Times are changing. The kind of graduate that was needed a 100 years ago was very different from the one needed today.

In fact, a graduate that the industry will need in 10 years’ time will be different from the one needed today. This means that just as universities ought to be dynamic in their offering to the student, the graduates too need to constantly scan the environment in order to remain relevant, useful and productive.

In this piece, we will try to scan the environment and filter out the major elements of what industry needs from a graduate of the 21st century in general and a graduate of today in particular. Five things come to mind. First is entrepreneurial skills.

Globally, the world population is projected to cross the 8 bn people mark mid-November this year. Locally, the population of Malawi has just recently crossed the 20 million people milestone.

As a result of this great population growth rate, there is scramble for resources both at home and around the globe. Those with entrepreneurial skills will excel in this new dispensation and world order.

Graduates who have entrepreneurial skills will be nimble, agile and efficient. This means that with little resources, they will do more. This means that such graduates will be able to manage struggling organisations by turning them around and making them do more with less and thereby attracting a lot of interest, support and partnerships. They will resuscitate dying entities and grow new departments, structures and organisations.

Secondly, the modern graduate needs digital skills. Digital not as in being a computer geek, a system programmer or an engineer but simply one who fully understands, embraces and leverages the power of digitisation in whatever they do—be it in health, education, social work, legal profession or even environment.

The universal fact of the matter is that we live in a digital era. You need to identify the problems in your space as a graduate and think of what digital solutions can help solve those problems—at least at vision, strategy or concept level. The technicalities can always be done by the specialists.

Thirdly, the portrait of the 21st century graduate points to one who is an avid continuous learning student. Learning never stops. With this ever evolving world, a good graduate has to continue reading, researching and adding to the body of knowledge in one form or another. Knowledge is power. Those who know more rule the world. Those who know more, are better equipped to survive changing times.

Above all, the 21st century graduate needs to accept that he or she is by default a leader. Malawi has 20 million citizens and yet we just have a few dozens of graduates. This means that you belong to a tiny proportion of the top category of the population. Many below you will look to you for guidance, for support and for help. You need to lead them.

To lead people, you will need good soft skills above and beyond your academic or technical specialty. And this is the fifth key element of the portrait of the ideal 21st century graduate. You need to best master your own emotions. Master self-control and self-regulation. Learn to motivate and inspire those around you.

Dissipate positive energy and rally people around you. Master the art of communication in all its forms including written, oral and body language. Learn the art of negotiation as well as conflict resolution.

Clearly, a graduation is not the end of learning but the beginning of more learning. You now need to tailor make your learning towards the future challenges immediately and distantly ahead of you. Once you dedicate yourself to the principle of continuous learning you will go very far.

That demands humility because without humility, you will learn very little and often you will learn it too late and the hard way. Be humble, nimble and simple. If you keep to this rule, you will rule in spite of the ever changing environment in the world. Good luck!

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