Skills Assessment: A Precursor to A Great Career Choice

1. Skills Assessment: A Precursor to a Great Career Choice Aditi is about to graduate from college soon and almost all her friends already know which field to choose for their careers. But Aditi just doesn't know what she should do. She might consider taking one of the many types of career assessments, or surveys, or tests that help a person figure out what careers they are well-suited for. One such type is the skills assessment which focuses on the person’s strengths and weaknesses and measure their skills or abilities, which in turn are mapped to jobs well suited to the individual. The most famous career skills assessment is called the Career Ability Placement Survey, or 'CAPS' for short.

2. Perhaps after taking the CAPS, Aditi discovers that she is good at spatial reasoning. That is, she can see how objects can fit together in a 3-dimensional space. She might be good at architecture because that's a skill that is important for architects to have. There's probably not a whole lot that will be a big surprise to Aditi as far as what her skills are. But what is unique about these tests are their ability to link skills to optional careers. In 2013, Laszlo Block, the former HR Head of Google, dismissed test scores and grades as the only credible measures for hiring. This was the beginning of a change in how we view learning, growth, and employability. In the last couple of years, skills are being preferred over degrees, and skill development programmes are becoming a top priority with organizations. However, the question of whether we are doing enough remains. According to a 2021 India Skills Report study, only 45.9% of graduates are employable and the percentage for Engineering graduates is higher. Another study showed that 25% of the 15-24 age group is struggling with mental health issues due to the career choices they have made, parental or peer pressure and lack of adequate information on career options and alignment of their own abilities with a chosen career path. While developing a new skill is crucial, it becomes equally important, to assess a student’s innate strengths and talents and chart a relevant skilling roadmap. Integrating concepts of self-discovery during secondary school or graduation colleges helps parents, teachers, and students evaluate strengths and focus on growth. Career assessment tests not only reveal strengths and weaknesses, but also help evaluate marketable skills in an unbiased manner. Evaluate Marketable Skills: Marketable skills are basically the ones considered valuable to employees in the future such as quick decision-making, ability to work independently or in a team, stress tolerance, etc. Such tests also reveal what kind of skills need to be worked on. In this way, students can better understand what their competitive advantage is comparing to other candidates. In addition, they can include these marketable skills into the resume and mention them during a job interview which will contribute to the employer’s decision. An Indicator of Emotional Intelligence: These tests also provide a report on emotional intelligence and soft skills, which are essential in the modern world. These tests assess skills like leadership, opportunity to work in a team, empathy, negotiation skills and much more. In this way, a student can not only improve the practical skills but understand what soft skills are critical and which one’s demand improvement. Today, there are numerous options that one can find to assess their skills. One such platform is ChampBuddy, which offers numerous affordable options to make your career journey easier. Join hands with their industry veterans and subject matter experts to get a complete career concern diagnosis and personality assessments at affordable prices. So, book an online session at https://www.champbuddy.com and get professional guidance to build a better future.