Essential Skills & Perspectives

Employers are looking to hire people with the following essential skills and perspectives. At FSU, students develop these essential skills and perspectives, especially through their study of the humanities. 

How can the humanities help you? Expand the categories below to learn more!

  1. Intellectual curiosity, attention to detail and nuance
  2. Asking the big questions
  3. Creative problem-solving
  4. Understanding complexity
  5. Abstract thinking
  6. Comfort using numbers
  7. Reflection
  8. Ability to construct complex arguments
  9. Inductive and deductive reasoning
  10. Analysis and synthesis of ideas, operations, problems, structures, processes
  11. Risk-evaluation
  12. Research skills (data analysis, quantitative/qualitative research, keyword searching)
  1. Close reading skills and ability to read between the lines
  2. Public speaking skills
  3. Ability to communicate in more than one language
  4. Audience evaluation
  5. Flexible writing skills for a variety of audiences and situations
  6. Communicating using social media platforms
  7. Presentation skills (textual and visual communication)
  1. Ethical reasoning
  2. Strong personal value system
  1. Ability to work well in groups, as a leader or as a collaborator
  2. Listening skills
  3. Flexible and fluid adaptation to new situations
  4. Being process- and goal-oriented
  5. Responding well to and giving constructive feedback
  6. Hard work and diligence
  7. Responsibility
  8. Self-reflection
  1. Cultural competencies (intercultural sensitivity and an understanding of cultural and historical contexts, including within global topics)
  2. Ability to appreciate differences and conflicting perspectives
  3. Emotional intelligence