Employability Skills Training - Student Summer Skills Incentive Program
The Student Summer Skills Incentive Program (SKILL) is offering free training to help employers and their summer student employees improve their experience.
The training program includes:
- for summer student employees: a 2-day session that explores key work readiness skills like adaptability, confidence and teamwork
- for employers: a half-day session for employers where they can connect with other not-for-profit employers and learn ways to reinforce their student’s new skills
- ongoing support through the summer to help employers give helpful feedback to their employees
In past years, 100% of employers and 95% of student-employees said the training was valuable and relevant to their work.
Eligibility
The program is available to employers who:
- hire students using the SKILL program
- provide enough ongoing supervision of student-employees to fairly assess their performance
You must commit to having the student’s direct supervisor attend the employer workshop, and sending your least-experienced employee for two days of training near the start of their work term (this student can be hired through SKILL or using other funding). You must also complete at least three evaluations and feedback conversations with each employee who attends.
Sessions will be scheduled across Nova Scotia based on interest and student start dates. Let us know by 30 April 2020 if you want to participate.
Employer workshops
Employer workshops are half-day interactive session on providing feedback to young employees in a multi-generational workplace. You’ll be able to discuss these issues with their colleagues and participate in activities to practice your new skills. You’ll also learn about the 10 employability skills student-employees will learn.
Student workshops
Student workshops are held over 2 consecutive days and will give your student-employees an in-depth look into these employability skills, how to demonstrate them, and how to use their time in the workplace to improve their skills.
The workshops will include a mix of presentation, roleplay activities and personal reflections to help students learn. The sessions will be offered at regular intervals through the summer in locations across the province. Ideally, you should send your student in their first or second week of employment.
Assessment
Using the Employability Skills Assessment Tool (ESAT), you and your student will assess their ability to demonstrate employability skills at the beginning of the work term, once or twice during the summer, and again at the end of the work term. The online tool will guide you through each of the 10 skills and create a graph that compares how you rated your employee and how they rated themselves.
Employability skills
Employability skills are the “soft skills” employees need to succeed in the workplace – the ability to communicate and work with other people, to be accountable for what we do and to adapt to change.
This training uses the 10 skills in the Employability Skills Assessment Tool (ESAT) developed by Truro-based Futureworx Society:
- accountability
- adaptability
- attitude
- confidence
- motivation
- presentation
- problem solving
- stress management
- teamwork
- time management
How to participate
Email us at empskills@novascotia.ca by 30 April 2020 if you’re interested in participating.
We’ll contact you to register once we schedule the workshops.
Contact Information
Phone: 902-722-5030
Email: empskills@novascotia.ca