Professional Skills for Employability

Careers Service Office

A practical opportunity to prepare for the future by identifying and developing your employability skills

Module details

  • Offered to 1st years
  • Tuesdays 16.00-18.00
  • 8 weeks (autumn or spring term)
  • Planned delivery: On campus (South Kensington)
  • Non-credit only
How to enrol

Professional Skills for Employability is a module developed for the Imperial Horizons programme by the Careers Service.

Each of the sessions are designed to encourage you to understand and acquire a range of professional skills, including working as part of a team, giving a presentation, the importance of networking and understanding business etiquette. It is relevant to you if you are a first year student wanting to gain a better insight and awareness of the skills necessary for employability.

The module will be delivered by experienced Careers Consultants from the Imperial College Careers Service who will help guide you through developing yourself in a professional context.

 

Information blocks

Learning outcomes

Professional Skills Students in group discussion

On successful completion of this module, you will be better able to:

  • Identify and reflect on personal, transferable skills and experiences and be able to showcase these in a professional context
  • Explore the key elements of employability and develop a personal strategy to build and explore different career options
  • Collaborate on a presentation and provide constructive peer feedback

Indicative Core Content

Group taskTopics you will cover during the module will include:

  • Assessing Your Skills
  • Teamworking
  • Creating a good first impression
  • Communicating and Networking
  • Presenting
  • Planning for the Future
  • Presentation Assessment

                Learning and teaching approach

                This module will be delivered in person in groups of up to 40 students. Each session will be a mixture of taught input, class based discussion, small group work and peer feedback to support you in planning and evaluating your career opportunities. Each two hour session will combine taught materials alongside interactive elements to allow you to put your learning into practice.

                Written summative assessments are submitted via the module VLE. During the interactive taught sessions you will receive informal feedback on the session tasks from the module leader and also via group feedback, to allow you to consider ways in which to successfully approach the written assignment and the group presentation. You will receive summative feedback with your mark on both assignments via the VLE within two weeks of submission.

                Assessment

                • Coursework: Personal development plan with SMART targets (50%)
                • Practical: 8 minute group presentation on an employability related topic with peer, tutor and guest judge feedback (50%)

                Key information

                • ECTS value: 0
                • Requirements: You must be prepared to attend all classes and to spend about an hour a week preparing for each session
                • This module is designed as an undergraduate Level 4 course. For an explanation of levels, view the Imperial Horizons Level Descriptors page.‌
                "Absolutely fantastic module, it really got me thinking about my career and my future plans. The course structure was excellent and all the key aspects and skills for employability were covered. I particularly enjoyed the group exercises and made very good friends throughout the module. This is a course I would recommend to all first year undergraduates! "
                "a really good fit for me and it really opened my eyes to aspects of employment that I have never thought of before."
                "I recommend this course to everyone one. It really helped me with applications to internships and taught me some crucial skills needed in university and work life."
                "A great mix of lecture, practical and team-building sessions. The exercises and lectures were relevant and I was able to apply them during my internship. The lecturers also go the extra mile to help you out and provide feedback - in my case, feedback for my resume. It's definitely a course worth attending!"
                "One of the best and most helpful modules one could take to improve in the field of work (in terms of interviews, CV, or any other similar tools)."
                "The module is polished, I had fun learning these crucial professional skills."