The core soft skills that employers look for include:
- Literacy and numeracy
- Time management and organisation
- Oral and written communication
- Teamwork
- Creative problem-solving
- Initiative and enterprise
- Critical and analytical thinking
- Ability to apply discipline, knowledge and concepts
- Information gathering, evaluation and synthesis
- Emotional intelligence and interpersonal skills
- Adaptability
As you can see, many of the above skills are quite abstract and therefore can be hard to demonstrate in an interview.
Some of these skills can be measured through testing, such as through personality or aptitude tests, of which are becoming quite common in graduate interviews. However, other skills will be measured through competency-based questions.
For example; ‘Give me an example of when you worked well in a team’
The best way to answer these questions is by using the STAR Principles, and you can read more about the STAR Principles here. This method will ensure that you answer the question clearly and concisely, emphasising on how your soft skills led to your success.
How do I demonstrate soft skills in an interview?
As you can see, many of the above skills are quite abstract and therefore can be hard to demonstrate in an interview.
Some of these skills can be measured through testing, such as through personality or aptitude tests, of which are becoming quite common in graduate interviews. However, other skills will be measured through competency-based questions.
For example; ‘Give me an example of when you worked well in a team’
The best way to answer these questions is by using the STAR Principles, and you can read more about the STAR Principles here. This method will ensure that you answer the question clearly and concisely, emphasising on how your soft skills led to your success.
