College and university graduates must be able to identify, reflect and value the missing competencies that exist as skills gaps among entry-level roles.
They must also be able to convince an employer that they have sufficient, appropriate evidence of their knowledge, skills, behaviours and experience.
Examples of a situation where they might need to demonstrate their work-ready skills are:
- An interview for a particular role or placement
- An application e-mail or letter to an employer, whether specific or speculative
- Sending out a CV
- A networking event or informal chat
- During a placement or work experience opportunity
- Graduate showcase event attended by industry
- Pitching a project to an employer
Although it is highly recommended for the work-ready (WRYSE) competencies to be explicitly incorporated into a course structure and delivery, the evidence of this learning does not have to come from formal assessment – it simply needs to be convincing to the employer, which is not always the same thing.
What different types of evidence can demonstrate WRYSE competencies?
There are a range of evidence types that could be used to demonstrate different work-ready skills and experiences. Explore the types below.
A student’s CV or online profile will not be able to provide in-depth evidence of a competency, but using appropriate language or referring to industry-recognised certifications can give an immediate good impression to a prospective employer.
As screen employers will be looking for evidence of work-ready skills and experience, it is much better for students to highlight competencies gained rather than the output or assessments from their university or college course.
For example, picking out the specific skills demonstrated within a particular role on a student film production, rather than the sole fact that it has been submitted for an award.
It can be helpful to involve an industry professional, such as a talent manager, to help students review and improve their CVs to make them as impactful as possible.
Some competencies can be learnt and evidenced through micro-certifications. These are extra/co-curricular short courses, with appropriate certificates, that are recognised and accepted by industry.
For technical skills such as software, students can obtain IT vendor certificates from companies such as Avid, Microsoft and Adobe. Transferable, work-ready skills can be demonstrated through industry-approved training courses (usually e-learning) provided or certified by ScreenSkills or other skills bodies.
However, short courses like these are designed to provide a basic or foundation level of competency, so they should be further developed and evidenced through other routes.
ScreenSkills’ e-learning modules train and certify in the following competencies:
- Diversity, equity and inclusion
- Tackling harassment and bullying
- Addressing unconscious bias)
- Mental health awareness
- Set etiquette
- Networking
- Working as a freelancer
- Understanding of job roles and departments
Meanwhile ScreenSkills certifies third-party health and safety courses from external training providers through its production safety passport scheme.
A formal assessment of the WRYSE competencies obliges a student to write about professional practice and work-ready skills, and demonstrate how they have developed the competencies themselves.
Assessment (especially portfolio-based) can act as effective practice for a graduate in compiling and articulating their own professional evidence, before they meet an employer at interview.
Tutors can observe and interact with students during production projects and help highlight examples of where they have seen students demonstrating the competencies.
This might well include other types of evidence listed here. For example, reflective reports, industry certifications, risk assessments, employer observations and endorsements.
Writing self-reflective journals or reports about how they have developed WRYSE competencies (particularly the more intangible ones) is effective practice for students in describing and articulating their transferable skills and experiences, before doing this in an industry encounter.
By requiring this on a regular basis, course leaders can continually emphasise the importance of these competencies to students, as well as get them increasingly familiar and confident when talking about this part of their learning.
Employers are particularly likely to be convinced of a graduate’s skills by evidence of competencies gained during a work placement (including work shadowing) or a previous job.
These could be gathered retrospectively based on the situations that arose during a placement, but can also be structured more deliberately so students, lecturers and their employers can plan appropriate activities ahead of time.
This also allows the employer to observe how the student performs in a professional context, so that they can then complete a testimony or survey to validate this competency.
Incorporating testimonies and employer feedback into a work placement is another way to encourage and incentivise students to make the most out of work experience. It is not just an opportunity to 'test drive' a job role, but to use it to demonstrate to an employer just how professionally they can behave and perform.
Students should be encouraged to gather authentic examples of competencies from placements and not to assume that employers are looking for examples of when everything went perfectly.
Reflecting on when a task did not go well, when they could have done something differently, or when they struggled to complete an activity successfully can demonstrate a student’s competencies, self-awareness and attitude to learn much more effectively.
In addition, students and course leaders should be ready to identify other relevant professional examples from their non-screen employment which might demonstrate strong transferable, work-ready skills. For example, managing costs while working behind a bar or at a community event.
While students are completing particular programmes or modules (especially their production modules) and as they work in teams that organise and manage themselves, gathering evidence of appropriate WRYSE competencies in the process would be a valuable evidence-based exercise.
Although these are simulated examples, the more realistic they are, the more familiar and convincing they will be to a prospective employer as evidence.
Courses should include as many different industry-designed tasks or live briefs as possible. Not only should these be used as authentic teaching tools to gain experience of working with a client, but also as a way to involve employers in observing and endorsing a student’s demonstration of specific competencies (such as through pitching a project to an employer).
This approach can also work with masterclasses, if they are followed by a practical example of task, where the employer can observe, feedback on and endorse a student’s performance.
Some courses provide students with a personal record or personal development planning module (PDP) to track their work-ready competencies and progress as they develop these through their vocational or degree courses.
The BA Film programme at Middlesex University, to be rolled out in 2023/24, is one good example of this approach. It emphasises the importance of the WRYSE skills and experiences, as well as empowering students to gather and demonstrate this learning in a variety of different ways. They provide a simple visual record of their achievements to use as the basis of future engagement with employers.
This also has the potential to work alongside digital badges and certificates provided by skills bodies like ScreenSkills and integrate with similar initiatives such as the production safety passport.