Giving Students a Career Boost with IBM Skill Build Program

Skills development and training are integral parts of the curriculum at Akal University, which empowers students and prepares them for the future.

The Training and Placement Office had a holistic pre-placement training and career counseling session. This includes theoretical understanding and practical sessions on preparing ourselves for employable readiness. The multi-session event stood for empowering students with the crucial skills and knowledge to meet their competition and search for the right job full of confidence.

The workshop was part of IBM’s CSR program, in collaboration with CSRBox, where SkillBuild, a free digital learning platform, is designed to give a platform for education and skill development.

The workshop was led by Zoya Khan, Associate Manager of CSR Programs at IBM Skillbuild.

Sessions 1 & 2: Job Readiness

Session 1 & 2 were focused on Job Readiness. The se­ssions delved into numerous e­lements of job hunting, such as grasping employer expectations, creating impactful CVs and Cover lette­rs, and gearing up for fruitful conversations in the inte­rview.

The participants would learn the significance of having the right technical skills to help them get the job of their choice and the importance of soft skills such as communication, teamwork, and problem-solving abilities.
During the interviews, the participants were offered practical advice on modifying their resumes for a particular job description, emphasizing the relevant experiences, and demonstrating their unique strengths.

Sessions 3 & 6: Digital Marketing Strategies

In today’s digital era, understanding and leveraging digital marketing strategies is crucial for businesses to thrive.
The students learned about target audiences, content relevance, social media engagement, and utilizing data analytics to measure and optimize digital marketing efforts.
This gave them valuable insights and practical knowledge to enhance their marketing skills and strategies, effectively empowered them with the digital landscape, and helped them achieve their marketing objectives.

Sessions 4 & 5: Design Thinking Workshops

Sessions 4& 5 were dedicated to design thinking and incorporated workshops on overview of the design thinking process emphasizing the importance of empathy, ideation, prototyping, and testing.
There were also empathy mapping exercises to gain deeper insights into the needs and preferences of end users. While prototyping and user testing enabled rapid iteration and refinement of ideas based on feedback.

The pre-placement training and career counseling program was a huge success. These students were comprised of different departments, including Computer Science, Commerce, Economics, Mathematics, and MBA/BBA programs. They were trained under specialist-led sessions and practical guidance to achieve their goals, improving their job readiness and career prospects.

Such initiatives and workshops will undoubtedly contribute to the student’s long-term success and professional growth.

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