JobFit – the employability game
JobFit is an employability skills tool for schools, colleges and universities.
JobFit measures the skills and competencies that your students will rely on to succeed in the world of work.
JobFit is a work simulation game. Just like real work, the player has a boss, colleagues and customers to keep happy – all while getting their tasks done as the pressure increases.
JobFit reveals students’ strengths, weaknesses and people/task balance.
Birmingham City University Graduate+ Programme Lead Lesley Taylor says: “We’re excited about using this new employability tool to really boost students' understanding of the importance of employability, and their engagement with the many learning opportunities the University offers them”
Employability Skills
Employability Skills are increasingly recognized as the key to a secure start in the world of work.
Qualifications get you to interview. Employability skills get you hired, keep you hired, and get you promoted.
JobFit is an ideal way to show your students what employability skills are, why they matter, and how they can develop them.
JobFit measures the essential behavioural competencies for success in the workplace. It tells players where their strong and weak areas lie. This self-insight is then combined with an Action Plan which is tailored to the local resources at their school, college or university. This enables them to take specific, personalised action towards workplace success.
Playing The Game
JobFit takes around 45 minutes to play, on a laptop, desktop or tablet. It can be played sound on or sound off, and does not require gaming skills or experience. It’s a good idea to have a pen and paper handy to keep track of your tasks. At the end of the game, players get a set of personalised reports which they can save, print, or have emailed to them.
The JobFit game starts off slowly and lets players get familiar with how everything works. Soon though the pressure begins to build, and as in real work, it’s not always possible to keep up. Players become immersed in the challenge, and there isn’t time to ‘over-think’ responses; the game is simple but demanding. The choices you make reveal what you prioritise, and show your working behaviours.
JobFit can be given as individual homework, it can be played in a classroom, or it may be done as a special workshop. Groups often get more from the game as they discuss the experience and the choices they made among themselves, leading to additional insight and mutual support.
Gatsby Benchmarks
JobFit is a powerful, modern solution to the demands of Gatsby Benchmarks 3 and 8.
Benchmark 3: Addressing the needs of each pupil. JobFit measures each student’s working behavioural competencies through a work simulation game. It provides a Virtual Job Report that is unique to that student and reflects their own behavioural profile.
Every student also receives a Development Guide that gives personally tailored advice, and suggestions customised to their own school, college or university.
Benchmark 8: Personal Guidance. JobFit gives students an Action Plan template which builds on the self-insight achieved in the Virtual Job Report and the advice provided in the Development Guide. The Action Plan helps them choose specific, actionable steps which are relevant to their chosen goals and their development needs.
The JobFit Action Plan then forms an ideal preparation to help them get the most from discussions with careers advisors, mentors, or role models.
Personalised Reports
Every student receives a set of individualised reports which show them their strengths and weaknesses, make locally-tailored suggestions for development activities, and prepare them for interviews.
JobFit Virtual Job Report
Tells them their strengths, weaknesses and task/people balance.
JobFit Development Report
Suggests activities, programs or resources the student could use to improve their skills in chosen areas. Customisable to your own location.
JobFit Interview Guide
This gives you key questions to prepare for at interview.
JobFit Action Plan
An easy-to-follow template to move the student towards their identified goals.
About JobFit
Who we are
JobFit is the result of a collaboration between leading UK games developer Legendary Games, psychometric test development authority Dr Michael Burnett C. Psychol, AFBPsS, and technology commercialisation experts Ipsemet Ltd.
Psychometric Development
JobFit combines two strong traditions in psychometrics and
the use of applied psychology to measure work-related competencies.
Like many
existing and traditional measures including Myers-Briggs and the Occupational
Personality Questionnaire, JobFit includes measures based on the Five Factor Model of
Personality. Specifically JobFit concentrates on work-related areas stemming from
superordinate traits like Agreeableness, Extraversion, Conscientiousness and Emotional
Stability.
Unlike many personality-based measures, JobFit works by sampling
behaviours in real-time in response to virtual work-based situations not by answers to
questionnaires.
So JobFit is more like a virtual assessment centre where
behaviour is measured dynamically and as part of a behavioural flow, unlike in
situational judgement tests or questionnaires, where behaviour tends to be measured in
parts and often as a multiple choice. JobFit is therefore unique in the way it builds on
fundamental concepts in personality, measured dynamically in a simulation of
work.
JobFit develops its online psychometric games in partnership with t-PHI.
t-PHI is a supplier of psychological and psychometric expertise for the design and
testing of employee development, selection, recruitment and appraisal products.
The
psychometric development and statistical validity testing was led by Dr. Michael
Burnett, (HCPC) Registered Occupational Psychologist, Chartered Psychologist & Associate
Fellow of the British Psychological Society (BPS), Registered EuroPsy Psychologist.
Michael holds a BA in Psychology and a PhD. from the University of Surrey where he
researched new methods of assessing people at work using simulations. You can find out
more here: http://t-phi.co.uk
The Science
JobFit is based on measuring what you actually do, not what you say or even what you think you would do in a situation. The JobFit game simulates a working environment and tracks the choices you make as the pressure builds through the game.
Behavioural Competencies
The game highlights characteristics and abilities beyond those obtained from traditional personality questionnaires. These are revealed by the way in which the game is played. Data from each player’s actions, reactions, and decisions are analysed to produce the results.
The Big Five. JobFit is grounded in the well-established Revised NEO Personality Inventory which assesses a person’s Big Five or ‘OCEAN’ personality traits (Openness to Experience, Conscientiousness, Extraversion, Agreeableness, and Neuroticism). The skills that JobFit measures are grounded in these competencies.
Statistical validity
The JobFit game has been tested on players of all ages, 16 and upwards, to confirm its statistical validity. JobFit has been shown to have Construct Validity (it measures what we think it measures), Reliability (assessments of a person are consistent over time), and not to have Adverse Impact (it does not disadvantage anyone).
Construct validity. Psychometric experts use the term ‘construct validity’ to mean that a test actually measures what it is supposed to measure. That is, a test aiming to measure, for example, the skill ‘Relating to others’ is genuinely measuring that skill, and not a factor that may coincide with it such as age, gender or ethnicity. To confirm Construct Validity we asked test subjects to complete psychometric questionnaires of known validity and then the JobFit game, and then compared the results.
Reliability. In psychometrics, ‘Reliability’ means that a test will describe the same person the same way at different points in time. To confirm reliability, test subjects were asked to play the JobFit game, and then play it again at least two weeks later. The first and second test result sets were then compared to ensure that the game delivers consistent results.
Adverse Impact. ‘Adverse Impact’ occurs when a sub-group of the population receives disproportionately negative evaluation from an assessment method, compared to the population as a whole. We trialled the game with people of different age, gender and ethnicity to confirm that it did not disadvantage members of any group within the population.
FAQ
Your Privacy
JobFit values the trust our users place in us when they give us access to their personally identifiable information. This policy describes how we work to maintain that trust.
Information Collected
You can choose whether your organisation asks players to provide their name and email. If you select to collect names, their reports will show their name, and your organisation will be able to identify individual players’ reports. Alternatively, you can select not to ask players for their names, in which case players’ reports do not give names and your organisation will not have any personally identifiable information about JobFit participants.
All information you provide to us is stored on our secure servers. We will ask you to choose a password which enables you to access our services, you are responsible for keeping this password confidential. We ask you not to share your password with anyone.
What we do with the information we collect
General Uses: We use the information we collect to manage, analyze, develop, customize, and improve our products and services.
Information provided for account creation and management: We will ask you for simple organizational information when you become a customer. We will use this information to authorize and administer your access to the Site, verify your identity, authenticate your visits, and provide our products and services to you.
Information provided when you contact us: We may use this information to understand and respond to your question or comment.
Aggregate Data: We retain aggregate information arising from our services for research purposes and to help us develop and improve our services. Individuals cannot be identified from aggregate information retained or used for these purposes.
We also reserve the right to use such aggregate information in collaboration with outside researchers to measure and quantify the effectiveness of our products and services. Unfortunately, the transmission of information via the internet is not completely secure. Although we will do our best to protect your personal data, we cannot guarantee the security of your data transmitted to our Services; any transmission is at your own risk. Once we have received your information, we will use strict procedures and security features to try to prevent unauthorised access.
Individual rights
Individuals have the right under certain circumstances:
- to be provided with a copy of their personal data;
- to request the rectification or erasure of their personal data;
- to request that processing of their data cease.
How does it work?
The game takes place in a hotel, where you have taken a summer job. Your boss gives your tasks to do, but just like in the real world things get in the way. You have colleagues to work with, customers to keep happy and unexpected events to respond to. There’s no right answer, but the priorities you set for yourself, the way you interact with people, and how you manage your work are all key to revealing your working style.
Who should play JobFit?
JobFit is designed to help students and jobseekers prepare for work. The Development Report can help students develop over the course of their study program to achieve longer-term growth, while the Interview Guide will be useful to those already making applications.
How should my students use their JobFit results?
JobFit helps students get the most from their discussions with careers staff and other mentors. The Virtual Job Report gives them self-insight. The Development Report identifies activities that will improve their skills. Development Report content can be customised to your organisation, directing students to relevant courses, teachers or resources at your organisation. Students should read these, and then fill out the Action Plan template themselves, making decisions about their aims and choosing activities that cultivate the employability skills most relevant to their chosen path. Finally, for those with interviews approaching, the Interview Guide can help them prepare.
Is JobFit suitable for all ages?
JobFit is suitable for all ages 16 and over. Although a video game format may be more familiar to younger players, our testing shows that JobFit produces valid results with players of all ages. It does not favour players with higher dexterity or video game experience. Behavioural competencies are measured using both task metrics (e.g. whether instructions are followed accurately) and interpersonal metrics (e.g. ability to relate to others). The mechanics of the game are simple enough for young children to play, but it may not provide valid measurement at younger stages of development.
Is JobFit suitable for all academic ability levels?
Yes. Behavioural skills operate independently of academic aptitude. JobFit measures only behavioural competencies. It is effective across all levels of academic ability. Careers professionals have successfully used JobFit at all levels including university, secondary school and special needs students.
Buy JobFit
Step 1
Open a JobFit account for your school, college or university.
Step 2
We set up a unique JobFit game link for your students
Step 3
Students play the JobFit game when and where they choose
Step 4
Use the student’s Virtual Job Report to guide their development and career choices.
Get in touch
Office location
2 Venture Road, Southampton Science Park, Chilworth
Hampshire
SO16 7NP
Phone number
Mob: 07979 917635
Email address
General: info@jobfit.me.uk
If you are interested in psychometric work simulations for selection purposes, please see our sister site Ipsemet.co.uk