Personal development planning or PDP means creating opportunities to think through, in a structured way, questions such as:
It has been recognised that students need structured opportunities to think about, and plan towards, their future. The exact content really depends on you.
All universities are required to offer progress files to students. The term ‘file’ is misleading. Progress files really include three elements:
A process of personal developmentThese are your own personal records rather than those provided by the university.
For more advice, see personal records.
A formal transcript provided by the institutionSome advantages of taking a personal development approach to your studies are:
Many employers now expect employees to understand their own performance - and to know how to adapt to meet times of increased workload, stressful situations or conditions of change. Employees are expected to respond well to change. Whilst some employers offer training, it is more typical for employers to expect graduates to arrive ready to manage both their own performance and the performance of other people. Time devoted to understanding what influences your own performance can be very well spent. It is also important to be aware of how your behaviour affects other people.
Employees are often expected to show personal commitment to their continuous professional development (CPD), actively seeking out information, training and events that will keep their skills and knowledge up-to-date. Knowing how to learn, and how you learn best, will be invaluable in the work place.
For further advice, see Chapter 1 of Skills for Success by Stella Cottrell.
Personal development is an ongoing process, in which you need to:
Identify priorities for personal development
Download this worksheet and rate your priorities for personal development
Identify personal development opportunities
Each university offers a different set of opportunities for personal and professional development. Download and use this questionnaire to map the opportunities open to you.
Create an action plan
Targets should provide clear guidelines for action and be built into an action plan. Download the action plan template to record your own targets. Remember, targets are not written in stone: they should be monitored and reviewed as the project proceeds so that it can be completed on time.
Monitor your progress
You may find it helpful to work to a format to explore your progress on current goals. Download this form to help you monitor your progress. Use this in conjunction with your action plan.
Evaluate your personal performance
Download and complete this evaluation sheet to assist you in improving your personal performance.
For further advice, see Chapters 4, 7 and 8 of Skills for Success by Stella Cottrell
Whatever stage your students are at, it’s never too soon for them to be thinking about their future. Competition for jobs is fierce, and having a...