Category: Digital Capabilities Framework

My experience with Code First Girls đŸ’»

WordPress User [jpl11] Code First Girls, Digital learning and development, Training Leave a comment

Blogpost by Jia Ping Lee (Digital Capabilities and Skills Development Coordinator)

I remember first stumbling across Code First Girls through their social media during the summer of 2023, and then I learnt of Aberystwyth University’s new partnership with them. Having had no prior experience of coding and not having much knowledge about the tech world, I was surprised at how easy it was to look through the courses that Code First Girls were offering and regardless of what level of coding you had – there would be an appropriate course for you.

Being a complete beginner with coding languages, I had a look through their introductory courses titled MOOCs (Code First Girls’ massive open online courses). These courses were designed to introduce and provide beginner level tech skills and help build up confidence in an area of your choice. What I thought was fantastic about these courses was how it was organised and rolled out. With MOOC Sprints, they were running over 4 weeks with 1 one-hour live session per week and after the Sprint ended, you had the opportunity to test your knowledge and experience real world problem solving with MOOC Challenges and receive a certificate of completion after passing the session quizzes. I experienced a variety of the introduction courses offered including coding, web development and solving problems with Python. As I was able to review what I learned at my own pace after classes, it wasn’t as overwhelming as I initially thought, and the course tutors were always available to contact if you needed extra help or guidance.

Having thoroughly enjoyed taking the first steps towards gaining some tech confidence, I am looking forward to developing the skills I’ve learnt from the introductory courses and progressing onto the next level. I think that the most important lesson I have taken away from this experience is to never be afraid of trying something new that is outside of your comfort zone. The coding world may initially seem scary and difficult to get into, especially if you hadn’t learned about it before. But with Code First Girls, they really are here to help guide and support us to achieve the best skillset we need for future exciting opportunities!

Take a look at this blogpost where you’ll find 5 reasons why you should take advantage of Aberystwyth University’s partnership with Code First Girls. To find out more information about all the opportunities available with Code First Girls, please visit their website.

Please note that Code First Girls is open to women and non-binary people. If you are not eligible to undertake the courses offered through Code First Girls, there are many other free opportunities available, including coding challenges and courses with CoderPad and GitHub in LinkedIn Learning.

Rock your LinkedIn Profile đŸ€˜đŸ»

ShĂąn Saunders Digital communication, collaboration and participation, Digital Identity and Wellbeing Leave a comment

Blogpost by ShĂąn Saunders (Digital Capabilities and Skills Development Coordinator)

As the end of the academic year approaches, you may be starting to think about job prospects and future careers and where to start with this journey. LinkedIn now offer “Rock your Profile” webinars to help you learn how to build an interesting profile that is appealing to your ideal audience as well highlighting key features and best practices for building an engaging profile. These webinars are available at different times of day, register now at: Rock Your Profile (linkedin.com).  

Aberystwyth University Careers service also offer reviews and advice on improving CV’s and LinkedIn profiles. You can access these services through in person drop-ins at Level D Hugh Owen Library during term time, the Careers team are also available via email at: careers@aber.ac.uk. Alternatively, the Careers team also conduct sessions on successfully building a CV and a LinkedIn profile, these sessions are advertised on the career’s portal: www.aber.ac.uk/ABERcareers. We also had a session about how to use LinkedIn at our Digital Skills Festival which you can access here: How to use LinkedIn – Digital Skills Festival 2023 (6 – 10 November) (aber.ac.uk). You can view further resources on LinkedIn through the videos below: 

Develop your AI Skills with hands-on practice in LinkedIn Learning đŸ‘©â€đŸ’»

WordPress User [sil12] Artificial Intelligence, Digital creation, problem-solving and innovation, Digital learning and development, LinkedIn Learning Leave a comment

Back in October 2023, we wrote about an exciting new partnership between LinkedIn Learning and CoderPad, which brought forth the addition of Code Challenges to LinkedIn Learning. These challenges are tailored to assist learners, from beginners to advanced, in developing their coding skills through interactive exercises and real-time feedback. You can revisit our previous blogpost on this collaboration here.

AI and Generative AI are swiftly becoming the cornerstones of innovation. To support your development in these skills, LinkedIn Learning has expanded its collection to include 73 courses with hands-on practice for AI and Generative AI skills. You can find all of these courses on this webpage or explore a selection of them below.

Beginner

Intermediate

Advanced

All students and staff have access to all courses on LinkedIn Learning, including those with hands-on practice, through your free Aberystwyth University LinkedIn Learning account. If you have any queries about LinkedIn Learning or accessing any of the content mentioned in this blogpost, please contact the Digital Skills Team (digi@aber.ac.uk), or come along with your questions to one of our weekly drop-in sessions!

Boost your productivity in MS Teams 💡 

WordPress User [sil12] Digital communication, collaboration and participation, Digital proficiency and productivity, Microsoft Support, Microsoft Teams Leave a comment

Blogpost by Sioned Llywelyn (Digital Skills Lead) 

As someone who uses Microsoft Teams every day for work, I’ve discovered a collection of useful keyboard shortcuts and tips that have helped me in navigating the platform more efficiently. Whether you’re a staff member jumping from one meeting to the next, or a student using MS Teams to collaborate on projects or attend virtual lectures, these tips should help you to make the most of MS Teams. 

Keyboard ShortcutDescription
Ctrl+Shift+O Turn off your camera 
Ctrl+Shift+M Mute your microphone 
Ctrl+K Create shorter hyperlinks 
Shift+Enter Start a new line in the chatbox without sending the message 
Summary of the key keyboard shortcuts mentioned in this blogpost

Turn off your camera quickly

There are times when you need to quickly turn off your video during a call, it may be that your bandwidth is limited or there are distractions behind you. Quickly toggle your camera on and off by using the Ctrl+Shift+O shortcut. 

Customise your hyperlinks

Instead of cluttering your messages with lengthy URLs, make use of the Ctrl+K shortcut. This shortcut allows you to customise the displayed text for your hyperlink, making your messages more concise!

Mute your microphone

Background noise can also disrupt meetings (I have two dogs that bark whenever someone rings the doorbell, so this is my most-used shortcut!) Use Ctrl+Shift+M to mute and unmute your microphone swiftly. 

Refine your search results

Teams has an useful search functionality, but sometimes it can yield too many results! Make the most of the available filters to refine your search and to save you time.

Start a new line in the chatbox without sending your message

Typing messages in Teams can be tricky, especially when you want to add line breaks without sending the incomplete message. Use Shift+Enter to start a new line in the chatbox without sending the message prematurely.

Make quick decisions with the polling feature

Do you need to gather opinions or make decisions quickly? If you’re looking to create a poll once you’ve started your meeting, Teams offers a built-in polling feature.

Please note: We suggest that you use Vevox, AU’s polling tool, if you’re looking to set up a poll in advance of your online meeting or session.

Mark messages as urgent or important

Do you want to send an important message on Teams and are worried that it will get lost within a stream of messages? To solve this issue, you can mark any messages as urgent or important in MS Teams.

Do you have any other shortcuts or other general tips when you’re using MS Teams? If so, we’d love to hear from you! Share your tips and shortcuts in the box below ⬇

DigiTip 28: How to add comments in collaborative documents online 📃

WordPress User [jpl11] Digital communication, collaboration and participation, DigiTips Leave a comment

Are you planning to work on a collaborative group project with your peers or do you want a co-worker to provide you with comments without permanently editing the document?

Today, we will look at how to add comments to collaborative documents that multiple people can edit. By utilising the comment function, others can understand your ideas behind any changes, ask any questions and offer alternatives without affecting the main document.

With the comment function, there are various features you can make the most of – replying to comments, reacting to comments, and resolving them through tracked changes.

Let’s have a look at the video below for a brief demonstration:

N.B. This video was recorded in Microsoft SharePoint. However, the process with SharePoint and OneDrive are very similar to each other.

To follow our DigiTips, subscribe to our Digital Skills Blog. Or alternatively, you can bookmark this webpage, where a new DigiTip will be added each week! 

Develop your Digital Communication Skills đŸ“±

WordPress User [sil12] Digital communication, collaboration and participation, Training Leave a comment

Want to learn how to improve your digital communication skills and especially how to use Instagram to promote your Business or Social Enterprise?

AberPreneurs, part of the University’s Careers Service, are running an exciting online event, Instagram for your Business/Social Enterprise â€“ with Kacie Morgan, on Wednesday 24 April (14:10-15:00). This session will be delivered online on MS Teams, and you can join here.

For any queries, please contact aberpreneurs@aber.ac.uk.

Learn to code FOR FREE with Code First Girls! ⚡

WordPress User [sil12] Code First Girls, Digital learning and development, Training Leave a comment

Have you ever wanted to learn how to code? Well now you can do so, for free, by taking full advantage of our partnership with Code First Girls! We’ve listed 5 reasons below why you should make the most of this wonderful opportunity.

Please note that Code First Girls is open to women and non-binary people. If you are not eligible to undertake the courses offered through Code First Girls, there are many other free opportunities available, including coding challenges and courses with CoderPad and GitHub in LinkedIn Learning.

Questions❓

If you have any questions about the courses available with Code First Girls, please contact them directly.

Read More

DigiTip 27: Save time by setting up recurring meetings in Microsoft Outlook 🔁

WordPress User [sil12] Digital proficiency and productivity, DigiTips, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Support Leave a comment

Whether you want to schedule weekly catch-ups with colleagues, bi-weekly project meetings, or monthly team meetings, knowing how to set these up using the recurring meetings function in Microsoft Outlook will save you a lot of time!

The below video demonstrates how to set up recurring meetings in the desktop app version of Outlook, but the process for setting these up on MS Teams or the web version of Outlook is very similar.

Once set up, your reoccurring meeting will now appear as a series in your calendar, and if you need to alter any details, you’ll always have the option of altering just a single occurrence or the whole series.

To follow our DigiTips, subscribe to our Digital Skills Blog. Or alternatively, you can bookmark this webpage, where a new DigiTip will be added each week!

A Juggling Act: Navigating Studies and Job Applications ⚖

Joel Williams [jow136] Digital Identity and Wellbeing, Student Digital Champions, Students Leave a comment

Blogpost by Joel Williams (Student Digital Champion)

Banner with Student Digital Champion

For many students, balancing studying for exams, completing coursework, and actively searching for employment opportunities can seem insurmountable. I have found it challenging to stay on top of my studies while trying to find relevant jobs and then completing page after page of applications. Enter platforms like Gradcracker and AberCareers. First introduced to me during the Digital Skills Festival, Gradcracker, like many similar sites, amalgamated many employment opportunities explicitly tailored to my skills. In this blog post, I hope to outline some of the approaches I used to help manage my studies whilst job hunting and signposting several resources available via the University.

Managing your time ⏰

One of the foremost challenges job-hunting students face is time management. With lectures, seminars, and assignments demanding their attention, carving out dedicated time for job applications can be challenging. Truthfully, I found the time required by each job application to be an excellent way to procrastinate on my dissertation, which helped me complete it quickly. However, as my third year continued and other assignments started to loom, I found the best way to stay on top of it all was to give myself an hour or two each week when I would only focus on job application. To meet my self-imposed time limit, I save the URL of any roles I’m interested in and if they are on Gradcracker, I make sure to shortlist them, making them easy to find and highlighting how long I have to apply for the role.

So Much Writing ✍

Another hurdle students encounter is the pressure to stand out in a highly competitive job market. Crafting a compelling CV, writing tailored cover letters, and preparing for interviews are all essential components of the job application process. However, balancing academic achievements and relevant work experience can take time and effort, especially for those juggling multiple commitments simultaneously. The most helpful resource I found when trying to update my CV was to use the daily drop-in sessions offered by the careers service. I found having another pair of eyes check over everything invaluable.

One of the sections of my CV I have always struggled to complete has always been the skills section. This is partially because it can be hard to know what is the most important to list and also because it can often be challenging to come up with a list of skills on the spot. To help complete these sections, I used a combination of module information and the Jisc Digital Discovery Tool, which I used to identify my digital proficiencies.

Example of a Jisc Digital Discovery Tool report

Polishing your Digital Presence 👣

One of the first steps I took early in the job application process was updating and polishing my LinkedIn profile. Spurred on by a session on How to use LinkedIn during the Digital Skills Festival, I revised much of my pre-existing profile and created something that I am now able to use for job applications.

Checking your digital footprint is an often overlooked element of applying for jobs in a digital age. My fellow Digital Champion Noel has written a handy blogpost exploring the steps you can take to protect your digital footprint and ensure that the public and employers can only see what you want them to. The Digital Skills Team have also curated a LinkedIn Learning collection on managing your digital identity.

Career Service 💬

If you’re looking for more specific advice, the careers service is the best people to speak to and details of how best to use this service, which is open to current students and post-graduates, can be found on their webpage.

Global Work from Home Day 🏡

ShĂąn Saunders Digital Identity and Wellbeing Leave a comment

Blogpost by ShĂąn Saunders (Digital Capabilities and Skills Development Coordinator)

Working from home for most people has now become the new normal with home offices now a staple of most households. Being able to work from home is a positive in many ways but it can also allow us to be too consumed by our screens as well as having to adapt to new ways of working. As today is global work from home day, we want to share our tips and tricks for being more successful with working from home.  

  1. Step away from the desk! 

As with working in any office, having regular breaks and stepping away from your computer is essential. This could be taking a break to make a drink, taking the time to stretch or even doing some desk yoga! You can view the below LinkedIn Learning courses and videos for some tips on taking breaks and stretching courses. 

  1. Is your desk set up for success?

Digital ergonomics is important both to help your productivity with feeling comfortable and happy with your space but it’s necessary for maintaining your physical health too! You can improve your digital ergonomics through making sure your at home office space is set up correctly, be aware of eye strain and making the needed adjustments where you can. You can learn more about digital ergonomics through the resources below: 

  1. Establish a Routine

Working from home is a great benefit, but it can be very easy to be consumed by work and lose your day which is why it is so important to establish a routine. This can include maintaining a consistent lunch break, having specific focus times on certain days and if you have recurring tasks, completing these on the same days. View the below videos and courses for tips on establishing a routine. 

  1. Perfect Online Meetings

Meeting virtually is now a requirement for anyone working remotely and with this has come about a new form of etiquette. It’s important to maintain professionalism while working from your home office. This can be having a virtual background, ensuring you have a headset of some form, joining the meetings early and being aware of whether your microphone or camera is on. You can learn more about best practice for online meetings with the resources below. 

  1. Stay connected

Although there are so many advantages and benefits to working from home, it can be isolating and difficult to maintain communication with fellow peers and so it’s highly important to stay connected. The best way to do this is to utilise online communication tools. This can be using Microsoft Teams or collaborative documents like Word online or SharePoint. You can learn more about the different types of method to stay connected below.