Skills Students Need for the 21^st Century Job Market

Digital-Age Literacy

Basic literacy:The ability to read, write, listen and speak as well as to compute numbers and solve problems.
Scientific and economic literacy: A general knowledge and understanding of scientific and economic concepts and processes.
Technological literacy: The understanding and ability to use technology to achieve a specific goal.
Visual literacy:Good visualization skills and the ability to understand, use, and create images and video using both conventional and new media.
Information literacy:The ability to find, access, and use information as well as the ability to evaluate the credibility of the information.
Cultural literacy:The ability to value diversity, to exhibit sensitivity to cultural issues, and to interact and communicate with diverse cultural groups.
Global awareness:This is an understanding of how nations, individuals, groups, and economies are interconnected and how they relate to each other.

Inventive Thinking

Adaptability and managing complexity: The ability to deal with change positively by modifying one’s thinking, attitude or behavior to handle new situations.
Self-direction:The ability to work independently, whether developing goals or plans, managing one's time and work, or evaluating one's knowledge or learning process.
Curiosity:The desire to learn more about something and to engage in lifelong learning.
Creativity:The ability to produce something significant that is new or original.
Risk taking:A willingness to share one’s thinking with others, and to listen to feedback. It is a willingness to make mistakes, to creatively tackle challenges or problems.
Higher-order thinking and sound reasoning:The ability to analyze, compare, infer, interpret, evaluate, and synthesize. Sound reasoning applies common sense and acquired knowledge and skills to ensure good problem solving and decision making.

Effective Communication

Teaming and collaboration:The ability to work with others toward a common goal, bring unique capabilities to the job, work in a structured environment, and exhibit trust and respect towards one another
Interpersonal skills:The ability to manage one's behavior, emotions, and motivations to foster positive interactions with other individuals and groups.
Personal responsibility:Personal responsibility requires one to understand the legal and ethical issues related to technology and to manage and use technology in a responsible manner.
Social and civic responsibility:A commitment to use and manage technology to promote the public good and to protect society and the environment.
Interactive communication:The ability to communicate using a wide range of media and technology and to effectively disseminate of information.

High Productivity

Prioritizing, planning, and managing for results: The ability to achieve goals through efficient management of time and resources, effective problem solving and strong leadership skills.
Effective use of real-world tools:The ability to utilize new technology to communicate and collaborate with others, to effectively problem solve, and to accomplish tasks. The ability to select the appropriate tools for the task at hand and to apply these tools efficiently and effectively to achieve results.
Ability to produce relevant, high-quality products:This is the ability to produce intellectual, informational, or material products that solve or communicate about real-world problems.

The list above and skill descriptions have been slightly condensed for workshop use, but he original document can be found at: the National Institute of Professional Practice.

2015 Work Readiness Survey

Source: McGraw Hill 2015. Survey conducted by Hanover Research