University of Brighton Graduate Attributes

The University of Brighton Graduate Attributes are a set of qualities and characteristics that you will develop or build on, through the knowledge, skills and experience you’ll gain while you are a student at the University of Brighton.

We make sure that you get the chance to work on your own personal version of these attributes while you’re here, and encourage you to take responsibility for your development, both as part of your studies and through extracurricular activities and experiences. The Graduate Attributes are transferable beyond the particular discipline you are studying, so when you graduate, you’ll feel confident and ready to get the most out of your future.

We developed the University of Brighton Graduate Attributes through research with employers about what they want from a graduate, through talking to the lecturers on your course about what you learn and how transferable skills grow, and by talking to students who study here. When you apply for jobs or further study you will need to be able to reflect on what you can bring to an employer or university course (just like when you wrote your personal statement to apply for your current course).

Being able to refer to the attributes you’ve acquired alongside your degree will really help you. You will have already grown some of these attributes in your personal and professional life and your time at the University of Brighton will allow you to evolve them. There may be some of the attributes that you don’t feel so confident about, and that’s where your course team and the careers and employability team can help you.

A critical thinker

Suggested qualities

Able to see different points of view and make a reasoned decision or argument
Actively engaged in learning
Open minded, curious or questioning

Suggested skills

Research
Analysis of information
Decision making
Communicating a logical argument
Understanding links between ideas

An engaged global citizen

Suggested qualities

Aware of the world and their role within it
Open-minded, respecting and valuing diversity
Proactively engaged with the community: locally, nationally and globally

Suggested skills

Problem-solving
Making decisions
Communicating ideas
Collaborating with others
Curiosity

A solution-focused innovator

Suggested qualities

Able to identify a problem and find a solution to address it
Curious and imaginative, with a positive attitude
Enterprising in approach, with wider commercial awareness

Suggested skills

Creative thinking
Problem solving
Spotting and analysing opportunities to innovate
Implementing ideas
Managing projects

A confident communicator

Suggested qualities

Able to articulate opinions based on evidence and reasoning
Respectful of other people’s opinions and perspectives
Self-aware and in control

Suggested skills

Delivering presentations individually and in groups
Seeking and giving constructive feedback
Active listening
Networking

An inclusive collaborator

Suggested qualities

Inclusive when collaborating with others
Emotionally intelligent
Considerate and able to act and lead with empathy

Suggested skills

Recognising and analysing opportunities to collaborate
Identifying relevant stakeholders
Building relationships
Engaged participation in group situations

A resilient self-advocate

Suggested qualities

Positive in attitude, with a growth mindset
Interested in lifelong learning and self-development
Proactive in identifying and planning personal and career development opportunities

Suggested skills

Evaluating strengths and relevant work experience
Managing time
Managing wellbeing
Working independently
Self confidence
Able to make choices and decisions that have a positive impact

A creative and confident user of digital technologies

Suggested qualities

Able to choose digital technologies relevant to different tasks
Exploratory and experimental with new digital technologies
Up to date with new digital technologies as they evolve

Suggested skills

Using technology to find, interpret, evaluate, manage and share information and data
Using digital technologies for communication and collaboration
Working fluently across a range of tools, platforms and applications
Adopting and developing new practices with digital technologies
Creating new technologies to be used by others

Creative and confident user of digital technology

So how do we help you to develop these attributes?

We embed employability in the curriculum for all of our courses, which includes working with employers to provide different kinds of work-based learning for students, including workplace visits, placements, internships, and live briefs from employers.

Your lecturers will help you to recognise when you are working on something that particularly links to one of the University of Brighton Graduate Attributes, and you'll reflect on everything you do in your course to consider whether it is helping you to build confidence in your ability in one of the attributes. For example, if you are working with other students on a project, you should be becoming a more confident communicator and an inclusive collaborator. If you are working on solving a ‘real world’ problem, you will be becoming a more engaged global citizen and if you’re meeting deadlines and organising your time well you will be becoming a resilient self-advocate. Using the many digital systems that we use at the university to research, understand and present your work will also be helping you to be a creative and confident user of digital technologies.

The careers and employability team are also on hand from day one to help you recognise the attributes and experiences you already have, and help you to further develop your mindsets, behaviours and skills through extra activities outside of your course such as mentoring, volunteering, skills workshops and more.

We’re also working with our business and community partners to create opportunities for knowledge exchange between businesses, researchers, community groups, Alumni and students; valuable and enjoyable experiences that will help you in developing your own Graduate Attributes.

Go on a work placement

You may have the opportunity to undertake a work placement. These can take various forms such as:

a full year's paid placement as part of a sandwich course
a four-to-six-week credit-bearing placement module that forms part of your course
an individually-arranged volunteering placement, in addition to your course, set up by the employability and careers service with a relevant organisation

Our placement teams act as links between employers and students, providing information about placements and arranging opportunities for interviews.

Two students inside a meeting booth at a workplace

Students Sarah Wilkinson (L) and Eleanor Bowley (R) on placements at Oracle in Reading.

Why do a placement?

Gain valuable opportunities to build your confidence, extend your skills and develop new ones
Gain knowledge of the professional environment
Apply your theoretical knowledge to real-world situations
Develop specific professional and personal skills
Make contacts in your chosen industry
Gain transferable work experience and skills such as communication and team working.

Find out more about placements