WHICH SOFT SKILLS SHOULD YOU HAVE AS A FRESH GRADUATE?

Daraja La Ajira Tanzania Discussion On Skills That A Fresh Graduate Must Have To Persuade The Employer Despite Experience Gap

Article By Mr. Peter John

As usual, DAT social groups proceed with our regular topics of the week and at this moment we faced this crucial topic of discussion regarding what skills are most important for the job seeker especially the fresh graduate from university or college. We need to understand that we are living in a fast-moving world and it is due to the rapid development of technology and complex market system, and therefore even employers mostly prefer the experienced employee to cope with the speed.

We are living in a golden era that speed is the key to competition, every corporate and public sector is trying to comply with the situation by implementing various factors to its management. The best performing management is that comprising personal with desirable soft skills. It's obvious as a graduate to have been focusing more on hard skills since they provide you with outdated knowledge (I can argue) and ability to the destination job of your career it almost okay.

The ugly truth about being a fresh graduate in this era is to have been developing soft skills either through training or experimenting via projects (either formal or informal). None of the lecturers may have told this, maybe but I am not sure since most of their career life depends on viable hard skills. Remember that a graduation certificate is not the only requirement employers look for these days. Here are the other skills that employers want but fresh graduates often lack.

Must have soft skills for a fresh graduate to land a dream job are, Team working skills/social skills, sales and negotiating skills, Leadership skills, communication skills, public speaking and presentation skills, time management skills, entrepreneurial skills, and digital content skills. Most of the graduates tend to include these skills on their CVs but never got supporting features for the skills leading to be denied by the employer just after the interview. The soft skill must have supportive details from the involvement or accomplishment from the projects which are either formal or informal. Most people do not understand this, let me share with you an example of my own brief soft skills achievement when I was at the University of Dar es Salaam.

As soon as I joined UDBS/UDSM in my first year, I started developing my Besthands.com online business into field practice at universities ground. The business dealt with the selling of electronic items such as laptops, chargers, power banks, etc, and despite competitive challenges from the old/giant traders, I was able to sell more than 2000 units inside and outside the university. This marks my competence in sales and negotiating skills, entrepreneurial skills, and also Time management skills.

But also I was a blogger since then I joined UDBS, I managed besthandsday.blogspot.com that had almost 800k viewers at the time. I developed great content concerning sports, economic and political updated news. This marked my competence in digital content/system skills. I involved in some organizations such as DUFA, DUMA, and performed projects as a part of the organizing committee but also involved in the formulation of project management association at the university. This proofs my ability of leadership and team working/social skills. Never the less I was awarded with best communication skills, Time management and attention to detail compliments at NMBPlc during practical training. This led me to be employed with my first employer as soon as I graduated from University at the time.

It is for sure if you can not update your skills, who else can do it for you? There is no chance for excuses in nowadays corporate industry. To be luck enough is information is easily available it is only you to absorb and perform. Also you may ask where to get the soft skilled trainer?, well, there exists a lot of firms in Tanzania such as Mikono Speakers, BCC even other privator tutors who are good at mentorship and instructing how to be good in soft skills. If you can not find any I am also available on request. In a simple way an employer can easily transform you into diversified functions of the company especially at a startup level.

This is your opportunity to grow, easy after utilising the resourceful information. Also, I would just share with you the most demanded hardskills as recommended by global employers on the 21th century. According to the reports from various professional sources such as linked in most students are advised to learn more about Blockchain, Cloud Computing, Analytical Reasoning, Artificial Intelligence, Sales and Video production. I hope you have well understood more than enough regarding the important soft skills, so lets catch up with the next article at next time if God made us a living.

Powered By: AYDTAKO, DARAJA LA AJIRA CONFERENCE 2021