Summary

Overview of professional skills and where to develop them (in Wageningen)

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What skills have you picked up so far? During your studies, volunteer work, sports, hobbies, or anywhere else? Knowing what you’re good at (and what you still want to learn) helps you make smart career choices. Here, you’ll find an overview of important skills and where you may have gained these skills, or how you can can develop them further in Wageningen.

Hard and soft skills

Hard skills refer to the (measurable) specific knowledge and abilities you need to perform your profession; what you learn during your study and the experience you gain on the job. Examples of hard skills are: languages, IT skills (like SPSS, R, etc.), and Lab skills.

Soft skills are abilities that describe how you do your work and how you behave within an organisation or team. They are linked to personality and are generally more difficult to learn. Examples of soft skills are skills such as presentation skills or leadership skills.

Having the right professional knowledge (hard skills) remains the most important factor for employers. However, additional abilities such as soft skills are becoming increasingly important in the workplace. Which skills those are varies by sector.

Transferable skills

Transferable skills are abilities that make you employable across a wide range of jobs, roles, or industries. They aren't tied to a specific profession, which makes them valuable when changing careers or exploring new opportunities. Employers often look for these skills because they show how effectively you can work and adapt in different environments. The stronger your transferable skills, the more versatile you become, enhancing your chances of finding/keeping a job. Examples of popular transferable skills are adaptability, digital skills, problem solving, communication, and collaboration.

Overview of skills

Skills	Where you gained this skill or can further develop it
Adaptability / Flexibility	Activities outside your comfort zone (pushing your boundaries) Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges) Work (side jobs, voluntary work) (Free) WUR training sessions: Expand your Mental Flexibility
Argumentation / Reasoning	Specific courses: Argumentation Skills (ELS65500) Academic Argumentation in Scientific Writing and Debate (ELS666000) Dialogue skills (ELS67500) Debating club Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Collaboration / Teamwork	Specific courses: Academic Consultancy Training (YMC60809) Sports Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Communication	Specific courses: Intercultural Communication Skills (ELS65400) Intercultural Communication (CPT35806) Advanced Communication Science (CPT33806) Networking (ELS66900) Negotiation Skills (ELS65300) Dialogue skills (ELS67500) Intuitive Intelligence (ELS65800) (ELS34303) The Art of Public Speaking (ELS65700) (Free) WUR workshops/training: How to network Network events such as Career Days Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Consultancy	Specific courses: Consultancy Skills (ELS66200) Academic Consultancy Training (YMC60809)
Creativity	Specific courses: Intuitive Intelligence (ELS65800) (ELS34303) Amsterdam Living Lab (YMS70324) Hobbies Creative courses at Volksuniversiteit Wageningen (in Dutch) Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Critical thinking / Problem solving	Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Customer orientation/focus	Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Data science / Data analysis ^{Statistical analysis (SPSS, STATA, SAS), programming languages (R, Python, Scala, MATLAB, SQL), data visualization, mapping, machine learning}	Specific courses: Programming in Python (INF22306) Remote Sensing and GIS Integration (GRS60312) Spatial Modelling and Statistics (GRS30306) Ecological Modelling and Data Analysis (CSA4036) Machine Learning (FTE35306) Artificial Intelligence for Food and Health (INF36803) Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis)
Digital skills ^{Standard office software and operating systems (email, file management, Word, Excel, etc.), online communication tools (Teams, Zoom, etc.), design software (Canva, Photoshop, etc.), AI tools (ChatGPT, etc.), social media}	Digital courses at Volksuniversiteit Wageningen (in Dutch) (Free) Online career modules at Maastricht University Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Entrepreneurship	Specific courses: Entrepreneurial Skills (YMS31903) Developing Entrepreneurial Agency: from ideas to impact (ELS66100) Pursuing and Realising Entrepreneurial projects (ELS67700) MSc Track Entrepreneurship Starthub Wageningen
Feedback skills	Specific courses: Academic Consultancy Training (YMC60809) Presentation & Reflection Skills (ELS10301) Presentation Skills (ELS65700) Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges)
Independence / Self-motivating / Responsibility	Specific courses: Personal Motivation Assessment (ELS33801) Identifying Your Motivation (ELS68300) Intuitive Intelligence (ELS65800) (ELS34303) Professional and Personal Resilience: Exploring Your Potential (ELS37303) Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges)
Information literacy	(Free) Online career modules at Maastricht University Specific courses: Finding and using literature for your MSc thesis (YLI65100) Courses embedded in BSc and MSc curriculum Library workshop: Finding literature for your studies Citing and referencing Getting started with EndNote Working collaboratively with EndNote Learn information literacy skills online (e-learning modules) Get personal advice from the library for your thesis or essay
Languages	Wageningen in'to Languages ISOW Language Courses Languages courses at Volksuniversiteit Wageningen (in Dutch) Nederlands Taalcafé Gilde-SamenSpraak Wageningen Free online Introduction to Dutch (MOOC)
Lab skills ^{Experimental design, sampling, etc.}	Specific courses: Breeding Lab (ABG52806) Laboratory class I - Enzymology & Analysis (FCH37303) Laboratory class II - Food Ingredient Technofunctionality (FCH37403) Laboratory Safety (ZSS06100) Practical Lab Skills for Animal Sciences (HAP22306) Laboratory Animal Science (EZO40303) Curricular activities (internship, thesis)
Management / Leadership	Specific courses: Management & Leadership Skills (ELS66300) Management & Leadership Skills in Theory & Practice (ELS67300) Personal Leadership and Effectiveness (ELS66800) Leadership for Transformation (ELS66400) Project Planning & Organising (INF65100) Intrapreneurship: Impacting existing organizations (ELS36306) Curricular activities (group projects) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Marketing ^{Email marketing, social media marketing, brand management, graphic design}	Specific courses: Advanced Management and Marketing (BMO21306) Agricultural and Food Marketing (XCR30306) Consumer Behaviour & Marketing Management (XTO15806) Digital Food Marketing (MCB35306) Food Retail Marketing and Supply Chain Management (XUC31803) Inclusive Finance and Marketing in the Developing World (DEC34306) Introduction to Business Economics, Management and Marketing (BEC21806) Management and Marketing (BMO24306) Strategic Marketing for Sustainability Transitions (MCB33806) Sustainable Marketing (MCB34806) Creative courses at Volksuniversiteit Wageningen (in Dutch) Curricular activities (group projects, internship) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Negotiating	Specific courses: Negotiation Skills (ELS65300) Argumentation Skills (ELS65500) Dialogue skills (ELS67500) Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year, Student Challenges) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Organizing	Specific courses: Project Planning & Organising (INF65100) Curricular activities (group projects, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Presentation skills ^{Pitching, public speaking, verbal communication, storytelling}	Specific courses: The Art of Public Speaking (ELS65700) Presentation & Reflection Skills (BSc) (ELS10301) Networking (ELS66900) Dialogue skills (ELS67500) Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) (Free) WUR workshops/training: Speaking with ease How to pitch yourself Student theater Wageningen (W.S.T.V.) Storytelling nights
Project management	Specific courses: Project Planning & Organising (INF65100) Management & Leadership Skills (ELS66300) Management & Leadership Skills in Theory & Practice (ELS67300) Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Reflection and personal leadership	Specific courses: Personal Leadership and Effectiveness (ELS66800) Presentation & Reflection Skills (BSc) (ELS10301) Career Exploration (ELS65900) Identifying Your Motivation (ELS68300) Personal Motivation Assessment (ELS33801) Intuitive Intelligence (ELS65800) (ELS34303) Personal Motivation Assessment (ELS33801) Professional and Personal Resilience: Exploring Your Potential (ELS37303) (Free) WUR workshops/training: Discover Your Qualities Career Vision Board Navigating Your Career Find Your Career Flow (Free) Self-reflective conversation with a career coach Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Research skills	Specific courses: Research Master Cluster: Proposal Writing (YWU60312) Finding and using literature for your MSc thesis (YLI65100) Interviewing Techniques (YRM65100) Observation Techniques (YRM65000) (Free) courses from WUR Library: Citing and referencing Finding literature for your studies Research data management \| WUR Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis)
Stress management	(Free) WUR training sessions: Manage your (study) stress in an effective way Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction Tackle your Decision Anxiety Expand your Mental Flexibility WUR's Student Wellbeing week organised once a year in fall
Training / Teaching skills	Specific courses: Orientation on Teaching and Training Practice (ELS39306) Course Development (ELS36506) Educational Design and Teaching for Sustainability (ELS32806) Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (ELS35803) Theories on Education and Learning in Society (ELS36803) Minor Education: Becoming a Teacher Basics (ELS34506) Becoming a Teacher 1 (ELS34406) Becoming a Teacher 2 (ELS34606) Becoming a Teacher 3 (ELS34812) Learning and Instruction Theory (ELS38806)
Time management / Planning / Prioritizing	(Free) WUR training sessions: From Procrastination to Action! StudyLab - Procrastination Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis) Extracurricular activities (committee work, board year) Work (side jobs, voluntary work)
Writing	Wageningen Writing Lab Specific courses: Scientific Writing Skills (ELS65600) Scientific Writing (ELS53301) (Free) WUR training sessions: Thesis - Back on track Curricular activities (group projects, independent study, internship, thesis)