Academic and Professional Skills Development: A Detailed Report

This report delves into the realm of professional and academic skills development, crucial for business students aiming for career success. It identifies key challenges encountered by students, such as academic writing, teamwork, prioritizing tasks, and meeting deadlines. Furthermore, the report highlights essential workplace skills like problem-solving, leadership, communication, and continuous learning. A comparative analysis of academic (prioritizing work, meeting deadlines) and professional (communication, learning) skills reveals their similarities and differences. The report also incorporates a SWOT analysis to pinpoint areas for future skill development, particularly focusing on communication and learning skills, and proposes an action plan for improvement. The conclusion emphasizes the significance of these skills for both individual and organizational growth.

Professional and
Academic Skills
Development

Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION ..........................................................................................................................4
MAIN BODY...................................................................................................................................4
Identify the key challenges business students may face and explain why they are a challenge......4
Explain and identify the skills required at work..............................................................................5
Identify about four academic and professional skills and describe why it is important to develop
these skills. Choose at least two skills from these two heads and compare their similarities and
differences as well............................................................................................................................6
Perform a SWOT analysis and identify that particular skill which needs to be develop in future.
Create an action plan on how to develop this particular skill..........................................................7
CONCLUSION ...............................................................................................................................8
REFERENCES................................................................................................................................9

INTRODUCTION
Business management refers to organising and coordinating the business activities into
positive manner for achieving the objectives. Management is the process of organizing,
planning, controlling and directing the business resources so that they can meet out the
objectives of organisation. At organisational level there are some skills required at professional
level and these skills help the students to grow in terms of their career(Beagon., 2018). These
professional and academic skills development refers to that process where instructors improve
and develop their skills to better meet out the needs of their students. The report covers
discussion about challenges related to studying business management. In addition to this, the
report also covers analysis about importance of professional and academic skills development
and also about identifying skills that are required at workplace. Moreover, the report consist of
identifying those skills which needs to be develop in future with support of SWOT analysis.
MAIN BODY
Identify the key challenges business students may face and explain why they are a challenge
There are certain key challenges which business students face at the time of learning and
it is defined into following manner:
 Academic writing: While writing at academic level, they have to face problems related
to plagiarism and research part as well. For writing a good content, students have to do
research on a large scale so that they can provide content into positive manner(Donelan.,
2016). It is also difficult for students to follow a proper structure of the content because
it is not easy for each and every student to provide appropriate structure into positive
manner.
 Team working: For working in a team it is required that every student need to have
patience and understanding level so that task can be executed into positive manner. It is
difficult for students to cooperate with each other because everybody has their own point
of views and understanding level as well.
 Prioritising Work: For business students it becomes a challenge to prioritise their work
because they have lots of task which they need to accomplish within a set period of time.
Students need to understand the importance of work on the basis of first priority
parameter.

 Meeting deadlines: It is that pointer which is based on prioritising work parameter
because students can only meet out the deadlines in those conditions when they manage
their work on priority basis(Early and et.al., 2017). For business students it is difficult to
meet out the deadlines because they have to do research in a depth manner to give content
into appropriate manner. That's why sometimes students miss their deadlines.
Explain and identify the skills required at work
There are certain skills which are required at professional level to meet out their
deadlines and it is defined into following manner:
 Problem solving: Business students need to have problem solving skills so that they can
show their range of other competencies at professional level. Such as creativity, logic,
imagination, determination and lateral thinking. This kind of skill gives an opportunity to
handle anything at professional level into positive manner and this will help into growth
of an organisation.
 Leadership: It is the skill which is important at professional level because this will help
in terms of leading the team into positive manner. This skill is necessary as it brings out
best capabilities and abilities in their team members. It also motivate their team to work
into collaborative manner to achieve a common goal.
 Communication skills: This skill plays a very important role at workplace because to
execute the task into effective manner it is required that problems need to be discussed
into positive manner. If each team member receives correct information then it is easy to
achieve goal within a set period of time (Khanna., 2015). Communication skills enables
an employee to deliver messages in a clear and precise manner due to which it also
reduces the chances of conflicts within a team.
 Learning skills: This skill is necessary at professional level learning is the parameter
which keeps an individual mind engaged and body active as well. This skill helps in
terms of gaining new experiences and knowledge-based perspectives as well. Learning
skill is that skill which helps the brain to handle every kind of challenge in a wider
manner.

Identify about four academic and professional skills and describe why it is important to develop
these skills. Choose at least two skills from these two heads and compare their similarities
and differences as well
Academic skills: These skills are important to develop because it encourages students to
become more efficient learners. Academic skills are important in terms of success in the career
because it includes critical thinking and note-taking which is necessary from point of view of
students. There are two basic academic skills which is necessary to develop into positive manner.
It includes prioritising work and meeting deadlines.
Similarities between meeting deadlines and prioritising work: Both these skills have
one similarity parameter that both are based on time(Légaré and et.al., 2015). For meeting out
the deadlines and prioritising work both needs proper planning and strategy to execute the task
into effective manner. Under both these heads, it is necessary that they have to use correct
approach to execute the task into effective manner.
Differences between meeting deadlines and prioritising work: Both these heads have
common difference that meeting deadlines have specific date and time. But prioritising work is
that work which needs to be fulfilled on urgent basis.
Professional Skills: In this business world, professional skills are important because
these skills determine success and failure as an employee. These skills contribute in terms of the
way people cooperate with each other, handles the workload and act in the office environment.
Similarities between communication and learning skills: Both these skills require
confidence level because if an individual does not have confidence level then they can't do their
work into effective manner(McManus and Rook., 2021). Communication and learning skills both
require active nature so that results can be achieved at organisational level.
Differences between communication and learning skills: Learning skills can be
developed within a set period of time and communication skills development is a long term
process and also it takes longer period of time as compared to communication skills. Learning
skills can be developed by assuming things and also based on imagination. Communication skills
can be done without imagination parameter and it can be done at any place.

Perform a SWOT analysis and identify that particular skill which needs to be develop in future.
Create an action plan on how to develop this particular skill
STRENGTHS
 I am good at problem solving skills
parameter due to which I can face any
type of challenge at organisational
level.
 I also have leadership quality due to
which I can lead the team into effective
and result-oriented manner.
WEAKNESSSES
 I lack in terms of communication skills
due to which it is difficult for me to
convey information into appropriate
manner
 I also lack in terms of learning skills
due to which it becomes difficult for
me to grab things on fast pace manner
OPPORTUNITIES
 As I am good at problem solving skills
so I can act as strong parameter in
terms of growth of an organisation.
 Leadership quality helps me in terms of
raising my confidence level for
handling such a large team and also
good for business growth as well.
THREATS
 As I am not good in terms of
communication level so it is a
challenge for me to handle every kind
of personality at organisational level.
 Learning skill which act as barrier for
me so it is difficult for me to open up
for new experiences.
There are two skills which are required to develop future into positive manner it includes
communication and learning skills (Mhlongo., 2020). For improving communication skills it is
important that to interact with number of people and can also take support for communication
skills as well. Learning skills can be improved through remaining active in terms of listening
important information. It can also be improved through taking notes of widespread and relevant
information. Making a plan also help in terms of improving learning skills.

CONCLUSION
The above report concludes that professional and academic skills development plays a
very important role at organisational level. There are some challenges while learning academic
skills which includes meeting deadlines, prioritising work etc. At professional level there are
certain skills which are necessary for growth of an employee and organisation as well. It has
been concluded that there are some similarities and differences between professional and
academic skills. These differences and similarities act as strong parameter at organisational level.
In an individual there are some strength points and weaknesses as well due to which a
personality can grow according to their own pace. So for remaining strong at professional level it
is important to focus on the strength points so that individual can grow at fast pace manner.

REFERENCES
Books and Journals
Beagon, U., 2018. The Academic Perspective: A study of academic conceptions of the
importance of professional skills in engineering programmes in Ireland.
Donelan, H., 2016. Social media for professional development and networking opportunities in
academia. Journal of further and higher education, 40(5), pp.706-729.
Early and et.al., 2017. Improving teacher-child interactions: A randomized controlled trial of
Making the Most of Classroom Interactions and My Teaching Partner professional
development models. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 38, pp.57-70.
Khanna, V., 2015. Soft skills: A key to professional excellence. International Journal of
Research in Engineering, Social Sciences, 5(1), pp.32-40.
Légaré and et.al., 2015. The majority of accredited continuing professional development
activities do not target clinical behavior change. Academic Medicine, 90(2), pp.197-202.
McManus, L. and Rook, L., 2021. Mixed views in the academy: academic and student
perspectives about the utility of developing work-ready skills through WIL. Studies in
Higher Education, 46(2), pp.270-284.
Mhlongo, F., 2020. Pervasive skills and accounting graduates' employment prospects: Are South
African employers calling for pervasive skills when recruiting?. Journal of Education
(University of KwaZulu-Natal), (80), pp.49-71.