#skills taxonomy

[iysskillstechsblog]

How can skill based recruitment benefit companies

Companies are slowly making their hiring process more efficient to employ the best candidates for different roles. The skills taxonomy can be considered as a very useful approach which enables the companies to recruit the employees with those talents that are specifically required for a given job title. This skill based hiring offers a number of benefits to the organizations. Hence, it is highly recommended that all organizations shift to this hiring process so that the companies eventually become filled with the best human capital. Apart from that, it will also enable the deserving employees to get hired, instead of selecting employees based on networks and connections.

Benefits offered by skill based recruitment

To understand the process of recruitment based on skill sets, we must take a look at the different benefits offered by this approach.

1. Enhanced Performance

By using a skill based approach, the recruiters will be able to give each employee the perfect job responsibility. As a result, they will be able to showcase their best performance. In this recruitment technique, the employees are perfectly matched with a given job title, according to the skill sets that they possess. So, they will be able to confidently carry out all the responsibilities, and give their best!

2. Better Talent Acquisition

If talent acquisition is based on qualifications, and years of experience alone, then it will not be possible to identify the best candidates. But, by establishing skill sets as the main criteria of recruitment, the companies will be able to identify the best candidates for a given role.

3. Enables Diversity and Inclusion

Often people from certain communities are intentionally avoided during interviews, even if they possess the necessary skills set. This often makes the deserving candidates miss important job opportunities. These concerns can be addressed with the help of a skill based approach while recruiting candidates.

4. Promote Innovation in The Firm

When the authorities are using the skill based approach while hiring employees, they will be able to accumulate people with different kinds of skill sets, educational background, and experiences. This in turn will promote different kinds of innovations in the organization.

5. Continuous Learning Environment

This approach of recruitment will motivate the employees to sharpen their existing skills, and knowledge. Additionally, it will also encourage the employees to learn the skills that they lack.

How to adopt the skill based approach?

After going through the benefits of skill based recruiting methods, many organizations might want to shift to this approach. To do so, they can consider taking the valuable guidance of IYS Skills Tech. For more information regarding this recruitment method, you must visit their official website.

Conclusion

We have discussed in detail about the skill based method of recruitment, andskills taxonomy. At IYS Skills Tech, you will be able to get exceptional skills data solutions. This is accomplished by the integration of IYS Skills Tech's expertise and Artificial Intelligence. So, shift towards this recruitment approach to enhance the growth and well being of your organization.

[moiled-spilk]

man. you don’t really know if it’s a baby axolotl or a baby newt until it grows up

[pantestudines]

Its been 2.5 hours since i woke up and ive been rejected from grad school and offered a job interview (but maybe mistakenly for the wrong job? its unclear). I have had the next ~6months just ripple and change before my eyes multiple times. Its wild that I still have to like, go to work and make frosty's today

[captaingimpy]

Redefining the Term “Casual” in Fighting Games: A Behavioral Framework

Yo dudes! I just wanted to share something I wrote in response to a YouTube video. I found that I’ll include here. The short version is that the video was about perception of self in the context of competitive fighting games, and how are you see other people relative to your own skill bracket. I fundamentally disagree with the idea that these things cannot be Pinned logically and that it’s all a…

[prokopetz]

An incomplete taxonomy of esoteric texts:

This text is discussing esoteric subject matter

This text is being deliberately obscure because its author knows they don't have a coherent thesis and they're blowing smoke

This text is written in earnest, but its author has very poor communication skills

This text's translator has misunderstood something that was meant completely literally as a complex metaphor

This text is actually perfectly straightforward in its native language, but every available translation fucking sucks

[braydenwilliamsblog]

Skills Taxonomy

Take a look at our extensive Skills Taxonomy for an organised method of classifying and comprehending skill sets. Come see us to easily expedite the process of assessing your skills inventory.

Visit here: https://iysskillstech.com/skills-taxonomy-and-profiler

[rahul-shl]

Skills-Based Organizations, Skills Taxonomy, skills of the future

[lowkeiloki]

my brain woke me up at 7am with the words "fairy taxonomy" and would not let me know peace until i put it together

think it turned out quite nice if only there was a way to translate this skill in any productive way

[transmutationisms]

what are your thoughts on attachment theory? even before getting into antipsychiatry i always struggled with the idea that there is 3 Fucked Up ways to attach in relationships and one Good, Right way… i don’t think i really know anyone who would fit the secure attachment model

no it's silly. obviously freud et al weren't entirely off base to say that childhood experiences have certain formative psychological effects lol but even in those early formulations you can see this tendency toward elevating the importance of early experience to the point where it eventually becomes this psychological caricature of a singular unfixable trauma wound that marks you forever. it does a lot of the rehabilitative work of psychiatry in the sense that your misery is now configured as arising solely from past experience in the closed system of the family: there's no political dimension to the analysis, only an interpersonal injury that you compulsively recreate because you have been individually affected by it. additionally the attachment theory stuff has more than a passing association with other psychiatric discourses that assume the presence of originary trauma solely as an ad hoc explanation for a person's current problems, eg also the memory wars stuff has this going on. yknow your all-explaining past must be uncovered by a skilled professional only and then you enter into a healing relationship with this person because their professional qualifications are the only way you can Process this horrible event that you have no memory of to even mull over by yourself because you were an infant. and btw there are three discrete human personality types but this time we're definitely sure the taxonomy tracks

[lichenaday]

how. do i become a lichenologist. its a need not a want i promise

Look for schools that have lichenologists

Go to that school

Approach said lichenologists at school and tell them you want to work for them. They will likely be very excited to hear this

Learn skills related to field work, lab work, systematics and taxonomy, and scientific reading/writing

Read papers on lichenology

Find the thing that gets you really excited in the field and talk to everyone about it. Become a passionate zealot for your thing. Follow your thing wherever to takes you, and be prepared for this thing to lead you to new things

Be an absolute annoyance to everyone until the let you be what you want to be because you deserve it if you are passionate enough to go for it

[iysskillstechsblog]

4+ Advantages of Adopting Skill-Based Training

Traditional training approaches aim to educate employees regarding basic concepts, like processes, products, and important policies. Such a generalized training approach tends to ignore the individual requirements of employees. Until and unless a personalized training approach is adopted, companies will not be able to maximize their productivity. This can be achieved with the help of a good competency management system. This system enables authorities to adopt a training approach that is based on skills gaps in the company. To implement this system in your firm, and enjoy the benefits that it offers, get in touch with the highly efficient team of IYS Skills Tech. Keep on reading to discover the major advantages of implementing a training approach based on skills.

Adopt Skill-Based Training Approach to Enjoy These Advantages

This is an excellent training strategy that will offer employees different skills and abilities that are crucial for executing the responsibilities of their job successfully. Discussed below are some of the main advantages offered by this training approach.

1. Thrive In the Dynamic Business Environment

One of the main advantages offered by skill-based training initiatives is that they offer companies the ability to thrive in the highly competitive business domain. All industries are evolving at a rapid pace, and to overcome this competition, acquiring new and efficient skills is important. When employees are offered training based on skills, they will gather the ability to adapt to changes in the market, technologies, and processes efficiently.

2. Higher Retention Rate Is Observed

If the organization invests in the development of employees, they will feel valued, and this can lead to better job satisfaction. Employees will feel motivated and engaged. This will eventually lead to better retention rates.

3. Lowers The Need For Supervision

Another prominent benefit of adopting skill-based training initiatives is that it lowers the need for supervision to a significant extent. When employees are trained in different skills, and skills gaps are bridged properly, they will be able to execute the assigned responsibilities correctly. Thus, they will not require much direct supervision, and authorities will be able to focus on other areas that need improvement.

4. Increase In Productivity of The Organization

Through training approaches based on skills, organizations will be able to transform their employees into valuable assets. Such an efficient workforce will offer the organization the ability to achieve its objectives easily. This will lead to an increase in the productivity of the organization.

5. Develops A Culture of Continuous Learning

Training strategies that are based on skills will also help in fostering a culture of continuous learning within the company. The employees will get access to numerous personal and professional growth opportunities. This will create a positive work environment within the firm.

Conclusion

We have enumerated 4+ advantages of adopting a training approach based on skills. These training approaches will nurture the critical thinking abilities of employees, and enhance their confidence. Organizations that intend to adopt a competency management system, and training approaches based on skills can get in contact with the renowned firm IYS Skills Tech.

[the-joy-of-knowledge]

Bloom's Taxonomy: A 6 step guide to improve your learning

I am so excited to be back!!! I hope you all enjoy this because it has been helpful in my self-development journey.

Remember: When reading a paragraph, a chapter or even a book. It is important to know why you are reading it and if you were assigned this reading, you need to know what is expected of you. With his in mind, endeavor to read, retain and recall the information. This looks like take a pauses to recall what you have learned. You will not remember exactly what you read but you will notice some gaps, so back to you reading and figure what the missing parts.

Understand: Try to make meaning of what you have remembered. Explain it to yourself, write it in simpler terms, ask yourself questions on this. if you memorized the definition of photosynthesis as "the process by which plants and certain bacteria use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to create oxygen and sugar (glucose). Try to describe this definition to a sibling or someone who has no idea what it means. if possible watch a video that visually describes the process. Understanding goes beyond regurgitating. Because you can only begin to apply what you have learned only when you understand. It is also at this point that you will encounter difficulties especially if the subject is dense and complicated. Use the resources at your disposal and ask questions.

Apply: Use what you know already about the subject in this new context. Back to my photosynthesis example, what do you already know already and pose that as a question. Does photosynthesis have anything to do with the color of leaves? If it needs sunshine, then what happens when there is barely any sun? Let's try this for a subject as esoteric as physics. "Electromagnetism is the physical interaction among electric charges, magnetic moments, and electromagnetic fields." I do not know enough about electromagnetism but I know that Tesla is an electric car. Wouldn't it be fun to quickly google whether electromagnetism is applied to Tesla's engineering? This step is crucial because you are using a familiar object in an unfamiliar territory. (This is very simplified and studying physics isn't as easy as I portray it. This is only a guide )

Analyze: When analyzing, you want to explore the similarities and differences you have noticed in your readings. How do two seemingly different authors give a unique perspective to the subject you are reading? Can you categorize which information is relevant or not? Can you organize your thoughts and ideas into relevance parts, assuming you'd have to one day share what you have learned? When contradictions can you spot? What outliers exist in some the data you have analyzed, and can you come up with some hypothetical answers?

Evaluate: This is the time to look at two differing sources to support your argument. It is also the time to build the skill of critically reading a book or an article to figure out the author's main idea and evaluate their supporting arguments. Now, this sounds very academic but you can do this even when you are reading a novel and you want to get a grasp of life in that time period. Pay attention to the events, this will give you an idea of the cultural and political climate of that time period. You further may your own judgement. For instance "I think character A in book X was married off as a 14 year old because mother's were accustomed to get the their daughter ready for marriage once the hit puberty in X country."

Create: This is the right time to use all you have learned to create something new. Perhaps a personal philosophy? An article explaining why you think ketchup is the best invention of the 19th century? By creating, you also go through the process of self evaluation. You ask yourself "did I really learn enough?" Often times we get stuck trying to find the perfect thing to say, the right topic to discuss, the right response to give your professor, or the right book to right. Often times, the right creation is anything that you found interesting. it is you ability to frame that interest of yours that sets you apart and inevitably brings you both success and critiques. Keep creating in your own way.

Enjoy!!!

[tagamantra]

one thing i really like about buddhism--particularly mahayana buddhism--is that it understands context, so in my mind it's a very "human" religion. mahayana doesn't tell you to live up to impossible standards but rather, to actually attain what was once thought impossible through whatever means you have. by any means necessary is very applicable to mahayana buddhism.

in the lotus sutra, the buddha states something along the lines of "if a person needs an arhat to be saved, i will appear in the form of an arhat" and proceeds to list down several other forms they might take to save someone, right down to "if they need a common person to be saved, then i will appear in the form of a common person." now, buddhism has been soteriological from the start (it's all about emancipation from the wheel of rebirth after all) but that sutra passage only really served to highlight the major message of the entire sutra: the use of skillful means.

so to me this means buddhism accepts contexts. it doesn't require you to do 180,000 prostrations, it doesn't require you to be a perfect peerless meditative god, it doesn't require you anything that you cannot do at all. it doesn't matter: you will become a buddha all the same. that last bit makes it even better: since in buddhism emancipation means becoming a buddha, when sakyamuni "saves" you he only really supercharges your enlightenment so you can get to it easier, or if another buddha saves you (like amitabha) he whisks you off to his pure land sukhavati so that you can focus a thousand kalpas on just enlightenment without having to be hungry, thirsty, or oppressed.

the majority buddhism in my country is mahayana--it used to be some form of esoteric buddhism during the classical period but that has long since vanished away. though the fact that there has been avalokitesvara images found somewhere in batangas makes it a very spiritual thought to become a buddhist in a country that has partial buddhist roots.

it's mahayana because the buddhism that was brought back here during/after colonization was chinese buddhism. which is dominated by amitabha/pure land buddhism. now one of the most important deities/bodhisattvas in chinese buddhism is guanyin 觀音 (bodhisattva of compassion, who is a strange sinicized version of avalokitesvara). you'll still find her statues in the philippines, especially in parts most concentrated with chinese immmigrants. in one corner of binondo you will see a street shrine with guanyin, mother mary, and jesus christ beside each other, and with passersby offering incense to all three of them.

so since guanyin (who, by the way, is sometimes syncretized to essentially be "chinese mama mary" because religion in religious countries is very bumfuck evades taxonomy) is the most popular bodhisattva in the PH, when tibetan lamas arrived here to teach vajrayana, they adapted a lot of chenrezig rituals even though chenrezig isn't really overtly huge in tibetan buddhism. so now when you go to vajrayana pujas in manila, they almost always have some semblance of chenrezig invocation, and its common to have chenrezig pujas.

another upaya-kaushalya thing i noticed is that buddhism doesn't really do like mass every sunday. but since filipinos have been doing sunday mass for around 300 years now they adapted and now we have sunday pujas because the common filipino expects some sort of religious commitment on sunday

i think buddhism could be a huge boon to socialist movements. cutting through the ego, emphasis on emptiness (that is, nothing has inherent nature, which is essentially mystical materialism), and an emphasis on a sort of helping each other to gain merit would really benefit everyone. especially since unlike christianity they don't force other local religions or local people to change for them, but rather, they retrofit themselves into the local space, adopting the principle of skillful means to help everyone realize their buddhahood.

[solarissttee]

NEATH THE GROVE IS A HEART .ᐟ

SYNOPSIS : when you find yourself unable to concentrate on your training, lancelot makes sure that you know he’s always there to help! ft. percy platoon.

CONTAINS . . . 1.5k ; lancelot x fem!reader (black coded) ; fluff, lancelot wants that cookie so effing bad, post-wallnack arc, use of pet names (pretty/pretty girl, sweets, etc), lancelot’s amazing teaching skills.

a sharp sigh falls from your lips, frustration etching itself onto your features. you huff out in displeasure, sitting against the floor, scribbling something into your  notebook. lancelot watches you with amusement.

“having issues there, sweets?” he mused, crouching down next to you, smiling fondly at you. 

your nose scrunched and eyebrows furrow deeply making you look like a cute bunny to him. he pinched your cheeks, lightly gripping the skin between his forefinger and thumb. 

“don’t frown like that. your face will get stuck.”

you hold back rolling your eyes at him, knowing that he doesn’t tolerate that level of sass— matter of fact, he would give it right back; he’s petty like that. 

“yes, i’m having a whole lot of trouble and I need to concentrate. you’re distracting me.”

“seems to me that you’re already distracted, sweets,” he plops down next to you. “you can always come to me for advice, you know? i’m training you guys for a reason,” he nudged his head over to the rest of your friends that were working on the “assignments” he’d given them. 

it’s been about a little over a week since you guys had come down to the demon realm, and although most demons seemed to be pretty hostile (towards tristan more so than the rest of you), they were fairly hospitable and not that bad to be around even despite everyone’s differences. 

in that time, lancelot had taken it upon himself to train you and the rest of the percival platoon; something about how all of your skill levels are mediocre and need to be improved. rude, but true.

“i know that you want to help, but i need to do this on my own…” you mutter, staring at the plant in front of you. 

lancelot had suggested you expand your horizons with the plants that you control so that they aren’t limited to just the ones in the human realm. he occasionally brought you plants from the fairy realm to help you out and thought that being here in the demon realm who give you something new to try your hand on.

 

“we’re a team, you don’t have to do this alone.” 

you wince when he flicked your forehead, but he then soothed it with his thumb, leaning in close. “I believe in you, sweets. but if you’re having trouble, then tell me. let me help you.”

“alright… i’ve not been able to get the stupid fucking plant to respond to me at all. i’m so lost, lance..”

he frowns at your downtrodden expression, tilting his head back in thought. “say, how do you normally get plants to obey you?”

“what?”

“you’re quite proficient with human botany, and you’re not that bad when it comes to fairy ones either. but it seems that you’ve reached a stump here. do you know why that is?”

“no, lance.. i don’t. if i did know, i wouldn’t be in this situation.”

“alright. the issue here is that you’re viewing the plant as a completely separate entity from you. do you remember what i first told you when we started to practice with plants from the fairy realm?”

in all honesty, he had gone on a thirty minute lecture about how you needed to know the plant inside and out; it’s anatomy, physiology, taxonomy, ecology, and other studies of plants. he went as far as borrowing books from hendrickson just for you to study with. thank the stars that nasiens was already on board the team, he was the most helpful when it came to helping you properly absorb all that information. 

“you told me that i need to understand the plant on a personal level..”

“yes, i did say that, but there’s something else that i’d told you. can you remember, pretty?”

you pause, racking your brain. after a solid five minutes of your mind drawing blank, you shake your head in defeat. 

he sighs but smiles softly. “you need to view the plant as an extension of yourself rather than something that’s separate from you. you have the ability to manipulate and conjure plants, but you’re limiting yourself. feel the plant, try to understand it and communicate with it. resonate with it.”

you have to admit, he has a point. you sit up on your knees, and shuffle closer towards the demonic plant. it was various shades of blue with dramatic spiral patterns that seemed quite fantastical and befitting for a plant species of another world. you reach out to touch it, closing your eyes to get familiar with it. 

lancelot watches you with a keen gaze, his eyes softening ever so slightly as his pupils dilate just a bit. for a moment, time seems to halt around him and you, the silence that encompasses you both is comfortable. 

five minutes pass, then ten, and suddenly it’s been over an hour. during that time, lancelot had gone over to help donny and nasiens with their training, leaving you by yourself.

you feel yourself growing restless and frustrated. you’re out of your element here but there isn’t anything you can really do about it. lancelot is right in his belief to push your limits; having various species of plants answer to you would be advantageous during fights, especially now that arthur and his chaos knights have been making several appearances lately. 

your frustration seems to be boiling over. your things ache, your back is stiff and your eyelid has been twitching nonstop for the past twenty minutes which is pissing you off even more. “for fuck’s sake! i can’t take this anymore!” 

lancelot and the others look over to you in worry. they had sensed your growing agitation but you seemed to be getting a little too worked up. 

lancelot, ever so sweet, is the first to be at your side. he’s rubbing your back gently and reassuring you softly that you’re doing okay. your eyes brim with tears of frustration which you desperately try to wipe away. 

seeing your distress, he cups your face within his palms firmly. “hey, look at me. look into my eyes, pretty girl.”

when your gaze meets his, he thumbs at your eyes, brushing away the stray tears that had fallen down your cheeks. 

“you’re alright.. you’re okay,” he carefully shushes you, squeezing your face slightly. 

“this is so frustrating..” you lean into his touch, letting him wrap his arms around you and pull you into his chest. he smells faintly of lemon, the citrus smell bringing you comfort like a cool drink on a hot summer day. 

“shh.. i know, sweets..”

“this dumb fucking plant hasn’t responded to me and it’s been over an hour! i’ve done everything you told me to and yet—!”

you throw your hands up in exasperation and it was at that moment that a surge of emotion magic erupts. the plant that sat not too far away from you, as well as every other plant within a 5 mile radius had now multiplied around the both of you. 

“what the—“

the both of you sit there in stunned silence before percival breaks it.

 

“woah!!! that’s so cool! there’s so many of them!”

you look around at what you’d just done in disbelief then up at lancelot who was already gazing at you with a smile. 

“see, you’re doing good like i said you are.”

you huff out a sigh, touching the plants that sprouted. their leaves twitch and seemingly reach out to meet your palm. you raise your hand, palm facing a good distance away from you as you beckon forth a flower. numerous vines swarm towards you, and loom around as if waiting for an instruction. 

“show off,” lancelot murmured softly, pressing a kiss to your cheek before letting his arms drop from around you, one of them however rests on your hip, squeezing ever so slightly. 

not too far off, you see nasiens examining the flowers and vines with percival at his side while donny was running away from a few of them that had gained sentience and began to chase him around. anne’s boisterous laugh was heard as she watched struggle. in short, everything had turned chaotic. 

lancelot deadpans and gets up, brushing off his clothes before holding his hand to you. “i think we should call it wraps for today. what do you say, sweets?”

you take his hand, letting him pull you onto your feet, his hands resting on your waist to stabilize you. 

“yeah.. that’s a good idea..”

“A LITTLE HELP HERE WOULD BE GREAT, LOVEBIRDS!!” donny yelled over to you, jumping to evade getting smacked in the face by a vine. 

“how did you manage to even piss them off?” you raise a brow, your hand raised in a placating gesture, telling the plants to stop. they leave him alone and drop to the ground. 

“i didn’t think they would be sentient!”

lancelot shakes his head at donny’s and the rest’s antics; though as exasperated as he might try to act, you know that he wouldn’t trade you guys for the world. 

“c’mon, training’s over! back inside!” he yells over, already guiding you into the demon king’s palace to call it a day.

anne, donny, nasiens and percy jog after you guys, all talking amongst themselves about something stupid, to which you find yourself smiling. 

yeah, you muse, this is nice.

© solarissttee all rights reserved. do not repost, edit, copy, translate or plagiarise my works.

[becausegoodheroesdeservekidneys]

Prynhawn da Elanor,

I'm a student in the US currently applying to universities for next year, and I have a couple of questions about Welsh universities if you have the time. I'm looking at both schools in the US and one in Wales (I managed to visit over the summer and it seemed great, loved the town and the university, and the degree that I'm interested in is very solid there), and the teaching style/expectations of students are an unknown factor. I've been taking college classes while still in highschool so I'm familiar with college-level instruction in the states, and it's not ideal for what I'm interested in studying. For example, at one of the schools I visited that is supposed to be a decent research university, the faculty were surprised that I had questions about research as an undergrad, and according to current students, the hardest part of their studies were quizzes on botanical taxonomy. So, I'm curious, what are the general academic expectations for students (especially in ecology or wildlife biology-related courses)? It seems like assessments are more practical or long-form and less quiz/multiple choice.

This got long-winded, so my apologies, and thank you for your time!

Shwmae! Happy to answer.

SO, I shall caveat this with saying that I don't really understand how higher education works in the US; it's a very different system to the UK in many ways. I'm therefore not entirely sure how to explain the exact differences. So, I'll just tell you about how it works over here rather than trying to do a comparison, if that makes sense? It means some of this will definitely feel like Water Is Wet stuff, but hopefully there'll be an exact answer in there that you can extract. Also, if you're comfortable doing so (and want to), I'm happy to talk over DM if you want slightly more specific advice involving you revealing details that otherwise might doxx you.

(Also second point, because I have danced this dance before and I know what Some Of You Lot are like when my posts start gaining traction beyond my circle of followers: in places where I do explain something that's different between the two systems, I am not saying one is better or worse than the other. Don't be a cunt about this. Work on your defensiveness and ego in your own time. I'm too busy and important for your feelings.)

Third point: I'm snipping this for length. On with the answer!

So, degrees over here are fairly fixed in terms of content and duration. Some offer a specific, set array of modules that make up the degree; others have essential core modules, and then you can choose from a small number of options until you get the required credits. But part of choosing the course for you over here is looking at the modules that make up the degree to make sure you're getting the exact focus you want; the one I teach on, for example, has a focus on practically applying environmental science, with the result that it has a very high post-graduation employment rate across a variety of environmental disciplines. Others might focus more on human geography, or environmental engineering, or climate science, or whatever else.

The reason for this is the quality assurance system in the UK. Courses have to be validated as being the right quality in terms of content, level of study, assessment practices, etc. Let's say you get a BSc from UWTSD in Environment, Sustainability and Climate Change; that comes with a quality assurance for a future employer that you have learned a specific set of skills, a specific knowledge bank, and are capable of using both in a specific way. There shouldn't be a risk, for example, that they hired someone from the same course the year before who had the same qualification as you, but turned out to not understand the dynamic processes behind sand dunes and couldn't write an official report to save their life, meaning you get passed over for the job the following year because they can't trust that your education actually means anything; if both of you have the same qualification, then the course should be meeting sufficient quality standards to ensure that you both therefore have the same knowledge and skillset.

So that's point one!

Where this works in your favour is point two: assessment. Assessment is also rigidly quality-checked, but it means you can ask a course director and immediately get an outline of what the assessment procedures are (not the precise assessment tasks, obviously; but, report vs exam vs lab practical etc will be known).

But also, yes, assessment in the UK is extremely rarely what I understand to be 'quizzes' in the US, and extremely rarely multiple choice. Rightly or wrongly, there is a definite perception in academic circles over here - even at high school level, much less university - that a multiple choice quiz is too easy to pass by guessing, and they're very looked down on as a method to assess learning.

What you'll have instead varies between modules and courses, but I can give you an idea with a couple of mine:

Level 4: Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services

No exams: two reports based on practical field/lab work, both worth 50% of the final mark

First: dissect owl pellets in the lab from two sites. Evaluate what the findings mean for the biodiversity on each site, and suggest some future site management prescriptions. 2000 words.

Second: fieldtrip to nearby woods to take allometric tree measurements and calculate carbon sequestration. Evaluate the ecosystem service provided by the woodland, and comment on site management and conservation. 2000 words.

Level 5: Coastal, Marine and Wildlife Conservation

One assignment, one exam, each worth 50% of the final mark

Assignment: Ramsey Island has far less biodiversity than neighbours like Skomer, Grassholm, etc. Research why, what was done to fix it, how well it's recovered, and suggest what should be done in the future to aid further recovery. 2500 words.

Exam: First half is a selection of short form questions to test baseline knowledge. Second half is a 50 mark essay question; choice of two topics to answer.

Level 6: Habitat Management and Building Resilience

No exams: two assignments, one before Christmas worth 30% of the mark, one in May worth 70%

First: choose a species reintroduction project of your choice, and find the habitat feasibility study carried out for it. Critique that habitat feasibility study. Put your findings into an academic poster and present it. 15 mins.

Second: using teachings from across the year, produce a habitat management plan for a site of your choosing. You need to actually visit and assess your site. 3500 words.

(L4, 5 and 6: first, second and final year of undergrad)

The idea in each case is not just to test knowledge; it's to test applied knowledge, and to teach real-world skills needed in the industry after you graduate. If you go into land management, for example, the ability to guess the right answers based on the multiple choice pattern is useless; the ability to assess a site and write up a management plan for it, on the other hand, is literally the job you're hired to do.

So, as far as research is concerned... if you mean carrying out your own research on a topic of your own choosing, the main place that happens is your dissertation in third year. But, you can start that earlier if you want. In our department, we also encourage and support any independent research a student may choose to do, even if they don't end up using it for their degree directly.

If you mean general research skills, though, those are vital to every assignment. If you only repeat back whatever papers or knowledge the lecturers have given you, and don't research independently, you will barely scrape a pass. We actively push you to learn those skills.

And then lastly, expectations for students! In higer ed, you are now an adult, and you are choosing to be here: this means that the expectation is that you're meeting the lecturers halfway, as it were. It's a mistake a lot of new students make, if they've come straight from high school - uni is just The Next Thing to do, but to them it's basically like school, so the teachers have to keep trying to teach them even if the student barely shows up or makes any effort.

But that is not so! They are no longer pupils, and I am not a teacher.

If I say to a class "Look up these papers and be familiar with the arguments before next session because we're going to have a seminar", and then someone doesn't bother because "Whoops I went out drinking and forgot to do my homework teehee", then they can get out. They are adults paying for a particular service. I have offered that service. If they think of it as homework and choose not to do it because they wanted to go out clubbing instead, then... okay. That's the choice they can make. But the consequence is, I'm not chasing after them, because I'm not a teacher, and that's not my job. Now they aren't having that session. This will have a knock-on effect for their understanding of the topic; but that's the choice they made.

(Again, before the Pissing On The Poor crowd arises: I am, very obviously, not talking about students who have other struggles that impact their academic performance. I am, very literally and clearly, talking about the 18-year-old school leavers who are still in the school mindset, and think of missing lectures as 'skiving', and on a lizard brain level think there won't be consequences to that because so far in their life, education systems have not been allowed to fail them for that behaviour.)

So, basically... you're expected to want to learn and improve, and to put the work in to do that. Not to just be there to get the degree, but to be there to learn. Adult education is collaborative between lecturer and student. We guide you, but it's your journey to take.

Anyway! I hope that is at all useful. Let me know if you want clarification on anything, or have any other questions!

[koegama]

I'm collecting website images, so I can start talking about Aether effects on some of the sophonts in an easier way

Tajira false flora aka their hair. False aether made structures that mimic the "flora" (not exactly flora but I think if I tried to specify taxonomy I'd die) around them. Water based organisms are more common but there's some guys out there with grasses, bushes and random tree leaves/vines growing out of them too. Functions sorta like that plant species that can copy the shape and structure of other plants, but it doesn't rot or decay like living matter does. It's more like a very very big and specialized hair folicle.

Once the shape is decided, the only way to change is to remove every single growth and influence it to look like another plant. Not even confirmed to work, sometimes your Aether will just use some random plant you saw 3 years ago instead. You're better of styling it by trimming, dying, and manual shape changes.

Growth pattern can vary. On the left is all the possible root areas of their hair, but that doesn't mean it'll grow like that. A common pattern is a head-neck growth, bare back and tail growth. Some grow it everywhere, some have patchy spots, some may have hormonal issues that cause them to have no growth/a bald look (or they can just manually shave it for aethetics).

Another Aether quirk, Luminae have something called Aether shedding. Their aether stores never really stop production and it can build up, so it gets released near secretion areas such as the neck and tail. Luminaes natural aether is igazo, and the most common byproduct is light particles. There's speculation that those exist to be used to localize themselves in darker areas with ease, but another less common byproduct of igazo aether is actually shadow particles, which puts this theory to test. Is shadow particles a recessive trait, a mutation, or does it have a different function?

Luminae who learned other aether skills may have different byproducts, and sometimes they can overlap. Overlapping can be a sign that you're hemorraging Aether though, and can weak your systems.