Employability Skills Questionnaire

As part of the Accomplish Award, you must fill out this employability skills questionnaire. It is designed to assist you in the following ways: o o o o Help you identify areas where you need to improve based on graduate skills required by employers. Familiarise you with the most effective strategy in answering interview questions. rovide you with an archive of your own personal e!amples to use in interview, resume and online applications. Help map your growth from the start to the finish of the award.

How should I answer the employability skills questionnaire?

"ach employability skill will have a brief description and an e!ample of an answer using the #.$.A.% method. $he #.$.A.% method is used in behavioural&based interviews. 'ehavioural&based interview questions usually begin with a statement like: (think of a time when...) or (describe a situation where...) $o be successful in these interviews you will have to provide employers with specific evidence, rather than *ust claims, that you have the required skills.

# $ A %

#ituation $ask Action

-hat was the conte!t/ -hat specific actions did you take/

-hat was the outcome of your actions/

%esults

+ou will have to provide your own #.$.A.% e!ample for each employability skill. When you complete this document, you must email it to anastasia.medvedskaya uts.edu.au by !onday "#th o$ %pril, &#'&. '.

(ommunication
#peaking clearly and directly to small and large audiences ,istening to and understanding others -riting to meet audience needs .etworking with people from a range of backgrounds .egotiating and persuading

$hink of a time where you demonstrated effective communication skills. For e!ample: Situation) *ask+%ction) "arlier this year I had to market the 0$# 1areers Fair to students and employers. $o market the fair to students, I wrote and prepared targeted emails, wrote social media updates, spoke to students at lectures and created a range of marketing materials such as posters and banners. $o market the fair to employers, I sent out emails, letters, updated ,inkedIn and informed them about the fair over the phone. -e attracted 223 employers to the fair and 3455 students which were record numbers for any fair to date. I worked in -in. /ee Electrics havin. to sell products and assist customers with my product knowled.e. 0eeded to constantly en.a.e customers who were unattended to determine i$ they required assistance, askin. particular questions to determine the motivation o$ the customer thus quali$yin. there needs, establishin. a relationship with customers and maintainin. it throu.h recurrin. $ace to $ace and over the phone interactions in order to promote recurrin. sales and networkin., because o$ stores philosophy ne.otiation on price occurred on a daily basis. (ustomers would have pre$erence o$ our store compared to other competitors due to the e1cellent customer service provided and those i have served and established a relationship with come back to seek me personally as well as re$er my services to their $riends and $amily.

,esult) Situation *ask %ction

,esults

&.

2roblem solvin.
Identifying and analysing problems 0sing initiative in developing and applying a range of solutions

$hink of a time where you faced a problem and used your initiative to reach a positive outcome. For e!ample: Situation) *ask+%ction) %ecently I had a phone call from a frustrated customer who had been sold shoes with mismatched si6es. I gave the customer my full attention and empathised with his complaint. I took down his details and looked through shoes in a similar si6e range to identify whether an error had been made. I put the shoes aside, called the customer immediately and gave him a 257 discount voucher on his ne!t purchase. After I had rectified the problem, the customer sent an email to the state manager thanking me for my swift, friendly and empathetic customer service.

,esult)

Situation *ask %ction

*here was a time a customer came in the store who was $rustrated because he was stru..lin. to $ind a particular di.ital radio model. I empathised with the customer in order to establish a passive relationship and also throu.h notin. the details the customer provided, o$$ered alternative products. In addition I used my initiative and accessed my product knowled.e and inquired with the customer about their whereabouts and determined that .iven their location di.ital radios will not work optimally. %$ter I assisted the customer, they asked $or my name and went to the mana.er thankin. me $or my patience with them as well as bein. honest.

,esults

".

Ethics and pro$essionalism

Honesty and integrity 8eeting standards of professional behaviour "thical and legal decision making 'eing committed, loyal and positively representing your organisation

$hink of a time where you acted with professionalism, ethicality and integrity. For e!ample: Situation) As a residential networker, I am responsible for helping students at 0$# housing with any issues that arise. A younger student approached me about another resident who had plagiarised her work. #he found him intimidating and did not feel comfortable confronting him. I advised her to speak to her lecturer about the situation and I spoke to the student who had plagiarised her work. He told me he was struggling to keep on top of his workload so I advised him to register for a peer&to&peer tutoring scheme. $he lecturer organised a meeting between the students and rectified the situation and the peer&to&peer scheme also proved to be highly useful. I defused a difficult situation and both students were pleased of how I handled the situation. -ithin my time as a worker at #ubway, one of my responsibilities was to assist my manager with cleaning the store at the end of the shift and close the store. $he manager approached me stating that there was an emergency situation in which he must leave early and entrusted me with the stores supervision. I requested my managers contact details in an event that I may use it. I cleaned and closed up the store, check and the record the food inventory, run through the cash register amounts and print out the total for that day and locking up the store. $he manager was impressed with my ability to work professionally as well as honestly when working without his supervision.

*ask+%ction)

,esult)

Situation

*ask %ction ,esults

3.

*eamwork and leadership

-orking with people from a range of backgrounds ,eading and motivating team members #upporting and giving feedback to team members .egotiating or resolving team conflicts -orking as an individual and in a group

$hink of a time where you supported, led, or worked effectively with others. For e!ample: Situation) As a 0$# eer .etworker I had to demonstrate teamwork and leadership skills in ensuring 9rientation -eek ran smoothly and successfully.

*ask+%ction) I led large groups of new students on campus tours, ran speed&friending events where I prompted students to get to know one another, staffed the orientation helpdesk where I provided support to new students and organised refreshments at the welcome '': with my team members. ,esult) 9rientation -eek ran very smoothly, and I had a number of new students thank me afterward for being so helpful and supportive on their first day at university. As a 0$# eer .etworker I had to demonstrate teamwork and leaderships skills in ensuring 9rientation -eek ran smoothly and successfully. 0ndergo workshops focusing on developing my leadership, teamwork and interaction skills, I led large groups of new students on campus tours, ran speed&friending events where I prompted students to get to know one another, staffed the orientation helpdesk where I provided support to new students and organised refreshments at the welcome '': with my team members, assisted speakers in preparing and students in going to the correct orientation workshops. 9rientation week ran very smoothly, and I had a number of new students thank me afterward for being so helpful and supportive on their first day at university.

Situation *ask %ction

,esults

4.

Sel$5mana.ement
;eveloping goals and working towards them $aking responsibility and using initiative 8onitoring and evaluating own performance 8anaging own workload and working without supervision

8anaging unpredictable events and having a backup plan

$hink of a time where you demonstrated self&management skills. For e!ample: Situation) *ask+%ction) I had to e!ercise self&management in balancing my commitments as a full& time student and member of 0$# '0i,; with working part&time and living out of home. I demonstrated time management by developing monthly plans where I designated time for study, work, e!tra&curricular activities and social activity. I also developed and maintained goals to achieve high marks in my studies, complete the 0$# '0i,; program and live out of home on a limited budget. I managed to complete 0$# '0i,;, get a distinction average in my academic studies and still maintain a healthy work life balance on a limited student budget. I had to e!ercise self management in balancing my commitments as a full time student and an e!ecutive of 0$# Hiphop society in addition to working two separate part time *obs. I demonstrated time management by developing a timetable designating time for study, work, e!tra&curricular and social activities based on urgency as well as importance. I would organise my shifts for both *obs at least a month prior, plan hip hop meetings every 3 months and was aiming to achieve high marks in my studies. I was promoted from $reasury position to <ice resident within the HipHop #ociety as well as achieving a credit average in my academic studies and still maintain a healthy work life balance.

,esults

Situation *ask %ction

,esults

6.

7r.anisational and plannin. skills

;ecision&making rioritising and *uggling different priorities 8anaging time, meeting deadlines and being punctual 1oordinating resources, people and time efficiently 1ollecting, analysing and organising information

$hink of a time where you demonstrated strong organisational and planning skills. For e!ample: Situation) %ction+*ask) As a society e!ecutive I had to organise an event with a panel of guest speakers. I displayed strong organisational skills by arranging a series of guest speakers, venue hire and catering as well as scheduling the event at a time convenient for both the guest speakers and society members. I organised invitations to be sent to society members through email and collated a database with students that had %#< )d. -e had initially e!pected 3=&>5 students but =5 students attended the event. $he guest speakers were very impressed with how smoothly the event went and reported that they would be happy to participate in future society events.

,esult)

Situation *ask %ction

,esults

%s a society e1ecutive I had to assist in the or.anisation o$ a dance camp $or the members o$ the other dance societies within other universities. I displayed stron. or.anisational and collaboration skills throu.h attendin. meetin.s with e1ecutives $rom other universities as well as maintain. contact with them in order to plan. I or.anised the camp money payments $or my university and assisted in provided in$ormation o$ it to our students. *he dance camp was very success$ul bein. the $irst o$ its kind and the students were very impressed with how en8oyable it was. !any look $orward to this annual event in the $uture.

9.

Enterprise and initiative

Identifying new and creative ways of doing things Identifying opportunities not obvious to others $aking responsibility for situations 'eing fle!ible and adapting to new situations

$hink of a time where you demonstrated initiative and enterprise. For e!ample: Situation) *ask+%ction) 8y role was to increase declining advertising revenue for the 0$# maga6ine. I had to generate new ideas that would result in an increase in advertisers from the year before. I designed a new promotional flyer to go with the rate sheet and compared the benefits of the 0$# maga6ine circulation with other ad media in the area. I also attended a seminar on new and effective marketing techniques. -e signed contracts with 2= new advertisers and increased our new advertisers by 35 per cent over the same period last year. -ithin my time in 'ing ,ee, there were times where other staff were busy and customers that needed help were not in my department. I needed the initiative of constantly updating my product knowledge of not only my area of I$ appliances but also e!pand to the other departments of cooking, washing and television. I also talked to sales reps of all companies that came into our store to learn more about the products they were advertising. 9ur store was able to support high volumes of customers because of the staff)s fle!ibility in assisting all customers.

,esult) Situation *ask %ction

,esults

:.

*echnolo.y

roficiency in a range of basic I$ skills 0sing industry&relevant software, technology and equipment

$hink of a time where you demonstrated proficiency in technology. For e!ample: Situation) *ask+%ction) In my part&time role as a receptionist I was required to use a range of software. I became proficient in 8icrosoft 9ffice including ower oint, 9utlook, -ord and "!cel. I also had to update the company)s website which required me to learn to use the -ordpress content management system and software such as Adobe Illustrator and hotoshop. From working with a range of software I developed a high level of computer literacy. As part of my 0niversity ;egree I was required to use a range of basic I$ software as well as learning to use the more specialised kind. $hrough my university work within business and working in social uni clubs I have become adept in utilising 8icrosoft 9ffice especially in the use of -ord, owerpoint and "!cel. As part of the I$ side of my degree I have learnt the basics of ?ava programming, #:, database construction and H$8, website developing. From working with a range of software and I$ skills I have developed a high level of computer literacy.

,esult) Situation *ask %ction

,esults

;.

/i$elon. learnin.
;eveloping new skills on an ongoing basis %egularly reviewing and updating skills and knowledge #haring knowledge with others in the workplace #taying on top of changes in industry practices, skills and ideas

$hink of a time where you demonstrated enthusiasm for learning and developing your skills. For e!ample: Situation) I am highly passionate about developing as an individual and improving my I$ and web development skills. $hree months ago I *oined an open source software development pro*ect where members contributed their skills for free toward a common goal. I worked very hard on developing my skills and supported my learning with online resources, forums and libraries which took up a lot of my free time. ;espite the challenges I faced, I learnt and updated a range of skills. I also received very constructive and supportive feedback from more e!perienced developers.

*ask+%ction) ,esult)

Situation

*ask %ction ,esults

I am driven in developing life skills as well as those that will assist in my career industry. I have *oined a few online communities in rimproving my I$ skills of programming, graphical skills of Adobe hotoshop and language skills through learning 8andarin. ;ue to the lack of time and income to go through professional classes I work hard in utilising as much support devices through online resources and workshops as possible. I always refer to friends and colleagues who are proficient in these fields to better understand concepts and receive feedback in order to improve.

Skills ,ankin.
lease rank your skills, with 2 being the strongest and @ the one requiring most improvement. A3A 1ommunication ABA roblem solving A>A "thics and professionalism A=A $eamwork and leadership ACA #elf&management A2A 9rganisational and planning skills A4A "nterprise and initiative ADA $echnology A@A ,ife&long learning For one or two of your weakest areas, write a brief strategy of how you will improve them. For e!ample: %rea+s $or improvement) I need to improve my leadership and public speaking skills. Strate.ies $or improvement) $o improve my public speaking skills, I will *oin a $oastmasters club in my area. $o improve my leadership skills I will get involved in 0$# '0i,; and nominate myself as leader for my ne!t group assignment at university. %rea+s $or improvement I need to improve my life skills in order to become a more well rounded and versatile person. $o improve these I will *oin language classes held every semester, attend I$ workshops for both I$ and graphical knowledge.

Strate.ies $or improvement

When you complete this document, you must email it to anastasia.medvedskaya uts.edu.au by !onday "#th o$ %pril, &#'&.