FutureLearn and Deakin University explore how job candidates can sell themselves in today’s digital era through free introduction to Deakin’s postgraduate degree
‘Becoming Career Smart: How to Sell Yourself’ is open for enrolment now and starts on 10th July, shedding light on the skills required in today’s job market with insight from Silicon Valley expert.
London, UK: 6th July 2017: FutureLearn, the social learning company, today announces with its partner, Deakin University in Australia, the second run of ‘Becoming Career Smart: How to Sell Yourself’, sharing fresh insight from experts in the field, including Silicon Valley entrepreneur, Henrik Scheel.
It’s not uncommon for employees today to make a number of dramatic career shifts. According to Forbes, 45% of employees plan to stay with their employer for less than two years. A recent Economist Intelligence Unit report also states that problem solving, team working and communication are the skills that are currently most in demand in the workplace. Deakin University’s course explores the ways in which job candidates can stay competitive in the current job climate, showing learners how to sell their skills in a transferable, marketable way.
This course is a free introduction to a unique Deakin University postgraduate degree in Information Technology, that allows learners to earn credentials based on their industry experience. Once learners have completed the first two weeks for free, they can continue studying by enrolling in the full degree and graduate with an internationally recognised qualification from Deakin University. The course is aimed at professionals considering a career change, as well as mid-career professionals looking to prepare themselves for the next step in their current career path.
The course will encourage learners to explore successes in their career history and determine what ‘success’ means to them. Learners will also develop their capacity to reflect on their strengths and weaknesses. By looking at all of these topic areas, learners will reveal that self-reflection is one of the underpinning approaches necessary to evidence their skills.
After discovering their strengths and weaknesses, learners will look at how best to sell themselves to employers, taking into account alternative ways to obtain professional credentials, looking at how to promote their digital profile, and look at ways to best communicate their success.
Dr. Nicholas Patterson, academic professional and lead educator of the course at Deakin University, commented: “The process of obtaining the career you desire in the modern era has changed. Industry 4.0 is upon us, so in order to compete in the job market you need to know how to become career smart, how to sell your personal brand and boost your portfolio. Learners will able to take advantage of Deakin University’s revolutionary professional practice credentials and interact with professionals globally via FutureLearn’s social learning platform.”
Stephen Somerville, Director of Business Development at FutureLearn, said: “It’s not uncommon for employees to have multiple careers in today’s current environment, so it’s important for them to reflect on their experiences in order to represent the skills they’ve gained to maximum effect. It’s fantastic that Deakin University is tackling a topic that is so relevant in today’s job market, showing learners how to best communicate their strengths and identify areas of improvement, whilst learning from others’ experiences worldwide.”
Learners have the option to purchase a Certificate of Achievement, providing they complete 90% of the course and scores 70% or above in the course tests. By completing 50% of the course and attempting the course tests, learners can purchase a Statement of Participation.
For further press information, please contact:
Rachel MacPherson, PR Executive, FutureLearn comms@futurelearn.com
Notes to Editors
About FutureLearn
Founded by The Open University in 2012, FutureLearn is a leading social learning platform, enabling online learning through conversation. With over 6 million people from over 200 countries across the globe – a community that is continuously growing – it offers free and paid for online courses from world-leading UK and international universities, as well as organisations such as the European Space Agency, the British Council and Cancer Research UK. FutureLearn’s course portfolio covers a wealth of areas to promote lifelong learning for a range of applications including general interest, an introduction to university studies, continuing professional development and fully online postgraduate degrees.
About Deakin University
Deakin, named after Australia’s second Prime Minister, is a young contemporary university with a reputation for being innovative, nimble and friendly. We aspire every day to combine excellent research and outstanding teaching with a strong focus on the communities we serve. Deakin is ranked in the top 2 per cent of the world’s universities in each of the major rankings, and is ranked 214 in the Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU). Deakin researchers are making a difference through world-class research and innovation. Deakin has a strong sense of community and serves as an economic, social and cultural catalyst enriching each of the communities it serves.
