Applying successfully: boost your talent

‘I find the talent scan interesting, since I am doing an internship next year. When I saw the result, my first thoughts were that it wasn’t accurate. I don’t like being the leader of a group. However, I found out that there is another type of leadership: people who prefer to work by themselves and take responsibility for themselves, which means they work without a group. I can truly relate to that.

Maarten Schoenmaker (26)

Second-year student, studying Chinese

It’s every applicant’s dream: going to work with a spring in their step. ‘A smart employer will actually want the same thing. Because if your employees enjoy coming to work, there’s less chance of them being absent from work, or getting a burnout’, says Angèl van den Hurk from Talent in Teams.

Competences are often taught make you truly happy. As talent is something you are born with, Angèl says that it’s even possible for children to do the talent scan.

‘People-oriented leadership emerged as one of my talents. I can definitely relate to that, because I always feel responsible for helping others. But the risk is that I will put others before myself. So the results of the talent scan didn’t come as a surprise to me. It’s still good to know for the future. I believe other young people would also appreciate knowing more about their potential talents, since they might not know what do to after graduating.

Iris Nouwens (21)

Second-year student, studying Chinese

Angèl often performs talent scans on employees of organizations or companies, but also among students. At Zuyd, she does this for students of the School of Translation and Interpreting, and Oriental Languages and Communication (OTC). ‘During a talent scan, I show participants a number of pictures. Based on which picture someone prefers, I can read their natural talents. When applying for a job, it’s important for students to emphasize their talents in their motivation letter and CV. This is different from the things you learn at school (taught competences). And these competences can differ from what is actually right for you.’ Angèl also explains that when it comes to someone’s natural talent, they will talk about it enthusiastically. Talent doesn’t shine through until you discover it, develop it and make good use of it.

After graduating, you will come across many vacancies. But it can still be quite challenging to actually find the right job for you. ‘People you know might tell you to apply for a specific job just because you would be good at it. But regard the wide range of vacancies as an opportunity. Firstly, it’s important to find out what type of work would

‘When it comes to the students of OTC and the School of Translation and Interpreting, I notice that their talents effectively match their study programmes. This is definitely not the case for all other universities of applied sciences, which is a pity. Zuyd’s OTC and School of Translation and Interpreting really seem to be recruiting the right students.’

A good application actually starts many years before you e-mail your job application. It already starts back in secondary school. ‘For example, when choosing your set of courses, and later too when choosing your study programme.’ People who feel like their current job doesn’t fit their true talents, can still make a change. ‘Nowadays, more and more employers request a talent scan for their employees, so they can adjust tasks to all the talents that are present in a team.’

Would you like to know more about your talents or a talent scan? (in Dutch) Contact your counselor, or send an email to studentservices@zuyd.nl

Listen to this podcast (in Dutch) in which Angèl van den Hurk tells Lizette Colaris (student counsellor) how you can discover your own talents.