Published on: 19 September 2018
Last Updated on: 13 March 2019
With your bachelor’s degree in the bag, you will be faced with yet another big life decision: should you pursue a Masters full-time program or head into the labor market? There are many different reasons why individuals choose to study for a Masters. For the most part, though, the hope is that it improves your career prospects, and ultimately your wage premium.
Whatever your motivations may be, you might be torn at the prospect of halting your career hunt to pursue yet another degree. While there are certainly more than a few considerations that should go into this decision, we’ve provided some of the advantages of deciding in its favor.
Employability:
One of the most important reasons why you might choose to consider studying a full-time Masters is to improve your employability. If you are gunning for an academic role, a Masters degree is an important next step. A Masters is also an important step if you are looking to switch career paths or accelerate your career progress.
Wage Premium:
Higher educational qualifications generally necessitate higher wage premiums in different career environments. With a Master’s degree comes added qualification and skill set, positioning you for even more responsibilities in your work environment. It is important to note that some Master Degree holders enjoy parity with holders of bachelor’s degrees in higher-paying fields. However, your focus should be on your career of choice.
Deeper Knowledge:
Postgraduate programs, such as full-time masters programs, are mostly specialized in nature. If you have a genuine interest in your field and desire to gain even more theoretical and practical knowledge in this course of study, a master’s program will be beneficial. Specialization also improves your chances of career progression and improved wage premium.
Real World Knowledge and Networking:
One of the more specific advantages of pursuing a full-time Master’s program, not just a Master’s program, is the real world scenarios it prepares you for. Many schools send their postgraduate students out into the field for studies and invaluable work experience, exposing them to the real world work environment. This allows students at this level to gain practical skills applicable to the real world environment, while also providing you with a chance to build your network for the future.
Program Speed:
Yet another benefit of a full-time program is the speed of completion. Going part-time, whether in a physical institution or through an online course, may allow you to pursue the program according to your pace, but it also does well to ensure the program lingers and drags on. A full-time study for masters is usually completed between 1 – 2 years, accelerating your goal to acquire relevant knowledge and certification.
The question of whether you should pursue a master’s program is a very personal one. It is generally a cost-intensive venture, which means that you may be short on budget. Otherwise, you might be skeptical of committing such amounts without any assurances. However, programs like the BBS full-time master’s program ensure that you ultimately get great value for your financial, material and time commitments.
Content Rally wrapped around an online publication where you can publish your own intellectuals. It is a publishing platform designed to make great stories by content creators. This is your era, your place to be online. So come forward share your views, thoughts and ideas via Content Rally.
Got called for an interview for that dream job you have wanted for a long time?
Well, congratulations for starters! Secondly, are you ready with the top interview skills? Ensuring that you are putting your best foot forward!
Do not worry, this doesn’t automatically mean you are underprepared. Your confidence to ace the interview will get half of the job done!
However, to improve your interview game, you should know what the experts say about a guaranteed interview win.
Especially the skills that can help you achieve that goal!
Top Interview Skills – Preparing For A Win
A good interview is more than just an opportunity to show off your resume or learn about a new company.
It’s about having key interview skills to help you shine above the competition. From communication skills to problem-solving abilities, here are the skills you need to start polishing.
Got an interview for your dream job? Great!
The tricky part is getting the job.
But don’t worry, I’m here to help with your interview prep. Let's begin with the following:
The 5 Cs Of A Job Interview
Here’s a job interview preparation framework: the 5Cs. Five qualities you should try to convey at your interview to be successful.
1. Confidence Is The Key!
Confidence is indeed the key. Employers want to hire people who can perform well under pressure and believe in their abilities.
You can come with many skills, but how would they know if you cannot showcase them?
However, keep in mind that confidence doesn't have to be loud and on someone's face.
There’s a fine line between confidence and arrogance. Be assertive but also respectful and open to learning.
How do you express confidence?
Start with eye contact, a firm handshake, and positive body language. Know your strengths, but also be ready to discuss your weaknesses and how you’ve worked to improve them.
2. Can You Provide Clarity?
Be clear and concise with your words.
Stuttering, pausing, or slipping in thoughts will make you appear unconfident. This doesn't mean you cannot pause between your answers. Whenever you feel like you need to take a break, always do so with confidence.
It will also give the impression that you didn't memorize the answers but rather know how to have a proper conversation.
Take it slow, and do not chew on your words. It makes the interviewer aware of nervousness! Plus, learn how to answer basic interview questions using clear & succinct lines. Don't be absolutely clueless there and take your time thinking.
The more focused your answers are, the better you can convey what you think.
3. Curiosity Won’t Kill The Cat Here
Be curious about everything and always be ready to learn. Curiosity keeps the mind engaged and open to new ideas and possibilities, making you a better problem-solver and decision-maker. Plus, your curious questions can also hold the conversation better.
Show genuine interest in the role and company. It is not a surprise that employers love a candidate who is inquisitive and shows they are keen to learn/grow. Ask questions about the company culture, future goals, challenges, etc. Here are some of the unique interview questions to ask employers.
4. Try To Be Calm!
Staying calm is most important in any kind of interview situation. Being mindful, calm, and present are some of the top interview skills out there!
I know it is not easy, and you are totally panicking if it is a dream job, and you do not want to mess up!
But trust me, thinking and losing your sleep over it will not bring you any positive results. The employer wants to see if the person can think clearly and answer thoughtfully, even if you are nervous.
So, take a deep breath, smile, and if you need a few seconds before answering, that’s alright!
5. Are You Competent For The Job
Again, it could be a dream job, but do not apply for a role (especially in a higher position) if you are not sure!
This is one of the reasons why understanding your competency for the job is crucial. It is not about putting yourself down but knowing your strengths & weaknesses well.
If needed, you can also ask the recruiter beforehand to explain the job role in detail.
Your experience will show your Competence, skills, and how much you know about the job you are being interviewed for. Read the job description properly and respond in a targeted way, describing how your experience fits the role.
Dos & Don’ts Of An Interview
Knowing what to do and not do in an interview can make all the difference. Here are some important dos and don'ts to help you present yourself as a true professional.
Here is what you should do during your job interview:
Do Some Company Research
Before you even get to the interview, make sure you know what you’re getting into. You’ll be able to answer and ask questions more effectively if you’ve taken the time to learn about the company’s history, culture, and goals.
Do Dress Appropriately
First impressions are everything. Dressing appropriately will show that you take the interview seriously and understand the company’s culture. When in doubt, dress business casual unless the culture of the company says otherwise.
Do Listen Attentively
An interview is a conversation, not an interrogation. Listen to what your interviewer is saying and respond accordingly.
Being a good listener is also one of the crucial interview skills. This will demonstrate that you can work well with others in the workplace.
Now, here is what you shouldn’t do.
Don’t Over-talk Or Interrupt
While it’s important to provide thorough answers, you don’t want to monopolize the conversation. Answer the question and then stop talking. Let the interviewer guide the discussion, and don’t talk over them.
Don’t Say Anything Bad About A Former Employer
Don’t badmouth your former employer Even if you didn’t have a great experience at your last job.
Potential employers are looking for candidates who can remain professional and positive in difficult situations.
Which Skills Do I Need In An Interview?
Interviewing is all about presenting your best self, and that starts with showcasing your skills. You don’t just want to show that you’re qualified on paper.
Yes, you also want to demonstrate that you can effectively and comfortably communicate your qualifications in person.
So, here are the top six skills employers look for when they interview candidates!
1. Clear Communication
Clear and effective communication is key for any successful interview. You need to articulate your thoughts, respond to questions, and share your views in an easy-to-understand manner.
Practice speaking clearly and using professional language without unnecessary jargon.
2. Critical Thinking
You may be a natural problem solver and excel in critical thinking or need to work on it. If the latter is the case, it is time for you to polish your critical and quick-thinking skills. A good way to do so is by joining a workshop on interview skills.
Many employers will want to know how you have dealt with difficult situations in the past. Here is your opportunity to let them see your problem-solving skills.
Think of examples when you devised creative solutions to hard problems.
3. Adaptability
In today’s ever-changing job market, flexibility is the name of the game. You cannot be afraid of change and think you will fixate on the same skills and the same means for years on end.
The whole corporate scene is getting dynamic, which means there is a new change at every corner. Therefore, demonstrate that you can adapt to change and be open to new ideas and challenges.
You can also give examples of when you were forced to be fluid and how you thrived in a new environment.
4. The Ability To Lead
Leadership skills are essential Even if you’re not applying for a management position. After all, you would want to give the impression that one day you will be capable enough to lead a team.
Especially if someone asks you about your five-year plan, this shows that you can take initiative, guide others, and make decisions when needed.
Share examples where you demonstrated leadership qualities, even in small tasks or team collaborations.
5. Technical Skills
The digital trends are growing at an unsteady pace, and you will need to adapt quickly!
For many positions, you’ll also need specific technical skills, whether it’s the ability to use certain software, machines, or tools or expertise in a particular methodology.
Familiarize yourself with the technical skills needed for the position and mention them in your response.
What's The Best Answer To "Tell Me About Yourself"?
Ah, the dreaded “Tell me about yourself” interview question! No amount of interview skills can prepare you for that!
This one is tough because it’s so open-ended. Yes, you don’t want to give too much away and tell your life story, but you also need to give a well-rounded answer. Here’s how to nail it.
First, give a quick background of your career thus far, including only things that are pertinent to this job application. Briefly mention a few big achievements that might pique their interest (make them want to keep reading!).
Then, please talk about your skills and how they relate specifically to this role. Finish your statement by explaining why you’re excited about this opportunity and how you’ll help the company as a result.
Here Is A Good Example Of This Question:
“I’ve spent the past five years working as a digital marketing specialist, where I helped companies grow their online presence and customer engagement. I got to work on some cool campaigns, like a social media campaign that increased our client’s online sales by 30%.
Not only did I learn the ins and outs of SEO, content strategy, and data analytics in my role, but this is also what you’re looking for! I’m super excited to bring my skills to your team and help drive your digital marketing efforts!”
You should also read 10 interview questions, for better preparation!
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Many employees feel guilty when they want to take a leave (even when sick). This happens more often for work-from-home employees.
Generally, there can be certain reasons to call out of work. Once you take time off respectfully, it will be good for your physical and mental health and the organization.
In this article, you will learn about legitimate reasons to call out of work. Also, this article will give you tips that you can call out of work. Hence, to learn more, read on to the end of the article.
Are You Looking For Reasons To Call Out Of Work?
There are many reasons why you can call out of work. However, these are not “bulletproof excuses to get out of work.” Understand that these are genuine reasons and not excuses. Your employer will understand and approve your request once you have a genuine reason to call out of work.
For instance, employers accept medical conditions, emergencies, and personal matters as valid reasons for such cases. However, you must be aware of your employer’s off-time policies.
As long as you are not misusing company policies to your advantage, you can reframe calling out of work as a form of self-care.
When you are calling out, use the method that your employer prefers. Also, keep your reason brief. Additionally, you can also suggest solutions for missing work.
Meanwhile, you must prepare for a return to work soon. This way, you can minimize work disruption. Moreover, try to show commitment to catch up to your projects.
Hence, read the next section to learn how to call out of work for personal reasons and emergencies.
Here Are 9 Major Reasons To Call Out Of Work
You can offer plenty of reasons if you want to miss work or stay at home. However, you must make sure that you are not taking the wrong advantage of your employer’s policies. Thereby, you can reframe your staying out of work as a form of self-care.
Basically, when you take enough time to rest and recover your energy, you will feel more productive and focused. Also, you will be able to use your conceptual skills better. This will be beneficial for both you and your employer. Moreover, calling out of work makes more sense if you are sick.
When you are not fully fit, despite doing the work, you are not fully present. This will impact on your productivity and efficiency. Hence, it is a better step to call out of work.
The following are the top reasons to call out of work:
1. Loss Of Someone Close
When a family member, relative, or someone close passes away, you must call out of work. Apart from processing your grief, you must also deal with financial and logistical arrangements for the funeral.
In fact, some employers even offer a bereavement leave policy if you have a death in the family. Hence, consider checking your employee handbook or the HR portal to see how to apply for bereavement leave.
Also, you can consult with the HR department or your manager directly about the situation and what next steps you must take.
Everyone relates to a personal loss, and your manager must understand that you need time to recover and make a comeback.
2. Sickness And Medical Problems
You might suffer from a seasonal allergy, common cold, minor headache, etc. Although you might still be able to work partly, it is essential to call out of work.
This is because your illness is keeping you from efficiency and high productivity. Also, if you over-stress yourself, you might get sicker and must be called out of work for more days.
Moreover, if you must go to the office in person, contagious diseases like coughing and cold can be one of the reasons for calling out of work. However, in such cases, your employer might ask you to show a doctor’s note if you inform them that you are seriously ill.
3. Sickness Of A Dependent Or Someone Close
Although you are not sick, a family member might be ill at home. Here, if you are the only person to take care of them, you have a good reason to call them out of work. In this case, you might also need to take them to a doctor’s clinic, give them medication, or pick up a prescription.
When there is a family need, there is no way you can stall it for work responsibilities. Hence, you must take a step to take a leave. For instance, you can use your sick time or leave to ensure your family’s well-being.
4. Family Emergency
Family comes first, and you must prioritize your family over your job. Hence, when you face a family emergency, you have strong reasons to call out of work. In such cases, your employer will understand, and this is a good reason to look after your family,
Generally, during family emergencies, the stakes are high. Your family needs you in such situations, and your boss will understand that. For example, if someone needs urgent surgery, or if someone is injured, or someone has seriously fallen ill, you must call out of work.
5. Doctor’s Appointment
If you need to make a medical appointment, you can notify your employer in advance. In such situations, taking a day off is most suitable. However, in rare cases, you might need to call out or take a sick day off.
For example, if you are waiting to meet a busy doctor with limited access, you might need to take the day off. In such cases, if you do not take the chance, you might have to wait months to see your doctor. In these situations, it is reasonable for you to miss work for the appointment. However, make sure to communicate properly with your manager.
6. Childcare
As a parent, you cannot afford to take a chance on your child’s health. In such cases, you need ultimate workplace flexibility. This is because you need time to raise children in addition to contributing to your job.
Moreover, even if you work from home, it does not mean you can care for your child. In fact, if you work from home, you cannot take care of your child properly, nor can you work with good productivity.
It is okay if you need some time to work on childcare arrangements. If you talk and explain the situation to your employer, they will understand and grant you leave.
7. Pet Care
Your pet is also a part of your home and your extended family. If your pet is in an emergency situation, you have a good reason to call out of work.
For example, if your dog/cat gets into the trash and eats something poisonous, it is important to take your dog to a vet. In other cases, your pet might be sick. Sometimes, you must take your pet to a vet appointment.
Basically, when there is a pet at your home, taking care of the animal is your responsibility. Hence, when you are about to call out of work, notify the reasons for your leave.
8. Illness Due To Food Poisoning
You might feel sick due to food poisoning. This is a problem that wrecks your body and compels you to stay up all night. It happens after you eat something bad, and it causes sickness in your body.
In such a case, you might need extra sleep or time to recover from your sickness. Moreover, if the problem is bigger, you might even need medications. Hence, there are enough reasons to call out of work.
In these situations, you can inform your manager of your sickness. They will surely understand your problem and allow you to take leave.
9. Personal Day
Mental health is something that many people neglect. Sometimes, you must take a break when you have too much. On the other hand, you might be facing physical strain. In such situations, taking a day off is good for your health. In fact, you will feel much better the next day.
However, you must not use your day to search for another job. This is straight-out dishonest, and you will put your coworkers in a difficult position. For instance, your coworkers must deal with extra work if you leave at the last minute without a good reason.
To attend interviews, you can use your traditional paid time off. Moreover, you must plan in such situations.
Call Out Of Work Now
The above reasons for calling out of work are good enough to maintain a good image in your organization and get your time off simultaneously. Also, you must inform your manager when you are calling out of work.
Do you have more suggestions or reasons to offer on how to call out of work? Please share your ideas and opinions in the comments section below.
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UI and UX designing is key in every service-related and product selling business. Although the definitions are not entirely different, the process of UI and UX design has its differences.
For example, UX deals with a user’s journey from start to finish and solves a problem. A UI/UX designer is entirely focused on the product’s look, design, and feel. You can check various types of modern designs from professional UX design agencies in San Francisco as examples and find the latest market trends.
Who Is A UI/UX Designer?
The work of a UI/UX designer is to design the user interfaces. When you are login to any website, the first thing you see is the user interface. Yes, the work of the UI/UX designer is to design that interface. The target is to build up better consumer experiences. But do you know what types of skills you require to be a successful UX/UX designer?
Businesses turn to these designers when they want to create everything from their websites to mobile application, micro sites, and target-based landing pages for campaigns. There are several ways you can do it. Firstly, you can take help from the top UX design agencies. Or, you can go for freelancers that can help you on a project-to-project kind of a basis.
5 Required Skill Sets For Any UI/UX Designer:
This is a highly popular stream, and jobs for experienced professionals with the right skills will take their careers to new heights. Thinking of enrolling on a UI UX course?
Read on to know what skills you require first to hone your skills.
1. Implacable Research Skills
To succeed as a UX or UI developer, candidates need to upswing their research skills as a lot of their duties involve studying various aspects of an application or a website before making any UX decisions that are finalized for implementation.
For an app to be successful, UX designers must have the ability to understand their audience.
2. Collaboration
UI/UX experts and designers must have the skill to work and collaborate with professionals with different expertise levels in order to get through the design process. Collaboration is one of the key skills in UX designing, and with great communication skills earned through the same, and communicate effectively with the clients and stakeholders to make the product finalized.
3. Wireframing And UI Prototyping
You need to flaunt your UX skills to convince people how proficient you are in all the key skills - prototyping, wireframing, etc.
A wireframe is simply a layout of a web page that prioritizes the key elements of the page as per the needs and ease of customers to navigate, whereas a prototype is a sample or a simulation of the final product that’s used for testing trails and feedback collection.
4. Visual Designing And Design Software
UI and UX designers must be proficient in using visual design software like Sketch, Photoshop, Illustrator, etc. In order to create the visuals or graphics for the product, they are designing.
Keeping updated and understanding the use of the latest software and topics - - icons, color theory, design theory, typography, etc.
Related Resource: Latest Trends of Graphic Design in London
5. User Research And Usability Testing
To make a successful and saleable product that meets the market requirements, professionals need to know the best they can about the user. They are the ones researching development for most of their time.
Conducting the right user testability and user research will ensure designers make the best prototypes and the perfect product.
What are you waiting for now? Enroll in a program today and get started in this exciting field of work.
UX Designer And Their Required Technical Skills
A key part of the product development system is envisioning the final product. Depending on the different stages of development, designers can focus on creating wireframes, mockups, and user flows through low or high-fidelity prototypes.
These are one of the most crucial UX designer skills.
Low-fidelity prototypes are often sketched on paper, prohibiting interaction, whereas high-fidelity prototypes are usually computer-based and allow interaction with the product.
A mockup is a realistic model of the final web page or an application.
User flow is a diagram that maps each step taken by a user while using a service or a product.
If you like to get a large-scale UI/UX designer salary, then these are skillsets you will require.
Conclusion:
UI/UX designer jobs are now like a hot cake in the market. Most of the new websites are focusing on building better audiences' records.
And this is only possible when you are prepared to invest a large amount of money in building better interfaces. So are you thinking of being a successful UX/UX designer? What is your opinion? Let us know through the comment sections.
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