Graduating and entering the workforce can feel overwhelming. You may have the right qualifications, a well-put-together resume, several jobs in mind, and fresh ideas you can’t wait to bring to the table. And yet, you still wonder if you’re truly prepared.
In today’s job market, having the skills to land your first role is important, but it’s not the full picture. Roles change quickly, and the skills that are needed in your job today may not be the same ones in a few years’ time.
Yeo Wee Siong, Group Director, Skills Development Group at SkillsFuture Singapore, says that this is something many people overlook. “Having all the skills for a current job doesn’t ensure long-term career health, as job contents are always changing,” he explains. “Even if there are no skill gaps now, it’s important to keep growing and diversifying your skill set, so you stay adaptable and ready for future opportunities.”
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That’s where understanding your skills and how they connect to different career paths becomes especially valuable early on. SkillsFuture Singapore’s special edition publication report suggests that one effective way to achieve this is to use the Job-Skills Profile Dashboard.
What the Job-Skills Profile Dashboard helps you do
To support individuals across every career phase, SkillsFuture Singapore developed the Job-Skills Profile Dashboard, a tool that helps you understand what skills employers are looking for and how you can build towards them.
“The idea was to make labour market data useful and accessible,” Wee Siong shares. “The dashboard helps individuals assess where they stand and think about where they want to go, and then, decide on what skills to work on next.”
So, whether you’re a fresh grad, a new entrant, or still exploring your options, the dashboard is designed to guide you in navigating these changes and future-proofing your career health.
Your quick guide to using the dashboard
Seeing (and using) the dashboard for the first time? We got you.
- Start by selecting a job role you’re interested in and looking at its top 25 skills.
- If you notice that you don’t currently have some of those skills, don’t panic. Zoom in on the most important skills first and prioritise building those.
- If you already have those skills, that’s a great start — but don’t stop there! Look at adding high-growth or high-ubiquity skills to broaden your skill set and strengthen your career health.
- You can also click on individual skills to see other roles that use the same skills. It’s a useful way to discover career options you may not have considered before.
2 ways to explore the dashboard
What makes it especially helpful is that the Jobs-Skills Profile Dashboard looks at your career from two different but connected perspectives:
- Understanding Job-Specific Skill Demands: This shows you what employers look for in specific jobs.
- Skills That Build Career Health: This shows you other skills that could support your future — not just your first or current job.
Let’s take a closer look at each dashboard view.
1) Understanding Job-Specific Skill Demands
If you already have a role in mind or are curious about a particular career, start here. This dashboard features job-skills profiles for over 300 roles, each showing the 25 most important skills employers typically look for. Under each skill, you will also see:
- How important each skill is for that role
- Whether it is a high-growth skill (specialised and in rising demand)
- Whether it is a high-ubiquity skill (broadly transferable and useful across different jobs)
“The importance level helps you understand which skills are essential for doing well in a role,” Wee Siong explains. “Skills with higher importance levels mean they are more critical for success in the role — and can be treated as ‘must-have’ skills for that job.”
Tip for fresh grads and new entrants: Use this dashboard view to focus your efforts, instead of trying to learn everything at once!
2) Skills That Build Career Health
If you’re looking to build on skills that support your future, start here. This dashboard view encourages you to think beyond your first or existing role, and it’s where you can explore over 900 skills that have been grouped into two skill types:
- High-growth skills: These are skills that help you build deeper expertise in areas that are gaining in demand.
- High-ubiquity skills: These are skills that are useful across many roles and industries.
“These skills may not be required for your current job,” Wee Siong notes, “But they help you stay flexible and ready for future opportunities.”
Tip for fresh grads and new entrants: This perspective is especially important. Even if you meet all the skills requirements for a role today, continuing to build both specialised and transferable skills can help you adapt as your career grows!
Turn these insights into action
Once you have a clearer idea of which skills to build, the next step, of course, is taking action. This could mean learning on your own through online courses, signing up for seminars and workshops, or seeking career guidance to help you make sense of your options.
For those who want extra support, Workforce Singapore’s Polaris by Volunteer Career Advisors (VCA) are available.
“These services can help individuals clarify their career goals, map out learning steps, and make informed decisions,” Wee Siong explains. “They’re especially useful when you’re starting out and trying to figure out your direction or considering a boost or shift in your career.”
Start building your career health today
Starting and managing your career can feel uncertain, but it doesn’t have to be directionless. Use the Job-Skills Profile Dashboard as a practical tool to understand not just what you need now, but what can support you as your career evolves.
By learning where you stand today and planning how to grow your skills over time, you’ll build greater confidence in the choices you make in the various roles you take on.
