Your role in upskilling the students of today

As we move into a period of recovery, skills is high on the agenda. David Trodden, Tutor at LSE and LSCA Business Board member, looks at how organisations and students can support each other.

August 2020

UK universities, and most around the world, are working on how to deliver their teaching this autumn. Lectures will be online and the associated seminars and classes a mix of online and face-to face. The university I teach at has asked whether I will be available later during the week and on Saturdays and Sundays. This is driven by attempting to timetable more smaller face to face teaching which is great for me as I am missing my students. I do enjoy the Zoom classes and especially the breakout rooms.

The Students Union has over 200 student societies which is a fantastic opportunity for the students to learn about project management, organisation, marketing, working together while achieving the aims of their chosen society. Many of these societies are outward facing.

 The LSE Volunteer Centre team have organised many different volunteering activities & events throughout 2019/20. They have responded to the pandemic by offering many online volunteering opportunities especially those aimed at the vulnerable members of our society.

The LSE Careers Centre has responded to the challenge of the pandemic by creating a series of videos on ‘Skills at Home’. These include Entrepreneurial Skills, Volunteering, Digital Skills, Part-time work & Learning a Language. The Careers Centre has many excellent online resources on their website. I was struck by the interview with the head of LSEs Digital Skills saying how data analysis jobs have the second highest pay & the highest projected growth rate. And, that the highest demand for those data skills is in Greater London.

The LSE recruits an excellent mix of students from a very wide range of countries including many from Asia and Europe eager to be involved with the Greater London community. 

The LSE’s mission is to educate for impact by working with the community. While being based in London, our audience is the world. We work to build a society in which everyone is able to fulfil their potential and everyone’s contribution is valued.

The departments around the LSE are working to ensure that the next term is a fulfilling one in terms of both our students academic and personal development whether they are on campus or online.

The challenge for this coming academic year is to ensure that every single student has access to these exciting developments.

If your organisation or community needs some help or can offer some experience, be it work or volunteering, by our students please do get in touch here.