Students’ soft skills at CCNB

In today’s work market, interpersonal and soft skills have been identified as essential keys to success. Collège Communautaire du Nouveau-Brunswick is therefore helping future workers to build resilience by developing their soft skills, in tandem with technical knowledge and skills, to support and guide their training and career paths. The relevance of this approach has been confirmed by a recent survey of New Brunswick employers, who view interpersonal skills as fundamental assets for the future workforce, and even more so in the context of COVID-19.

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Future Skills Centre is investing $230,007 in this 2-year project, from which graduates can make a concrete contribution to the province’s economic recovery. Coming from all regions, rural and urban New Brunswick, as well as from other provinces and countries, these graduates represent the economic and social future of the province and its communities. It is essential to support not only their technical training, but also the development of their soft skills, all of which are sought by employers. To meet employers’ expectations, these individuals will need to be able to communicate their strengths while demonstrating adequate interpersonal skills in their future employment – an element which needs to be an integral part of college training. This project includes stages of assessment of student needs, development of relevant concepts, various collaborations with the college’s resources and design of adult learning activities directly offered to students during their college education.

Evaluation Strategy

This project is evaluated using tools and approaches aligned with its goals, context, and stage of development. The evaluation focuses on generating the right evidence at the right moment to move the intervention forward. Read more about our evaluation strategy.

Featured Projects

Research

Career able: job transitions for Canadians with disabilitiesexternal link icon

Everyone needs career options, including people with disabilities. The Conference Board of Canada, on behalf of the Future Skills Centre, is leading a study to support the job transitions of people with disabilities. The study aims to promote labour market retention and career mobility for this equity-deserving group.
Research

Digital skills for today and tomorrow

The rapid digital transformation in Canada due to the pandemic could increase our productivity and growth potential for years to come. How can Canada unlock this opportunity?
Two individuals pointing at a computer screen.
Research

Assessing Canada’s Skills Requirements in the 21st Century

This project will develop a comprehensive skills framework to describe the Canadian workforce, assess the types of skills currently required by employers and offered by employees, and propose strategies for policymakers to mitigate the growing skills shortage.
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