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Digital capabilities in Student Education at LUBS

Opportunities to develop your digital capabilities are embedded throughout your degree. This page explains what digital capabilities are, how you may recognise the learning experiences giving you the opportunity to develop these skills, and how to self-assess your own digital capabilities.

What are digital capabilities?

Photograph of a student working at a laptop in the Library wearing earphones

Digital capabilities are attitudes and skills which equip someone to live, learn, and work in a digital society. The digital landscape has changed and continues to do so at rapid pace, and digital competency is an essential requirement of most jobs you’ll apply for when you leave university.

To enable you to position yourself as a strong candidate when you enter the workplace, the six key skills that comprise the JISC Digital Capabilities framework are embedded throughout degree programmes at Leeds University Business School. Find how they are mapped to your degree programme by viewing your Degree Programme map.

You can learn more about the JISC Digital Capabilities framework further down this page.

What are the six skills?

Digital communication, collaboration and participation

The ability to communicate and collaborate constructively and professionally with peers through a variety of digital tools and networks in order to share ideas, to produce research, materials and resources, and to engage in online dialogue and debate.

Digital creation, problem-solving and innovation

The ability to use digital technology and techniques to create digital items (such as images, documents and mind maps), and the willingness to engage with new practices and perspectives to solve problems, make decisions and answer questions.

Digital identity and wellbeing

The ability to develop and manage a digital identity (or identities) across a range of platforms and media, and to look after your personal health, safety, relationships and work-life balance in digital settings.

Information, data and media literacies

The ability to find, evaluate, organise and share information across a variety of formats and media, ensuring the reliability and integrity both of the sources that you use and of the ideas that they help you to generate.

Digital learning and development

The ability to explore different ways of learning in digital spaces and with digital media, and to develop both an awareness of what works for you and a willingness to look for help online when you need it.

Digital proficiency and productivity

The ability to select, use, troubleshoot and adapt digital devices, networks, applications and services to achieve specific goals.

How to self-assess your digital skills

As a University of Leeds student you have access to the JISC Discovery Tool which will enable you to self-assess to identify where your strengths and areas for development are on the JISC Digital Capabilities Framework. The Tool also gives you access to broader support resources and opportunities to develop your digital skills at Leeds.

To learn more about Digital Capabilities at Leeds and use a self-assessment JISC Discovery Tool, visit the Leeds University Library website. You can also learn more about Digital Drop-ins for students working on digital projects and the new Library Makerspace.

What is the JISC Digital Capabilities Framework?

The Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) is a not-for-profit company that provides digital resources in support of Higher Education Institutions. JISC’s work on digital capabilities began in 2008, and that research led to the development of a six-element digital capability framework. It has been influential across the education sector in informing how we describe and understand what digital capabilities are.