Completing your Skills Assessment :
PLANNING AHEAD
To complete this assessment effectively , you will need to think carefully about each skill area and consider which rating reflects your ability .
TIPS :
• Be honest and critical - remember there is no need to show your self-assessment forms to anyone else , unless you wish to .
• Think about your academic work , work experience and extra curricular activities to identify what skills you feel you possess or which require further development .
• Write descriptions of things you have done in the last three or four years - what skills did you utilise ? Do you need to further develop any of these skills ?
• Consider feedback provided by your tutors on academic work - does this highlight any areas for improvement ?
• Ask a trusted friend how they see you .
• Identify the skills that are relevant to you ; this could be based on your career aspirations , your work experience role or your discipline . See the skills described in the Recruiters ’ Shopping List for ideas . Don ’ t simply pick what you are already good at – this is a development tool for you .
• Be very specific about defining and your example of each skill , and think carefully about the reasons for giving yourself particular ratings .
• There are two sample templates for skills assessments and a blank template for you to create skills assessments relevant to you .
GUIDANCE
The rating guidance is 1-4 with 1 being very basic and 4 being proficient :
• Have I practised this skill a little but need further practise to feel confident ? ( Rating 1 )
• Do I feel fairly confident , but occasionally need to seek help and lack some confidence in my own ability ? ( Rating 2 )
• Do I feel fully confident and rarely need to ask for help ? ( Rating 3 )
• Do I feel fully confident applying skill and maintaining my current skill level ? ( Rating 4 )
Once you have rated yourself , consider the information you have that enables you to make this judgement ? For example , feedback on a tutorial presentation at University . Enter this information in the “ Evidence ” column .
This skills assessment will give you the information you require to combine with your SWOB Analysis to identify your development needs . Your development needs can then be worked upon through Action Planning to make sure you maximise the impact of your work experience .
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