• Clearly reflect your interests, values, skills, knowledge, needs, attitude, and preferences in enjoyable and satisfying career opportunities.

• Research different career paths and roles and consider:
1. Key work tasks
2. Qualifications / training / experience required
3. Skill sets
4. Values
5. Employment prospects
6. Pay and benefits
7. Pathway and career development
8. Lifestyle
9. Good and bad side of the career
• Network and conduct informational interviews
1. Use professional associations’ and social networking sites such as LinkedIn to identify and network with professionals in careers you are exploring.
2. Consider conducting informational interviews where you meet with industry professionals and ask questions about the realities of working in their industry, pathways and explore foot in the door opportunities such as volunteer work and work experience.

• Some students find it useful to evaluate the costs and benefits of each career or study pathway and rank their options.
• Be true to your own interests and passions but also seek help from family, friends, academics, employers and Swinburne Sarawak Employability team.
• Adapt to change – make decisions, but reflect and adjust in response to changes in interest and your circumstances, as your knowledge and experience expand or employment trends change.

• Plan realistic short- and long-term goals
• Look at training and education options
• Develop skills
• Assign timeframe
• Identify your supportive peers and family members
• Regular review periods

In the first few months of settling into study and life in Swinburne Sarawak, start developing your employability skill set. Learn about what employers want, determine priority areas for your development and start some career exploration.

To do:

• Volunteer on or off campus, e.g. Student Life Volunteering Program
• Join a Swinburne club
• Work on your English language and employability skills
• Get to know our Career Consultants at Employability unit
• Visit our JobStreet Career Lounge at studentHQ
• Participate in employability expert series.
• Find a part time or casual job (during study break)

Tip: Study is important, but also focus on getting involved in activities that will make you feel part of the community. This will help you develop skills important to your long term career.

Mid-course is time to increase your employability focus. Start to clarify your professional purpose. Explore your options and start to gain professional experience. Become aware of your strengths and areas for development. Put together an employability action plan. Keep working on developing the vital soft skills in demand by employers.

To do:

• Participate in employability expert series
• Participate in the Swinburne Emerging Leaders Program.
• Join a professional association, attend events and get involved
• Participate in professional projects
• Network with professionals
• Undertake an internship
• Enter study related competitions
• Get involved in on-campus professional projects
• Explore your own small business
• Get a part time, casual or contract job – generic or related to your studies
• Take on a leadership role in a Swinburne club

Tip: Don’t wait until final year to focus on employability, it is an important part of your career journey. Active involvement now in a range of activities will enhance your career options.

Moving toward the end of your studies is time to engage with employers, continue to build your skills and gain more industry experience. Ensure you have a professional job search kit including resume, cover letter, LinkedIn profile and work portfolio.

To do:

• Complete a capstone project
• Undertake an internship
• Complete practical assignments using industry case studies
• Undertake mock interviews
• Find a professional mentor
• Develop a professional resume, cover letter, LinkedIn profile and professional work portfolio
• Join business groups and associations to expand your network and develop skills
• Attend employability events.

Tip: Networking is a vital job search tool – make useful contacts while you study. Invest in some simple networking (business) cards to encourage those you meet to connect with you.

Building your career and employability needs to be ongoing. Today’s careers will require constant adaptation to change and continual learning and growth. It is important to be proactive and keep reviewing your career plans.

To do:

• Continue to attend employability events
• Develop a clear career vision and job search plan for the next stage in your career
• Become an active Swinburne alumni
• Consider a professional year program
• Continue to be active in your professional association
• Join business groups and associations to expand your network
• Keep working on professional and soft skill development
• Focus on putting together tailored, quality job applications.

Tip: Your first job won’t be your last – keep thinking forward about the next step in your professional career. Research options, make contacts, give back to others and keep focused on your ongoing professional development.

• Ability to understand and accept change within a workplace e.g. creating a new process to effectively perform a task.
• Ability to implement a process to solve a problem you have never been faced with.
• Ability to analyse problems and find solutions.

• Owning up to idea formulated and presenting it in a fair manner.
• Approaching communication in a respectful way through active listening and focus on problem-solving.

• Verbal – listening, understanding and speaking directly and clearly.
• Written – reading, writing, understanding and interpreting information to meet your audience’s needs.
• Interpersonal – connecting with people, working in a team and building rapport with others.

• Formulation of solution to any challenges or problem.
• Understanding the creative process to ensure most effective solution.

• Identifying the problem and working towards a practical solution through trial-and-error, or a range of strategies.
• Having creative ideas and using critical thinking to tackle unfamiliar or complex problems.

• Understanding of the working culture suited for each industry.
• Preparation towards being in the culture of a desired company or organisation that it operates in.

• Skilful in using computer software such as spread sheet, or office equipment like a photocopier.
• Mastery in social media handle and basic design editing knowledge is an added advantage seen in current employment trend.

• Laying out layers of processes in leading towards creation of solution, and this may exist in a process flow diagram.
• Ability to scrutinise details laid out in presenting and idea or project.

• Showing independence and being proactive in your approach to career and life
• Adapting easily to new situations, change is not seen as a barrier, but as an opportunity for growth and development
• Innovation and creativity to generate new ideas or alternative perspectives that may be useful in solving problems, improving communication, and entertaining or inspiring others.

• Willing to learn in any settings, in and out of University and on or off the job.
• A lifelong commitment to learning and seeing the value in past experiences and recognising new opportunities to grow.
• Being prepared to invest the time and effort to gain more knowledge and develop new skills.

• Creating solutions to better improve any processes or work-scope.
• Proactive approach to take on task without being asked.

• Ability to influence others toward the achievement of a goal.
• Making use of self-reflection to review your strengths and weaknesses and to set clear goals and responsibilities.
• Knowledge and confidence in your own ideas and vision, and not being afraid to show leadership potential.

• Ability to develop work to be done and creating a timeline to accomplish any project.
• Identifying and organising resources and knowing when to deploy such resources.

• Collecting and summarising data into a manageable form
• Analysis to determine what happened and why it happened
• Having proficient generic IT literacy to use digitally based technologies, systems and communications equipment
• Understanding concepts and language associated with the digital world and the capacity to understand and work with emerging/accepted etiquette and risks associated with online environments.

• Adapting positively to a situation despite facing adversity.
• Coping with stress and adjusting to challenging circumstances.
• Ability to rebound from stress in the face of challenge.

• The ability to provide solution which gained maximum output with minimum input.
• Identifying tasks to tackle from higher to lower level of priority.

• Working cooperatively and collaboratively with others in a group, to achieve a common goal or outcome.
• Individuals or organisations working together to solve problems and achieve outcomes that are not easily or effectively achieved by working alone.

• Ability to structure how to utilise time effectively.
• Prioritising tasks at hand to better manage amount of time spent for each project.