Reflective Journal: Employability and Study Skills Reflection Report

This reflective journal analyzes the development of employability and study skills through a structured approach using Gibbs' reflective cycle. The journal details the student's experiences in various academic and group activities, such as presentations and debates, highlighting the acquisition of skills like communication, teamwork, and time management. The student reflects on their feelings, strengths, and weaknesses during these activities, identifying areas for improvement and the impact of these skills on their professional development. The report also discusses the challenges faced, such as conflicts within groups and the need for better technical and analytical skills. The conclusion emphasizes the importance of continuous skill development and the application of these skills in future roles, with a focus on enhancing analytical and technical abilities to adapt to technological advancements.

Reflective journal

Contents
INTRODUCTION...........................................................................................................................3
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................3
CONCLUSION................................................................................................................................6
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................7

INTRODUCTION
An individual has to develop various skills as with the help of such skills they can efficiently
perform the roles that has been allocated to them and can manage various situations that they
have to manage (Bukor, 2015). With the help of various employability skills the performance of
the individual in undertaking the profession can be improved as well as they can easily
accomplish their targets. Such skills are generally developed during the academic courses along
with the study skills. Better employability and study skills facilitate them in achieving better
employment opportunity as this reflects their capabilities managing the role. In this reflective
report the analysis of various such employability and study skills are done with the help of Gibbs
reflective cycle so that the achievement of these skills can efficiently be evaluated.
MAIN BODY
An individual requires skills for their overall development as well as to enhance their
personality rather than not just for getting better job as they enables them to perform better in the
job. With the help of better skills an individual can efficient express their opinions as well as
views among others. During the graduation course I participated in various activities with the
help of which I could develop various employability and study skills such as better
communication, problem solving skills, time management, team work etc. Apart from these the
study skills are the academic skills that facilitated me in develop better understanding of different
models, theories, concepts with the help of I could easily understand the situation and their
influence on the organisation (McMillan, McConnell and O’Sullivan, 2016). For undertaking
specific roles various skills and abilities need to be developed as per the requirement so that the
performance level can be maintained and the targets can be achieved and for such skills efforts
are laid on some courses that can enable in developing such skills. There are some skills and
abilities which are crucial in each and every role and thus it reflects in the personality of the
individual and since the beginning I have focussed on such skills like soft skills as with the help
of this I could easily ensure that each and every member of my team have better understanding
with each other so that they can perform better with cooperation and collaboration.
To better analyse the achievement of the employability and study skills the use of Gibb’s
reflective model is considered as with the help of this the analysis can be done step by step in an
effective manner. This model will help me to understand the experiences and learning from them

in a specific structure so that the achievement and efficiency of the skills that I have learnt in my
graduation can be analysed. It will further enable me in understanding the importance of
different skills so that plan can be made for the future development in context of various skills
for meeting up the challenges to be faced in future. The analysis with the help of different stages
of the model is given below:
I participated in various activities such as presentation on various topics which are crucial at
the corporate level, various group presentation on academic concepts and business related
concerns such as corporate social responsibilities, sustainability of the businesses, in various
debates on the legal concerns to be managed by the organisation so that they can ensure ethical
practices within the organisation etc. At the first stage of model the description of the activities
are to be given so with the help of this it can be analysed that what happened, how things were
managed etc. When I had to give a group presentation on the topic corporate social responsibility
as well as ethical practices and principles we allocated different tasks to be performed among
each and every member within the group so that we can efficiently gather the information about
the topic and the presentation can be made on time with better and authentic information
(Marlowe, 2015). With the help of this I was able to learn working in the group or team
efficiently so that the overall objectives can efficiently be achieved. In addition to this the
communication skills were also improved as during the presentation I had to communicate with
various people who can support us to gather better data and information as well as within the
group also. Apart from this I also participated in a corporate quiz where I meet a lot of people
from the corporate sector with them I learnt the way they communicate as I had sufficient time to
analyse their activities. Also the preparation of these activities enabled me in developing my time
management abilities as with the help of this I could manage more and more knowledge
regarding the topics.
The next stage of the Gibb’s Reflective cycle facilitates to understand the feelings and the
mindset as well as the mental state at the time of working on a particular task or the activity. The
mental state while preparing for the presentation was different then at the time of giving
presentation and after the presentation was done. I realised that when I was working with the
team mates we often faced conflicts over different concerns as our level of understanding with
each other initially was not good but gradually it improved as we started working. But at the time
of giving presentation I was so anxious and initially was not confident due to which I was unable

to deliver it efficiently but few minutes later my confidence level gained and I could easily
answer all the questions. Initially whenever I participated in any activity I felt the same but
gradually my skills started improving which make me realised that my ability and level of
competence has been improving with the help of which I can perform better in my profession.
With the next stage of the Gibb’s Reflective cycle it can be identified that with each and every
participation I learnt something such as with the help of group presentation I could learn how to
manage the group performance and what conflicts can arise when we work in group. With the
help of this my employability skills of team work improves that will enable me in working in
team efficiently in such a manner that our objectives can be achieved (Hicks, 2014). The skills so
developed during all the activities are helpful for performing various professional roles as I could
develop my presentation skills by analysing them at the time of giving the presentation along
with time management skills, self management skills etc. The increasing use of technology in
each and every aspect can easily be fulfilled as every time I realised the requirement of new
skills and I tried to develop them gradually.
With the help of another stage of the model it can be analysed that the conflict within the
group can affect the goals and the accomplishment of the targets of the groups as due to this the
overall performance is compromised. In addition to this I faced lack of various skills in me such
as inefficient understanding of the technical skills, analytical skills etc. due to which I can face
problem in future while undertaking any role. To ensure the better employability skills I have to
undertake various sessions and activities so that I can improve my performance. At last the
lessons from the participation are identified such as with the help of these skills my
employability improves as well as study skills are improved which will enhance my abilities to
take various decisions regarding the business operations (Lawson and Cowling, 2015). It will
further enable me in managing the team within a time limit that has been provided with effective
time management abilities so that the accomplishment of the objectives can be ensured.
On the basis of this reflection I realised that there are some skills which I have to improve so that
I can ensure improvement in my personality as well as better chance of getting employment
along with better management of the situation to be faced in future (Swain, 2016). I realised that
to make the employability skills stronger I have to focus of different sessions and course on
analytical as well as technical skills as with the continuously changing technology it is important
for me to have better understanding of the same. This model of reflective cycle is précised and

effectively as with the help of this I could analyse that efficiency and the skills which are present
in me such as verbal and written communication skills, time management skills, self
management skills but for ensuring better performance technical skills has to be focused by
planning for them.
CONCLUSION
It is concluded from the above report that an individual need to focus upon up various skills
that they have with the help of which they can accomplish their goals and objectives. Various
skills such as communication skills, time management, self management, team work etc. can
enable them in efficiently performing their role so that they can the impact of various situations.
Along with this the improvement can be done in the employability skills so that the capabilities
of managing can be improved.

REFERENCES
Books and Journal
Bukor, E., 2015. Exploring teacher identity from a holistic perspective: Reconstructing and
reconnecting personal and professional selves. Teachers and teaching.21(3). pp.305-
327.
Lawson, C. and Cowling, C., 2015. Social media: The next frontier for professional development
in radiography.Radiography.21(2). pp.e74-e80.
McMillan, D . J., McConnell, B. and O’Sullivan, H., 2016. Continuing professional
development–why bother? Perceptions and motivations of teachers in
Ireland.Professional development in education.42(1). pp.150-167.
Hicks, P.J. And et. al,2014. Domain of competence: personal and professional
development. Academic pediatrics.14(2). pp.S80-S97.
Marlowe, J. M. and et. al, 2015. The integration of personal and professional selves: Developing
students' critical awareness in social work practice. Social Work Education.34(1). pp.60-
73.
Swain, J., 2016. The effect of Phase One training on young recruits' personal and professional
development in the British army.Journal of Youth Studies.19(1). pp.117-132.