At a Glance
Career readiness competencies are the knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors that prepare students to successfully navigate academic experiences and enter the workforce. Developed by the National Association of Colleges and Employers (NACE), these competencies reflect the expectations of employers and provide a shared framework for student learning and development.
Curricular and co-curricular experiences offer valuable opportunities for students to develop these competencies in meaningful ways. Through involvement in courses, employment, leadership roles, and other activities, students can build and apply skills across a variety of contexts.
Students can track and reflect on their growth through their engagement record, using their experiences to better understand how they are developing key competencies. This process helps students connect their learning to future academic, career, and professional goals.
Career & Self-Development
Proactively develop oneself and one’s career through continual personal and professional learning. This includes awareness of one’s strengths and areas for growth, navigating career opportunities, and building relationships and networks that support long-term development.
Communication
Clearly and effectively exchange information, ideas, facts, and perspectives with individuals inside and outside of an organization. This includes verbal, written, and nonverbal communication, active listening, and adapting messages to various audiences and contexts.
Critical Thinking
Identify and respond to needs based on an understanding of context and the logical analysis of relevant information. This includes gathering and evaluating information, making informed decisions, and solving problems using sound and inclusive reasoning.
Leadership
Recognize and build on personal and team strengths to achieve shared goals. This includes motivating others, using innovative thinking, seeking diverse perspectives, and guiding efforts toward a common vision.
Professionalism
Understand and demonstrate effective work habits and behaviors that reflect integrity, accountability, and reliability. This includes acting in the interest of the broader community and maintaining standards appropriate to academic and professional environments.
Teamwork
Build and maintain collaborative relationships to work effectively toward common goals. This includes valuing diverse perspectives, managing conflict constructively, and sharing responsibility for outcomes.
Technology
Understand and ethically use technology to enhance efficiency, complete tasks, and achieve goals. This includes adapting to new tools, selecting appropriate technologies, and using digital resources to support informed decision-making.
For detailed descriptions and sample behaviors for each competency, visit: https://careers.uiowa.edu/career-ready#career
Incorporating Competencies into Programs and Courses
While students can independently track and reflect on competency development, faculty and staff play an essential role in integrating competencies into programs, courses, and experiences. Integrating NACE’s competencies into programs and courses helps students:
Align their experiences with employer expectations
Articulate skills gained across contexts
Prepare for career and professional success
When designing or enhancing learning opportunities, consider the following strategies:
Mapping
Competencies are used across many campus programs. Using shared language helps students recognize connections between different experiences and better understand how their skills translate across contexts.
Naming
Explicitly identifying competencies within experiences (“cueing”) helps students recognize learning opportunities. Research shows that naming skills improves awareness and encourages intentional skill development rather than passive participation.
Integrating
Competencies support students in connecting learning across academic, co-curricular, and professional settings. Strategies such as portfolios, capstone experiences, and guided reflection can help students apply prior learning to new situations and problem-solving contexts.
Reflecting
Reflection is essential to competency development. Structured opportunities, such as prompts, discussions, or guided journaling, help students develop metacognitive skills and understand how their experiences contribute to growth.
Learn more about integrating competencies in specific contexts:
Assessment
Assessing the effectiveness of competencies is an essential part of their integration into the student experience. At the end of an experience, students should perform some self-reflection through a semi-structured assessment. Self-evaluations, writing prompts, or discussion questions can support this process. Common assessment strategies include:
Self-evaluations
Reflection prompts
Group discussions
Guided feedback activities
Sample Reflection Questions
Consider using the following questions to help students assess their learning and development:
What competencies do you think you will develop as a result of participating in this experience?
Write about a competency that you have developed as a result of this experience.
What does it look like to effectively utilize a specific competency?
When have you used this competency inside and outside the classroom?
What have you learned in this experience about this competency that may be helpful in your academic courses, involvement, job, or future career?
How might you continue to develop this competency in the future?
What challenges have you experienced while developing this competency?
How would you describe your skills in this competency on your resume or during a job interview?