• Transfer skills learned in one context to another.
• Deal appropriately with ambiguity.
• Think laterally, which may involve finding new ways to approach problems.
• Be prepared to challenge/ question basic assumptions about the ways things
are done/ have been done.
• Treat new situations as opportunities rather than impediments.
• Assess and reflect on one's own actions and learn from the mistakes of others
(i.e. have a lifelong approach to learning).
Accept and provide constructive feedback.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Adaptability/capacity to cope with change
Sources of opportunity to develop your adaptability and change management skills
include:
• Undertaking study/activities to enable changes in career direction.
• Taking advantage of any available opportunities to learn new skills or
procedures (including in-house training in your place of employment).
• Taking advantage of learning opportunities in work placements.
• Modifying oral or written presentations on basis of assessor comments.
• Coping with unusual or new approaches to teaching and learning (e.g. WebCT).
• Dealing appropriately with different kinds of advice about strategies for essay
writing, poster-presentation or citing sources
• Coping with group-work situations from which some participants withdraw.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
4. Intellectual (analytical, design or problem solving) and creative
skills
People also need broad intellectual and creative skills that can be applied
to ideas, to practical problems, to research, designing strategies or to
making policy. These skills include being able to observe and record; to
summarise, assess and evaluate evidence; apply your judgement and
discrimination; think laterally, to be pro-active and to have the capacity for
'vision' (to "think beyond the square").

DEVELOPING SKILLS
skills – Continue…
Analytical/problem solving skills
Having analytical/problem solving skills means being able to:
•Think logically and critically (critical reasoning) and to apply this to a range of
problems.
•Identify/define researchable questions in the discipline or professional area. This
might involve identifying issues, formulate questions or hypotheses, identify the
complexity of issue(s) using your subject knowledge.
Sources of opportunity to develop your analytical, problem solving skills include:
•Writing essays, answering assigned questions.
•Undertaking analytical laboratory work.
•Active participation in workshops oriented to problem posing, solving, and
reporting.
•Contributing to group research tasks, 'brain-storming' or cause and effect
diagramming activities and the like.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Capacity to make decisions
Having the capacity to make decisions means being able to:
•Weigh up the relative merits of, and come to conclusions based on, contradictory or
incomplete information.
•Use existing knowledge in new/different situations and be able to evaluate what is
relevant to that new context.
•Know who, when and what to consult.
•Recognise the implications of various options to an overall plan/strategy.
Sources of opportunity to develop your decision making skills include:
•Voting at meetings.
•Being involved in University committees (e.g. ConCom).
•Choosing which topics suit your chosen career trajectory.
•Making judgements about moral/humanitarian issues in an essay, poster, talk or
thesis.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Ability to think creatively
Having an ability to think creatively means being able to:
•Provide novel solutions; to be imaginative and have insight.
•Maximise the range of opportunities available to you.
•Take new approaches - look for new angles, evidence.
•Use a variety of sources and resources in the research process.
•Think independently.
•Show entrepreneurial flair.
Sources of opportunity to develop your creative thinking ability include:
•Considering thoughtfully those new ideas/concepts/theories in your subject area to
which you are introduced.
•Being involved in brain storming activities or focus group discussions.
•Undertaking independent research.
•Completing assignments to a high standard.
•Securing your own work placement.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Adequacy of knowledge in appropriate fields
Having adequate (specialised) knowledge and skills in the appropriate field
means:
•Being able to acquire and operate effectively with and upon a body of
knowledge to the extent of being ready to begin further study or
employment.
•Understanding a whole disciplinary or professional area (its content and
range, paradigms, conceptual basis, limitations and boundaries,
relationship to other frameworks)
•Possessing an understanding of current research areas in the discipline or
professional area.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Adequacy of knowledge in appropriate fields
Sources of opportunity to develop your specialised subject knowledge and
skills include:
•Regular attendance at, and attendance to the subject matter of, scheduled
lectures/tutorials.
•Active participation where appropriate in planned activities (e.g. field trips).
•Completion of assignments.
•Active reading of the literature in your subject area.
•Maintenance of a reflective journal (cumulative record of learning process,
student reactions and responses).
•Membership of professional organisations.

DEVELOPING SKILLS
Ability to apply knowledge to the workplace
Having an ability to apply knowledge to the workplace means being:
•Workplace 'savvy' (knowing and politics and culture of your organisation, as well as
the devices, techniques, codes and practices used in that workplace).
•Able to apply theory/concepts to practical situations and provide workable solutions
or advice.
Sources of opportunity to develop your ability to apply knowledge to the workplace
include:
•Gaining workplace experience (part-time work/ placements as part fulfilment of your
course requirements).
•Developing recommendations arising from research project or thesis research.
•Undertaking fieldwork.
•Undertaking case studies and simulation exercises.

Part 1 transferable_skills

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Part 1 transferable_skills