What Are Transferable Skills?

What Are Transferable Skills?



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Abilities You Can Take With You

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BY DAWN ROSENBERG MCKAY

 

Updated August 21, 2018

Put to rest your fear that you will have to leave your current skills behind if you quit your job or change careers. You will be able to take many of them with you in the form of transferable skills. These are the talents and abilities that can travel with you when you make a transition to a new job or career.

Below are 87 common transferable skills divided into six broad categories: Basic, People, Management, Clerical, Research and Planning, and Computer and Technical Skills. Also included are some skills that are particular to specific occupations. These are called hard skills.

Which of these transferable skills have you acquired through prior employment, school, apprenticeships, internships, formal and informal training, hobbies, and volunteer experiences?

Basic Skills:

Use listening skills to understand oral instructions





Learn new procedures





Understand and carry out written instructions





Orally convey information to others





Observe and assess your own and others' performances





Communicate in writing





Use mathematical processes to solve problems





Speak in public





Demonstrate professionalism



People Skills:

Provide constructive criticism





Receive feedback





Coordinate actions with other people's actions





Negotiate, persuade, and influence people





Motivate others





Handle complaints





Train or teach new skills





Delegate work





Oversee others' work





Perform outreach





Counsel people





Build strong customer relationships





Collaborate with others





Mentor less experienced colleagues





Resolve conflicts





Develop relationships with suppliers





Demonstrate comfort when dealing with all people





Gain clients' or customers' confidence



Management Skills:

Oversee budgets





Recruit personnel





Review resumes





Interview job candidates





Select new hires





Supervise employees





Allocate resources such as equipment, materials, and facilities





Schedule personnel





Preside over meetings





Negotiate contracts





Evaluate employees





Organize committees

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Clerical Skills

Perform general clerical and administrative support tasks





Design forms, correspondence, and reports





Manage records





Take minutes at meetings





Use word processing software





Use database management software





Use spreadsheet software





Use desktop publishing software





Use presentation software





Perform data entry





Keep track of accounts receivable, accounts payable, billing, and other bookkeeping tasks





Screen telephone calls





Greet visitors



Research and Planning Skills:

Identify and present problems to upper management





Anticipate and prevent problems from occurring or reoccurring





Use critical thinking skills to make decisions or evaluate possible solutions to problems 





Solve problems





Deal with unexpected situations





Define organization's or department's needs





Set goals





Prioritize tasks





Locate and reach out to suppliers or sub-contractors





Analyze information and forecast results





Manage your time and meet deadlines





Plan and implement events and activities





Create and implement new policies and procedures





Develop a budget





Coordinate and develop programs





Document procedures and results





Produce reports





Conduct research using the Internet and library resources





Generate ideas





Implement new strategies



Computer and Technical Skills:

Use computer software that is related to job





Use job-related equipment and machinery





Install software on computers





Use the Internet, including email and search engines





Use office equipment such as printers, copiers and fax machines





Troubleshoot problems with hardware and software





Install equipment





Troubleshoot problems with and repair equipment





Maintain equipment





Inspect equipment to identify problems



Additional Skills:

Demonstrate fluency or working knowledge of a foreign language





Demonstrate fluency or working knowledge of sign language





Fundraise





Write grants





Design websites



What Are Your Transferable Skills?

Now it's your turn. Use this as a jumping off point to write a complete list of your transferable skills. Since it is unlikely for any individual to have all these skills, choose only the ones that match your skillset. It is likely you also have other skills that haven't been included here, for example, the hard or technical skills that are specific to your area of expertise.

Once you have everything written down in one place, assess your marketability to potential employers. One simple way to do this is to find announcements for jobs in which you would be interested. Compare your qualifications to those listed in them. Do you have the skills those employers are seeking? Are there any gaps you will need to address by getting additional training, education, and experience?

Use Your Transferable Skills to Market Yourself to Prospective Employers

Your resume should demonstrate to prospective employers that you are a qualified job candidate. This is where your transferable skills come in. Work them into your job descriptions taking care to match the language you use to the language the employer uses in its job announcements.

Be sure to discuss your transferable skills in job interviews as well. When you answer potential employers' questions, talk about those that are relevant to the positions for which you are applying.

 https://www.thebalancecareers.com/transferable-skills-list-525490