Sem 3 SS 2 Pre Mid Course Ware

8/14/2019 Sem 3 SS 2 Pre Mid Course Ware

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SEMESTER 3

SOFT SKILLS LAB II

PRE-MID COURSEWARE


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Chapter 1 Internship Experiences

Session 1: Internship in Hindsight

Introduction

Internship is an effective catalyst in getting you ready for the competitive market place. Particularly in2009, the challenges and opportunities have been tremendous. Challenges due to the economic

slowdown enveloping the key drive areas of global and Indian economy and opportunities thanks tothe immense learning. Internship has given you the opportunity to practically learn about the sector

you have served. From the internship, you have acquired insight into the in-house and marketplaceoperations of a company at the same wavelength as of a regular executive. The overall learning and

everyday experiences gained during the internship is central to equipping you to successfully weather

the placement gate. What remains to be done is to develop a realistic self awareness, a self SWOTanalysis and action plan to sharpen the placeability skills. The sustained efforts would definitely earn

you a placement interview and enable you to come out successful.

Several practice sessions inside and outside of the regular sessions are required to put your thoughts,

experiences and diction together to gain the required standards to draft internship component in the

CV and to effectively handle the standard interview questions relating to the internship.

Internship has been universally acknowledged as a key and sizeable opportunity to acquire the skills to

make a decisive foray into the maiden job. Internship has set your career direction and disposition

based on the foundation of two semesters of classroom learning. It is a key component of yourplacement credential. The vast majority of you appreciate that the internship has been a knowledge

application experience in fulfilling the objectives as set by the interning organization. The four-month

tenure has:

ensured socialization in specific corporate environment, the organization's work style

and culture

been a unique opportunity to bridge the gap between academic knowledge and practical

experience by testing, validating, challenging and reinforcing the learning from the pre-

internship semesters

been a reliable recruiting channel for various organizations as they help the recruiters to

identify high-potential probable human resources across the four months.

effectively set the stage for final placement preparedness with specific employability

skills.

Classroom Activity

Brainwrite/brainstorm the key internship vocabulary that you have acquired during the four months.

Classroom Activity

Suppose you are invited by a neighbouring business school to present in a seminar the benefits that

you have reaped from the summer internship. Briefly explain the content of your seminar presentation.


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Classroom Activity

In hindsight, express the remarkable success achieved in internship, the learning from the failures.Once the activity is over, collect the most frequently used terms in the expressions.

Classroom Activity

One of the objectives of internship is to apply knowledge and techniques learnt in the first year in a

practical situation. Recall one clear internship example for the application of the knowledge andtechniques learnt in the first year.

Value Addition Activity

One of the commonest comments of post-internship students is that they got the opportunity to

understand the organizational set-up and the ground realities there. How is the understanding of theorganizational set up and the ground realities going to be an asset in preparing for FP selection process

particular the personal interview? What are the key terms used to highlight the organizational set up?

Discuss.


Internship has given you an insiders view of the integration and interdependence between variousmanagement functions and fields in your interning organization. With examples, explain how this

experience has helped you develop realistic managerial perspectives. Based on the observation of the

whole class, collect the most frequently used terms used to describe the managerial perspectives.


Explain with examples the first-hand experience that you have gained about the particular industry that

your interning company represents. How has the industry responded to and behaved in the globaleconomic slowdown particularly in 2009? What are the recent trends in the industry?


From your own experience, recall the opportunities that internship has given you to think creativelyand to apply newly acquired learning. How will the experience help you to innovate for your own

final placement initiatives?

Classroom Activity

Using the following action phrases/words, how will you validate the fulfillment of internship

objectives in your case?Analysed data..

Assumed responsibility for.

Compiled statistical data..

Created new plans, methods..

Developed a working knowledge of..Implemented new procedures

Improved skills in..Learned new techniques


Identify more action phrases/words to express the fulfillment of internship objectives.


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Session 2 - Internship Objectives Introspection

Classroom Activity

Mock Interview:

In your internship company, what have you observed regarding the tasks being performed by

others?

As part of your internship, what work-related queries were you able to raise and clear with the

superiors?

Recall the most important points that you have logged in the daily journal of activities during

internship.

During internship, what task/s have you performed repeatedly until you were able to do

without supervision?

Classroom Activity

Just a Sentence

Make a sentence each using action words and ideas that explain howyou will demonstrate yourinternship learning for final placement evaluation.

Classroom Activity

Just an Example

Give an example of how you successfully convinced your CG about your ability to produce result in

your work in the most time-efficient way.


Savers and Wasters

What were the key time savers and time wasters during internship and how will you use the learning inyour FP initiative?


Win-Win

How will you establish that your internship has been a win-win situation to both the company and toyourself?

MBA interns frequently provide inspirational and exciting thoughts and creative insights in problemsolving. Do you have any tangible claim/s to this effect during your internship?


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Professional proximity

Substantiate how the internship offered you the important opportunity to work closely with

professionals in your field, and enabled you to develop knowledge, competencies, and experience

related directly to your career goals.


Advantage NetworkingExplain with examples how internship has led to new contacts, mentors, and references.

Classroom Activity

Demonstrate with example/s your initiatives to complete your internship successfully, with specific

examples covering your commitment, receptiveness to constructive criticism, ability to prioritize,

problem solving skills and adaptability.

Additional ActivitiesKeeping the internship objectives in introspection and the learning thereof, briefly articulate your

specificinitiatives to identify, anticipate, prepare for and successfully clinch the first job.

Briefly describe the areas of improvement that you have identified for yourself during internship,

based on specific challenges encountered?

Give specific examples to highlight your improved communication and interpersonal skills that haveenabled you to create a more positive environment, particularly the ability to work with supervisors,

fellow workers, customers.


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Session 3 - Internship Achievements

Classroom Activity

Students to sit in groups. Each group to brainstorm and arrive at the most relevant interview questionsbased on the internship experience and achievements. (Each group 15 minutes)


Each student to draft 10 interview questions based on the brainstorming experience gained from the

classroom activity.


Under the auspices of the SPC, think of expressing/articulating your internship achievements using the

following means:

CollageCaption bowl

Special Vocabulary Zone

Mock interview

JAMWAP (write a para)

Mock press


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Session 4: Learning from Internship (oral & written)

Classroom Activity

Students to form themselves into groups. Ideate, brainstorm and arrive at a list of the commonlyapplicable and most relevant words and phrases useful for internship component of the CV. (Eachgroup, 10 minutes)


Each student to draft 10 unique sentences relating to the internship experience using the words andphrases brainstormed in the earlier session.

Classroom Activity

Each student to speak for just two minutes on the internship company and the major products handled.


Each student to draft 15 sentences about his/her internship company and the products handled, based

on the J2M exercise performed as part of the classroom activity.

Classroom Activity

Each student to take part in a mock interview conducted by the in-house Trainer or an external HR

professional. The interview to primarily focus on internship achievements. Interview results to be

shared and discussed with the students individually/in group as required, so that it will help themimprove upon their performance.

Value Addition ActivityEach student to draft the learning from the mock interview conducted as part of the classroom session.


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Session 5: Sustaining Interest in Internship Sector and Keeping Track of Company Updates and

Relationship

Classroom Activity

Each student to submit an action plan to the faculty member handling the course and later a written

progress report covering the following initiatives that are aimed at keeping track of the internshipsector and the company and maintaining relationship.


Each student to make a brief presentation covering the topics below relating to learning frominternship:

Direct learning; peer learning; circumstantial learning; situational learning; experiential

learning; mandatory learning; learning avenues.


Each student to do a JAM on a given topic from the list below:

Art of learning through contribution to the company (active learning versus passive learning)

Art of negotiating everyday internship chores while not missing the focus on getting ready forfinal placement

Customer expectation

Employer expectation


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Chapter 2 - Training for Final Placement

Session 6 Employability

Introduction

Employability is defined by what I can do right from day one more than what I know or what I can

learn. When the economy is at a slow phase, companies cannot afford to hire candidates who are notproductive from day one; they need candidates who can create and/or work on opportunities fromadversity. When the economy is showing signs of revival, companies cannot afford to hire slow

starters; they need candidates who can take the best early advantage of the revival; when the economy

gains good momentum, companies cannot afford to hire candidates who lack in sharp skills; they need

candidates who make the best out of the fast growth.

Classroom Activity

As part of getting ready with the final leg of the employability skills development initiatives, how will

you sell yourself to you, prior to facing an interviewer? Students at random to make a brief

presentation.

Classroom Activity

In order to get a realistic picture of the expectations of an employer from a particular sector (in terms

of the employability skills of a candidate), substantiate the importance of interviewing

achievers/alumni.


If you are asked to prepare your own employability scorecard, what are the criteria and respective

weight that you will include? Do brainstorming and do presentations based on the points evolved

from the brainstorming.


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Chapter 2 Training for Final Placement

Session 7: Adaptability

Introduction


Form groups and discuss the role of adaptability skills in enabling the Indian cricket team to regain the

winning ways.


Given the challenging economic environment, the recruitment process has undergone tremendous

changes. One such change is the increasing role of online job sites. Firstnaukri.com is a job site

targeted at fresh graduates including business graduates ready for the job market in 2009. Present yourunderstanding and preparation to adapt and equip yourself to the requirements of a site like

Firstnaukri.com in your efforts to get placed.

You may define adaptability as the ability to modify your thinking, attitude or behavior in order to

be better suited to your current or future environments; adaptability also means the ability to handlemultiple goals, tasks and inputs within the constraints of time, resources and systems (e.g.,

organisational, technological). As you have realized from the internship experiences, adaptabilityskillsenable you to respond quickly, willingly and positively to new conditions and changing times.

Classroom Activity

Make a brief presentation on how you have adapted yourself to the campus environment back from

internship and how you are evolving your own adaptability to get ready for the final placement.


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Session 8: Corporate Expectations

IntroductionEach downturn teaches lessons, determining a new pattern of recruitment. There is a shift in hiringpatterns, with companies focusing on ensuring quality rather than quantity in recruitment and a

pronounced thrust on the all-round ability to deliver.

As the Indian economy shows signs of recovery, we are going to see companies getting smarter aboutrecruitment. When the economy was booming, even above-average quality recruits were acceptable,

but now the focus would be to ensure high quality hires. The focus is shifting to the all-round ability

to deliver, rather than stopgap skills.

Classroom Activity

Based on interaction with the alumni and other young executives, each student to present one case

study regarding the hiring criteria and screening process being newly followed by employers invarious sectors.


Based on the classroom activity, each student to draft a detailed note on how to rework self SWOT and

re-engineer selection competitiveness for the FP.


Each student to do J2M exercise on the topics below and any additional area/s going into employerexpectation management.

skill-related expectation

attitude-related expectationcompetence-related expectationteam-orientation related expectation

productivity related expectation

short term expectationlonger term expectation

impact of current business challenges on expectations

recent media coverage regarding corporate expectation.


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Session 9: Employment Market Demand-Supply Dynamics

Introduction

The hindsight of most of the material on goal setting covered in Semester II come in handy for post-

internship goal setting and hence, not repeated here. However, the actual experiences and learningduring internship must have had a tempering and realistic impact on the career roadmap on the onehand and the mind and mechanics to operate the roadmap. Following observations and exercises are

aimed at building a realistic understanding of the demand-supply dynamics relating to employable

candidates.

Classroom Activity

JAM exercise on each of the topics below:

demand in a fast growing economy

demand in a slow growing economydemand in different sectorsimpact of uncertainty in demand

share that the freshers occupy in the demand pie

changing marketing trends and demand

role of goodwill and networking in identifying and tapping demand

Classroom Activity

Conduct a reading seminar collecting relevant columns from business papers and other sourcesregarding new recruitment pattern. Each student to present a unique report on the market and to

enable the Student Placement Committee to cast their net into the demand side much wider than ever

before.


Each student to prepare his/her own skill balance sheet. On the asset side, list out the key skills,

achievements, experience, competence, exposure, rewards & recognition and so on. On the liabilityside, based on the common requirements of 20 companies likely to recruit the students, list out the

most frequently referred to skills sets required of the applications. Compare and contrast the asset and

liability sides.


Students in groups to do brainstorming sessions on the following topics:Objective of self evaluationScope of self evaluation

Standard self evaluation parameters

Mechanism of self evaluationSelf evaluation and SWOT.


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Each student to write a paragraph on the following points relating to realistic career expectations:

the first jobpositive influences on career expectation

role of industry mentoring on career expectationpreferred sector and career expectationrole of alumni in shaping realistic career expectation

role of industry networking in career expectation.


You can only set informed career goals if you acquire plenty of information about the career choices

open to you. This will require research. In groups, prepare report on such information that you have

acquired by now.


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Session 10: Placement Initiatives & Ownership

Classroom Activity

Students in turn to make brief presentation on their understanding regarding a point each below:Online Job sites registration

Online interviewWalk-in interviewIdentifying and networking with placement prospective companies

Preparing a list of frequently hired positions

Key competencies

Alumni interfaceInternship company-focused initiatives

Win-win situation from short paying assignments

Interface with industry experts to understand the market and grasp the skills to be honedCareer fair

Campus interview.


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Chapter 3 CV

Session 11: Post-internship CV

Introduction

Please revise the Sem 2 soft skills chapters covering CV in order to reinforce the basic preparation forCV. However the major difference is that, unlike Sem 2 targeted at internship CV, here the focus is onFP CV. Additionally, the learning from Chapter 1 Internship of the current courseware is of

preparatory value in approaching the internship component of FP CV. However, the following

exercises are additionally useful.

Classroom Activity

Students in groups of 6-8 to brainstorm and arrive at the key components and words to be included in

the dynamic part of the FP CV.

Value Addition ActivityPrepare CV for appropriate walk-in interview opportunities.

Discuss and review your CV with the Placement Executive.


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Chapter 3 CV

Session 12: Defending & Validating CV

Introduction

Employers today want to know concrete things about you, and what you can produce. Sentences with

action or power words help you to demonstrate to the interviewer that you are capable of the rightmode of thinking backed with proven results particularly during the internship. Following is a list ofindicative power words some of which can go into your CV subject to relevant context, skill and

competence to validate the words with specific examples.

Classroom Activity

Identify the most suitable situations where you can use some of the following words in your FP CV

and personal interview based on your claims in the CV.

accelerated

accomplished achieved

adapted

administered

analyzed

approved

conceived

conducted

completed

controlled

coordinated

created

delegated

demonstrated

designed

developed

directed

earned

effected

eliminated

established

evaluated expanded

expedited

facilitated

found

generated

implemented

improved

increased

influenced

initiated

mastered

motivated operated

ordered

originated

organized

participated

performed

pinpointed

planned

prepared

produced

programmed

proposed

proved

provided

proficient in

purchased

recommended

reduced

reinforced

reorganized

revamped reviewed

revised

scheduled

simplified

set up

solved

streamlined

structured

supervised

supported


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inspected

instructed

interpreted

launched

led

lectured

maintained

managed

surpassed

taught

trained

translated

used

utilized

won

wrote


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Chapter 4 Verbal Aptitude Training

Session 13: Introduction to Verbal Aptitude Training

An aptitude is something that you have the potential to be good at; it refers to your innate ability to

perform tasks that require a specific type of skill. Skill development to clear the aptitude test includingverbal reasoning skills demand sustained efforts over a period of time. The expertise of external

bodies specialized in such training is a channel to avail.

Intensive training in handling the test should precede tests. The components of verbal aptitude covers

mainly the following areas:

Classroom Activity

The faculty member handling the course to give a brief description of each of these components, themost important of which is reading comprehension.

English Language Error Identification/Correction

Sentence Completion/Correction Spelling Error Identification/Correction

English Language Usage

Synonyms and Antonym

Analogy Paragraph Completion

Critical reasoning

Reading Comprehension


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Session 14: Aptitude Test Training - Comprehension

There are several books and internet sites offering reading comprehension tests at various levels.


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Session 15

Aptitude Test Training - Business Phrases & Vocabulary

Please refer to Business Vocabulary in Use by Bill Mascull for suitable exercises.


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Session 16: Aptitude Test Training - Verbal Reasoning Skills

Introduction

Verbal intelligence is the ability to analyze information and solve problems using language-based

reasoning. There are several standard test papers available on the internet. The Faculty Memberhandling the course may already be familiar with such sites and hard books. Such reinforcements arein addition to external training sessions.

Note: The courseware soft copy to be loaded in the notebook computers of the students. There

will be no hardcopy distribution from HQ.


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Soft Skills Lab - II

Class of : 2010 Academic Year : Second

Course Code : SS-II Semester : III

Credit : (Audit) Sessions : 33

Objective: to empower students with skills and competence to earn the first job that has growth prospects.

Text Book Author/Publication

Soft Skills Lab - II INC Material

Reference Source Author/publication

Complete Manager Sem III ICFAI Publication

Business Vocabulary in Use Bill Mascull Cambridge University Press

Detailed Syllabus

Internship Experiences: Internship achievements; learnings from internship (oral & written); sustaining interest in

internship sector and keeping track of company updates and relationship

Training for Final Placement: Adaptability skills; corporate expectations; employment market demand-supply dynamics;

self evaluation; realistic career expectations; post-internship goal setting; placement initiatives & ownership

Curriculum Vitae: Post-internship CV, job-specific CVs; role of CV in selection process; defending & validating CV

Verbal Aptitude Training: Comprehension; business phrases and vocabulary; verbal reasoning skills

Group Discussion: Foundation skills; GD challenges; approach to various GD topics; GD-specific communication skills;

integrating latest updates for GD

Presentation Skills: Presentation skills for marketing & sales

Personal Interview: Professional self-introduction; specific skills for PI; handling personal interview, group interview,

telephone interview, video-conference interview

Industry Networking: Introduction to networking, sector seminars, panel discussions, industry mentors; local networking;

career fair; campus interview

Suggested Allotment of Sessions

Title Sessions

Pre-Mid

Internship Experiences 5

Training for Final Placement 5Curriculum Vitae 2

Verbal Aptitude Training 4

Post-Mid

Group Discussion 6

Presentation Skills 3

Personal Interview 4

Industry Networking 4

Total 33


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Note: Evaluation Methodology will be issued as a circular.

Sem 3 SS 2 Pre Mid Course Ware

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