UCL Job Market Ready

Your competencies are all about you as a person. What are you capable of, and how do you deploy your skills? It may be difficult to relate skills to your person without making them too abstract. To help you understand your competencies better, we group them into professional, personal, social, and learning skills.

Personal skills

Your personal skills are based on your fundamental human characteristics, your attitudes, your understanding of yourself, and your life experience. They will reflect, for example, how you approach an assignment and how you work with others. It may be helpful for you to give some thought to how you deal with an assignment and how you perform in a collaborative situation. Consider what has gone well and what has gone less well. As examples, you may be persistent or analytical, or you may operate in listening mode.

Professional skills

By professional skills we refer to your ability to meet the expectations of your profession in any given situation. This includes your education, your proficiency, competencies, knowledge, cognitive abilities, and your capacity to translate them into practical action. Another way to express the concept is “employability”.
It is a wise investment to spend time on your professional skills and to be aware of them – no matter what your study program. That is how you give expression to your professionalism and your professional knowledge.
You may find that being able to articulate your skills and the application of your education to specific jobs provides confidence in the work life ahead of you. In addition, this articulation is your foundation when you need to make choices with respect to your future work and career.
Professional skills are strongly related to your study program and may include, as examples, project management, law, construction estimating, marketing, communications, coding, design, customer experience management, crosscultural insights, and building construction.

Social skills

By social skills we mean your ability to take part in relationships. These skills are a part of your personal competencies. They are increasingly valued in modern workplaces. How skilled are you at building relationships, taking part in networks, “reading” other people, or showing empathy? The more skills you have in this area, the better are the chances that you will get a chance to deploy your professional and learning skills.
Social skills include, as examples, empathy, loyalty, a cooperative attitude, social awareness, and a sense of humour.

Learning skills

Learning skills are competencies that go across study programs. It matters less what you studied and more that you studied.

In working with a range of proficiencies in your study program, you develop your learning skills. You learn not just from the product or the deliverable in your assignment. The entire process of getting to the product or deliverable is a learning opportunity. From time to time, ask yourself: “What did I learn during this process?” Give it serious thought and think about the learning you bring to the table when you encounter and solve problems.

Learning skills may include:

•  Delineating, defining, and analysing a problem.
• Critically assessing the data and models to be applied, and setting up systems.
• Communicating your theoretical knowledge in a way that lends itself to practical application.
• Working independently or in groups and applying discipline and goal orientation in producing a value-added deliverable.

Find out more about your competencies 

Check out karrierekompetencer.dk (in Danish) and give the skills tool a whirl.

In your study program, you will build several competencies. However, the job market of the future is changing. The skills required in the future may not be the same ones that are required today. Below we list key competencies that will be relevant in the job market of the future.

Adaptability

The job market is changing constantly. You will be thrust into a world in which the skill of being flexible and able to adapt is important. Throughout your career, you will be required to handle many changes – in the work you are asked to do, in the methods you use, and in the organisational structure in which you work.
It would be wise to practice dealing with such changes right from your days as a student. Keep the opportunities rather than the limitations in mind, and focus on what is possible rather than on what is not possible. This applies in all settings – group project work, internships, or jobs.

Define the problem and the challenges

You are already working on this skill in your study program. Those who master the skill are able to perceive problems before they arise. Doing so smooths out a lot of what would otherwise be difficult.

Apply your analytical abilities, critical assessment, big-picture view, and systematic thinking to potential challenges on the job or in your internship. Should you spot a problem or obstacle, then try working in ‘solution mode’: What benefits or challenges would a given solution offer as compared to the one currently in place? There will not always be an optimal choice, but some are more desirable than others.

Prioritising tasks and responsibilities

On the job, your manager will not in all cases be able to tell you how to deal with a task. Therefore, it is important that you rank your work tasks by priority and take ownership of completing them.

Begin by looking at all your tasks so as to order them by priority. Are some tasks dependent on other tasks? Are some tasks more urgent than others, and when is the deadline? That said, it may be difficult to rank rush jobs, as in some cases all tasks are defined as rush. That’s why you are entitled to seek guidance from your manager or a colleague. However, the professional thing to do is to prepare a priority list for presentation and discussion.

Teamwork

The work tasks of the future will require complex solutions. It will not always be possible to handle a task by yourself, as we will be dependent on the competencies of others. As a result, we must get good at working in teams and bring out the best in each other.

Clear knowledge of one’s own personal and professional skills and limitations is a factor in successful collaboration in teams.  In addition, it is helpful to listen, ask questions, and be receptive to the arguments, opinions, and values of others.

Precision in communication

Being precise and relevant when communicating is a key factor in success. However, that is easier said than done. That is why it is important to work on perfecting your communication skills – all the time. Assess your abilities – and work on improving them. One key communication task is selling your knowledge and competencies as an intern or employee to a potential employer.  This is where you need to communicate your competencies clearly and describe why they will generate value for the organisation.

As in all other disciplines, practice makes perfect. When communicating, consider:

Who is the audience?

What is the setting (professional or social)?

How does your message fit with the overall solution?

Why is it relevant?

For whom is it relevant?

Ability to learn

As previously mentioned, the world is changing. In our world, there is a surfeit of information. It is necessary to sort through and pick out the significant information. This, in turn, requires an ability to access new information. In addition, new work processes, new systems, and new work tasks will be introduced on a regular basis. That is why it is important to be able to learn new things and adopt new routines and methods.

You have been practising this during your study program, and the process does not end when you start working. Keep up your ability to understand new theories, systems, and processes, and keep up your curiosity with respect to new and current matters. Listen to and learn from your colleagues, and approach work tasks with a thoughtful attitude of critical assessment. The first argument put forth is not always the best one.

What are the job market prospects?

Looking at the ways in which employers recruit their hires may provide a useful pointer as to the job market. 

As an example, Ballisager Consultants prepared an analysis (in Danish) of the practices and preferences of organisations in hiring new staff. It may help you gain a better understanding of the job market.

Action learning, or learning by doing, is about helping you be active in and learning from day to day work in a structured environment where everyone is learning.

The learning process extends over time and switches between doing practical work (actions and experiments) and participation in action learning groups in which participants discuss, examine, and reflect on their learning and thus build a foundation for further learning and practical development.

The process can be customised for various goals and conditions and is suitable for developing a wide range of projects, competencies, methods, and teams. In other words, action learning is a helpful tool for your entire time at UCL as you grow personally and professionally.

Please feel free to get in touch with our counselling office UCL Karriere  to discuss the value of action learning.

The phases of action learning

Phase 1 – define your challenge and goal. Example: Improve your presentation skills.

Phase 2 – decide on actions and carry them out. Example: Give a presentation on your selection of a research method at the next study group meeting.

Phase 3 – watch the results of the action(s). Example: Group members provide feedback on your presentation.

Phase 4 – reflect on the feedback. Example: Reflect on the evaluation you received. What did you do well, and what could be improved?

Phase 5 – initiate a new action. Example: Get better at explaining your professional choices and supporting your message through body language.

Phase 6 – repeat phases 2-5. Example: Give serious thought to the feedback, your own reflection, and new actions. The purpose is to get as close as possible to the goal you defined in Phase 1.

An unemployment insurance fund is known in Denmark as an “A-kasse”. It offers a financial safety net in the event you become unemployed. As a member of an unemployment insurance fund, you will receive better benefits than the social assistance amount you would otherwise receive.

Your insurance fund issues your benefits payments and in addition offers guidance and advice on looking for jobs, networking, crafting resumes, and preparing job applications. The insurance fund, in effect, supplements the support you would obtain from the local employment centre.

There may be specific requirements for joining an unemployment insurance fund. Some, for example, require you to have a specific educational background or to be a member of a specific profession. Others do not pose such requirements, and anyone can join regardless of profession.

UCL is engaged in a strategic collaboration with the insurance funds.

UCL is working strategically with the funds that are relevant for your program in supporting your transition to the job market. Our collaboration produces tools that help in that transition. Relevant funds will be introduced in your study program, at career events, and at pop-up events dealing with resumes and job applications.

If you do have a disability or functional limitation and are getting ready to enter the job market, you would prepare in much the same way anyone else would.

You may benefit from specific programs that aim to make your transition to the job market as smooth as possible.

Assistance is available

It may be a challenge to get one’s foot in the door in the job market if one’s ability to work is reduced, but the employment centres may step in and help arrange meetings to explore the options you have and the remedial measures that may help you work.
Such a meeting may be arranged prior to graduation.

The local employment centre will be able to guide you with respect to several measures put in place by the government:

Personal assistance on the job

Assistive devices / Workplace modification

Wage subsidies for employers hiring new graduates with a disability

Preferential access (public employers)

Find out more about such opportunities here: handicapkompenserende ordninger (in Danish).

Working while studying

Having a job while studying is one way to add specific experience to your resume. Whether the job is relevant to your studies or simply serves to pay some bills, you will learn something, and it will look good on your resume.

Working while studying gives you the opportunity to observe and perhaps be inspired by the various job functions and tasks undertaken by your colleagues. That will serve to give you some insight into the kind of job and work activities you might like. In addition, having a job while studying is a great way to expand your network. You see, your social and professional network is one of the most significant factors in your efforts to find your first job. Your network may open doors far beyond just the department or company or job in which you work.

A student job may offer the opportunity to test some of the theories you have been studying. Should you notice that your study related knowledge may be relevant, then express your desire to apply it. In this way, you may help your student job become more professional. Being proactive may contribute to your efforts to find an internship or future job.

Volunteer work

Volunteer work is another opportunity to add practical experience to your resume. In volunteering, you offer your knowledge and energy, and in return you get experience, a feeling of doing something rewarding, and a network.

Volunteering gives you the opportunity to test your skills and find out more about your strengths and weaknesses. In addition, you will be adding to your network some dedicated people who wish to make a difference. Volunteer work is wide ranging – you may lead a scout troop, teach gymnastics, visit shut-ins, or build a website for a local club.

Check out frivillig job.

Begin at the jobportal if you would like to find a job or volunteer opportunity that is relevant in your study program. Here you will find organisations that are looking to work with students.

Why not book an appointment with one of our career counsellors to go over your resume, job application, competency description, or any other career related matter.

We all talk about the importance of having a network. But how do you build one, and how do you add value?

For a start, you may want to clarify who now are and who ideally should be members of your network. Family members, friends, and buddies in your study program are already a part of your network. Therefore, you have a network whether you intended it or not. Once you have given this some thought, you may address the matter strategically:

Who would you like to add?

Would certain persons, organisations, or job roles add value?

With a deliberate strategy for your current and ideal network, you may now explore the path toward gaining a benefit. What you get out of the network is very much related to the value you put in. If you are not willing to give of yourself and provide value for the network, you should not expect value in return.

Decide what you want to gain and what you have to offer. Be as specific and ambitious as possible. That way, others will find it easier to determine how they may contribute.

Expand your network

The further along you are in your studies, the more benefit you will get out of reviewing your network.

How did it evolve while you were studying?

Have new people joined?

Have members of the network changed their job or job function? Say, a fellow student might have switched to a different program. If so, this individual may have moved from being a close contact in your study group to being a more distant professional contact.

At all times, you should keep an eye on the value you bring to the network; that’s how you will get the best value out of it. Make an effort to document how you have used your network during the last year.
You may want to take a step in the direction of having a professional network in which your participation is motivated by career related considerations. This could involve internal UCL networks, sitting on a board of directors, or setting up a LinkedIn profile.
There are many opportunities to build networks. That said, it’s not always easy. What you need to do is network in your own way. If your networking is not genuine, it won’t last.

Use LinkedIn

LinkedIn is a useful tool in several ways:

It lets you show off your professional profile and make yourself attractive to potential employers.

It helps you find out a great deal about the job market.

It facilitates building an online network to link up with people you don’t already know.

One way to use it is to explore various careers and get to know more about others’ careers. What career path led to the ideal job you are looking for? Look up jobs of interest, like marketing coordinator, construction foreman, financial adviser, programmer, or nurse manager, or check out independent professions like physiotherapy. Check the career path in the profiles you find. Were there “stepping stone” jobs or continuing education programs? In other words, what path did others take toward the type of work you are aiming for?

Or, look up profiles with educational backgrounds similar to yours and check the current employment.  This serves as an inspiration and clarification as to potential career paths. Seeing how others got to their current job may inspire you by giving you an understanding of “what it takes”.  Keep in mind that there is never just one correct path; use the information to feed your imagination.

Should you find an appealing profile, look to see if you may have connections in common. If you do, perhaps you could set up a meeting. In contacting a connection, show interest in his or her career and ask whether you might learn a bit more as to the career choices made. Most people are happy to share information about themselves. Given that fact, invite yourself for a chat. However, you must be prepared. Have ready some questions and topics you want to learn about.

In addition, LinkedIn is useful in expanding your professional network and letting you join groups of professionals. Here, you can point to your skills, and as your network grows, you improve your odds of being found by others.

Five tips for networking

You must give in order to get.
Keep that in mind at all times. To reap a benefit, you must have something to offer in return. Consider what you have to offer – your knowledge, your skills, your contacts – in any given situation. Perhaps you know someone who could be helpful to a contact, or perhaps your professional skill would be useful to someone.

Be curious and keep an open mind.
It’s easier to build a good relationship if you show curiosity and an open-minded attitude. Prepare some questions or topics to discuss in areas that made the individual interesting to you. Strive to understand the individual and the effort to get to where he or she is today. Curiosity helps strengthen the relationship in the short and long term.

Take advantage of the fact that people like to talk about themselves.
We love to talk about ourselves. When others show an interest in us, we are usually quite happy to tell our story. Therefore, show an interest in others’ work tasks and job functions. Demonstrate that you genuinely want to know about their career choices or current projects. When you show such interest, you might entice them to meet for a coffee. Who knows, that very coffee could be the occasion where you identify some stepping stones to your ideal job.

Be prepared.
When meeting a new or existing contact, it’s important to be prepared. What do you want to get out of the meeting, and what are you ready to offer? Craft 5 questions or goals for the meeting. These questions serve as the framework for your conversation, and being well prepared signals to the contact that you value the meeting.

Be yourself.
That is the most important piece of advice of all. Keep reminding yourself to be yourself. If you try playing a part, it will become apparent sooner or later. Be yourself – your best self. Think of situations in which you did well. Say, in group assignments, at an exam, in a student job, or in pursuing a leisure activity. Keeping such positive situations in your thoughts helps you perform at your best.

We offer career counselling – even after graduation.

Students at UCL have access to guidance with respect to career planning .

You may take advantage of our career counselling for up to a year after graduation.

Handbook for Job Seekers

Check out the handbook for job seekers (in Danish) for pointers on how to find the internship, student job, or first job that is right for you.

You can participate in the following online courses whenever you want to. You will be guided through all the steps towards the job market.

• Application
  Through this course, we will give you good advice and tips on how to write a application.
• CV
  Through this course, you will get the guide: How to writing a good CV. We can not create the content, but we can help with the framework.
• My competences
  Through this e-course, you get an insight into your competencies, as well as what you can do to strengthen these.