Employers rank these top 10 skills as critical
Before you send your resume to organizations looking for candidates, make sure you spotlight skills they deem most important.
Some skills appear every year; the big difference is that each year they become more sophisticated in detecting them. Invest time in driving home your competence in these skills.
Here are the 10 top skills organizations deem most important, according to the National Association of Colleges and Employers’ (NACE) job outlook survey:
1. Problem-solving skills. Nine in 10 employers (91.2%) want recent college grads to stress excellent problem-solving skills. How you do it is very important. The new twist is that many companies are using behavioral interview questions, such as “tell me about a time when” or
“give me an example of ” to determine a candidate’s problem-solving ability. Prepare anecdotes that paint you as a solution finder.
2. Ability to work as a team. The workplace depends on teams of people. This is true for all organizational levels, and it’s no surprise that 86.3% of hiring managers want to know you can collaborate well with different personalities. It involves learning how to delegate, take direction, value differences of opinion, and respect your coworkers’ strengths and weaknesses.
3. Strong work ethic.
Commitment to your job responsibilities and understanding that performing your job is more than just a conduit to a paycheck. An organization ought to stand for something beyond business, and so should its workers. That’s why 80.4% of hiring managers want to see new hires demonstrate a strong work ethic, said NACE. In short, show up on time, be engaged in your work, act with integrity and respect your company’s culture.
4. Analytical skills. 79.4% of hiring managers
said they want to hire entry-level workers who possess analytical skills, which means they’re searching for critical thinkers — candidates who know how to gather and evaluate information and then make good decisions based on its impact.
5. Written communication skills. Good communication will always be among the top skills employers search for. NACE found that 77.5% of managers feel writing proficiency is the most sought-after hard skill among recent college grads. Hence, submitting
a well-crafted resume and cover letter are crucial. Each one should be clean and error-free. Most important, stress experiences that demonstrate your writing skills. For instance, if you volunteered to be the reporter for a group project, include it on your resume. And depending on the nature of the industry, consider submitting writing samples with your application.
6. Leadership skills. There is a strong emphasis on leadership skills: 72.5% of hiring managers want potential hires with exceptional
leadership skills. If you held a leadership role in college (e.g., president of the French club), highlight it on your resume. Or if you were the leader on a group project, mention the experience during the job interview.
7. Verbal communication skills. Seven in 10 hiring managers (69.6%) polled said good verbal communication skills are essential for new grads. Communication skills set the tone for how people perceive you and help you build relationships with coworkers, according to
NACE. It’s best demonstrated during job interviews. Presenting answers to interview questions clearly makes a strong impact.
You should also ask interviewers questions to show you’re engaged.
8. Initiative. Tied with strong communication skills, 69.6% of hiring managers said they’re looking for college grads who know how to take initiative. This is where the maxim “Show them, don’t just tell them” applies. In the experience section of your resume, cite an example of a time when you dealt with a tough situation or an instance when being proactive enabled you to solve a problem.
9. Focus on details. According to the survey, 67.6% of managers are looking for new grads that have meticulous attention to detail.
As a result, make sure your resume is impeccable, free of typos and grammatical errors and organized with the use of clear, concise, and effective language.
10. Technical skills. Many industries, not just jobs in the technology sector, call for professionals with technical abilities. For example, 65.7% of hiring managers said new grads should possess technical skills.
Explain how you applied your technical skills in the past. For instance, if your resume lists that you have Java experience, it should also describe how you used the program on a particular project.