The QAA (2009:2) state that Personal Development Planning (PDP) ‘… is a structured and supported process undertaken by a learner to reflect upon their own learning, performance and/or achievement and to plan for their personal, educational and career development. It is an inclusive process, open to all learners, in all HE provision settings, and at all levels’.

QAA (2009) Personal development planning: guidance for institutional policy and practice in higher education. Available from: http://www.qaa.ac.uk/en/Publications/Documents/Personal-development-planning-guidance-for-institutional-policy-and-practice-in-higher-education.pdf [accessed 27/08/14]

PDP  is key to your own success, although you can get assistance along the way it’s down to you to bring all your experience and knowledge together so when it’s time to apply for that dream job, you’ll have the resources readily available so you can blow your own trumpet with ease and get yourself noticed.

ABOUT ME

• First name:
• Last name:

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Phone:
• Email:
• Twitter:
• LinkedIn:
• Facebook:

PROFILE INFORMATION

Give a brief introduction of:

• The course you are studying.
• Any voluntary work you are undertaking, for how long, and what you love about it.
• Any paid work you have had and what you have learnt from the experience: team work, customer service etc.
• Any achievements you have had to date: coaching qualifications, short courses, recognised awards.

MY PLAN – THE BIGGER PICTURE

In the initial stages of PDP it is imperative that you set achievable goals, and to identify what you have to do, and what help you will need if you are going to achieve them.

PDP is an opportunity to ask yourself big questions such as:- What do you want from life? What sort of person do you want to be? What would be your ideal job once graduating from University?
Don’t expect to answer these questions instantly. The process tends to work best if you think about your ambitions over time, seize every opportunity to practice the skills you need, and try out experiences to see if you like them.

It may help to undertake a SWOT analysis to identify your Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities & Threats. The following link provides great guidance: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newTMC_05_1.htm

It is therefore a good idea to construct a SMART action plan. The following link offers great guidance on goal setting: http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newHTE_90.htm. Make sure you have as much information as possible to help in your decision-making, and identify people you can talk to about your learning and development as you go along.

The following headings may help:

Objective to be achieved – what are you aiming to achieve?
Success criteria – how will you know when you have succeeded? What new knowledge will you have? How will you apply your new knowledge and how will you do things differently?
Actions – what do I need to do to achieve my objective?
Who – will be able to help me achieve my objective?
By when – will I have achieved my objective?
Impact and further action – what successes/challenges have I encountered working towards by objective. What have I achieved/learnt and how can I apply this to my development? What actions do I need to  build on my learning? Can I update by PDP/CV will new skills/achievements? Are there any further actions/objectives that I need to set?

This section allows you to put a plan in place, see what goals are achievable and what skill/experiences you need in place to achieve these goals.

Take one step at a time, plan to do things that are realistically achievable and build up gradually.

MY CV
Upload your CV.

What is a CV?

CV stands for curriculum vitae, which means a brief account of your career. CVs are used to explain to recruiters what you can do and what you have done, so a good CV looks forwards as well as accounts for what you did in the past.

A CV should present your knowledge, learning, skills and competencies in a positive, honest way. Despite what you might have seen on The Apprentice, falsifying information on a CV gets you nowhere. The Prospects website provides some useful guidance on how to write a CV – http://www.prospects.ac.uk/how_to_write_a_cv.htm

Video / Short Film

This section allows you to upload a short film you have produced. This could be part of your coursework or a hobby of yours. You could even upload a short film of yourself, talking about your passions, and goals. This could be a great way of you getting yourself know when you are applying for a job. You could tailor a short clip for a job application, introducing yourself and why you have applied for the position. First impressions are the most memorable ones!

Blog

Finally, think carefully about what exactly you’ve done. Keep a regular diary or blog. Reflect on specific important events or experiences and how you dealt with them. When you receive back assessed work, don’t dwell on the mark, but take time to think about the feedback. Keep asking questions – how could you have done things differently?