Essential skills for success in higher education

Skills in Higher Education

Many students come to college and find they lack the basic study and time management skills necessary to succeed. Others seem to find the challenges of higher education a better match for their own skill set. How can we understand which skills matter the most? As people go through life, they invariably develop a set of skills. Some of these skills may be considered innate, or natural, while others are more likely learned. Part of what makes people so different from one another are these different skills they hold; some may prove skilled at meticulous, detail-oriented craft work while others may be in possession of skills for visioning longer term political strategy. This essay begins with an overview of personal skills and qualities, and moves on to identify more clearly which skills have been shown to be the most useful for successful learning in higher education. From there, the essay will summarize recent research on the skills gap that educators have seen in the classroom, and will then offer an action plan for bridging that gap.

Personal Skills

Skills are not the same as personality. A person may be kind or funny or aggressive, but the skill set that contributes to those personality attributes is somewhat different. For example, if a person is considered kind, s/he probably has skills in reading nonverbal cues from others, in identifying personal needs and meeting them, and in personal interaction. In this way, moving past the more easily identifiable personal qualities into an analysis of the skills that underlie those traits can be revealing.

Career counselors spend a great deal of time trying to measure and assess individual skills. They tend to believe that people are endowed, either through genetics or life experiences, with a set of skills that naturally predisposes them to succeed in certain careers while they may struggle in others. Matching people with their ideal job path often begins with an assessment of skills. For example, at Purdue University, the career counseling office begins by asking students to conduct an "inventory" of their personal skills. A list of 132 skills is provided; some of the skills listed are concrete and based on work experience, such as "administering medication." Others are more abstract and may correspond better to personality traits, for example: "analyzing problems," "resolving conflicts," and "thinking in a logical manner" (Job Skills Checklist, 2010).

Skills Gap

No matter which skills rise the top of the priority list, almost everyone seems to agree that students in the U.S. aren't mastering those skills at an acceptable rate. One of the consequences of our unprepared student body is an under-performing workforce. Among the skills that entry-level employees are consistently shown to lack are reading proficiency, technical aptitude, and quantitative comprehension (Daggett). In addition to these basic skills, students are often missing skills that enable them to apply and utilize information to the task at hand. Students need not only concrete knowledge but also, and perhaps more critically, process and application skills.

Another dimension of the skills gap stems from the inaccessibility of higher education to a segment of the population. Recent research in California, for example, showed that the state faces a shortage of one million college graduates to meet employment needs (PPIC, 2010). This skills gap is critically important. Whether recent graduates haven't gained the skills they need during college, or whether adults were unable to afford college at all, "communities, states, regions, and entire nations pay a heavy price when businesses cannot find or equip employees with the right skills for critical jobs." (ASTD, p. 4)

Action Plan

Part of the problem may be that schools are stuck teaching curricula developed years ago in a world that is changing rapidly. For example, "our schools remain deeply entrenched in teaching discrete subjects, while the real world requires the ability to apply interdisciplinary knowledge." (Daggett, p. 3). Thus, part of the solution must rest with schools and curricula. Among the reforms recommended by the National Education Association are curricula that specifically focus on integrating "21st century skills" into the three core subjects (math, reading, science) (NEA 2010). In order to allow schools to re-vamp their curricula, they need both policy guidance and money. Therefore, funding should be provided to states with clear curriculum reform guidance that focuses on modernizing skills for students. States may be encouraged to undertake these reforms by programs that reward successful efforts through increased funding or educational technology resources; those successful states may also be held up as models so that other states can replicate their approach.

Making college affordable and accessible to a wider group of applicants is another effort that will shrink the skills gap. This means providing better financial aid to struggling students, but it also means providing remedial education to high school graduates that are poorly equipped to learn at a higher level. These remedial services should begin in high school and continue through college, effectively supporting students with poor skills so that they may advance through their education and ultimately land in the workforce as a productive employee.

Since the skills gap doesn't stop at schools, but continues to impact businesses, the next step of the action plan will focus on better integration of education with the critical skills and competencies that business leaders identify. Including business leaders in the educational policy and planning conversation would go a long way toward creating curricula that prepares students not just for school, but also for their lives after school.

As with any action plan, ongoing monitoring and communication is essential for success. To this end, standardized tests have been used to measure progress over time and compare regional results. These tests are very controversial and may do more harm than good, as they force teachers to "teach to the test" which may result in a classroom focus on knowledge and facts rather than process and critical thinking. If standardized tests are going to be continued, they should be reformed to better address NEA's 21st century skill set.

Finally, people must begin to think of themselves as lifelong learners. Higher education doesn't end with high school or even college graduation. In a world that favors early adopters and revolves around the latest technology, individuals will be better served if they continue to seek out learning opportunities after their formal education has ended. Local governments and communities should provide these opportunities through libraries, universities and community centers. The skills gap applies to all.

Conclusion

Although people are defined by their different skill sets and this diversity enhances the richness of life in America, it is also clear that some skills are more important than others. If young people aspire to be successful adults, they must gain the skills they need to succeed in higher education, and those higher education skills must then translate into useful skills for the workforce. Focusing on process and information application, rather than restricting curricula to the collection of facts and information, is a critical step for successful learning. Integrating business leaders in the effort of re-defining critical skills, and creating integrated educational planning will benefit the individual, the school, the business, and the community as a whole.