The UCD EDTL Team decided to explore their students’ digital needs by asking them and the UCD Internship Managers, as well as a group of employers, what they felt was necessary for success. The aim was to gather information that would enhance UCD’s digital resources, while also enhancing the students’ digital abilities and future employability.

The first group to be contacted by the UCD EDTL Senior Project Manager, Marian O’Connor, was the student internship managers in the UCD College of Science and the College of Engineering and Architecture. The goal was to get their views on what digital skills employers were seeking. Here are the skills that this group felt were being requested most often by employers:

• Advanced Excel
• Python
• Computation Skills using R
• Building Information Modelling (BIM).

The UCD EDTL Team was interested to see if this reflected a broader view among contacts
in engineering and architectural firms, so they decided to run a short survey which covered
two key questions:

• What engineering-specific software applications are used by graduates in your organisation?
• What Programming Skills are used by engineering graduates?

The response rate – while not statistically significant – did reveal the varied needs of the respondents. Firstly, there was a strong interest in finding candidates that were effective problem solvers and able to apply transversal skills. Then, it was clear that the students’ digital fluency combined with their ability to learn and adapt, would determine the pace at which they settled into their new working environment and strived toward success. Proficiency in Microsoft applications were seen as standard.

Next the UCD EDTL Team turned to the students: what digital skills did they feel they needed? A group of students who undertook the Microsoft Online Skills training, were asked to take part in one of two focus groups. And after a mix of undergraduate and graduate students across a range of disciplines took part, the following views were gathered:

• Microsoft Office Training was seen as beneficial, with most opting to enhance their skills in Microsoft Excel, both to help them in their coursework, but also for the purposes of personal financial management
• Fewer participants had taken Microsoft Word and PowerPoint training, as they believed they were already proficient from day-to-day use or had an introduction during secondary school
• Those that had taken training in Word and PowerPoint were surprised at how some of the advanced features within the applications helped with their coursework and their only regret was that they hadn’t done the course earlier
• There wasn’t a uniform requirement in coding and some participants opted to take modules in R, while others chose python – this decision was influenced by their area of study or interest.

Students were willing to dip into platforms and learn specific skills as the need arose. They were aware of applications that supported referencing and project management, which they felt might be useful in supporting their studies.

In addition to exploring what digital skills students felt they needed, the UCD EDTL Team also looked at their preference for face-to-face or online delivery. Face-to-face training offered the opportunity to ask questions, but the digital delivery option offered flexibility in terms of being able to dip in and out when it suited.