I mourned the passing of the Horizon Award, but it did a bit of a phoenix thang and what arose from the ashes looks pretty cool.
Back when I started working here at Flinders (2017), they had the Horizon Award.
It was pretty cool. You earned ‘points’ for engaging in extra-curricular activities that had a career focus (e.g. volunteering, professional development). If you earned enough points you’d get an award. There were levels: bronze, silver, gold and platinum and a ceremony at the end of each year to celebrate those students who had achieved a metallic level of personal and professional development.
When the Horizon program ended, I was sad to see it go but I was assured that a replacement was on the way.
That replacement is here!
Actually, it arrived a little while back, but it’s taken me a while to get the information to profile it on BetterU.
It is the called the Future Skills Award and it is now live and available to all Flinders students. It’s a flexible and structured way to develop the kinds of skills that will matter most in the future world of work — skills like creativity, adaptability, leadership, digital literacy and lifelong learning.
Naturally, one of the things I like about it (me being in the wellbeing world) is that the program isn’t just traditional work skills (i.e. Excel for beginners). It is more about strengthening the personal qualities that support career and entrepreneurial success. Things like resilience, curiosity, confidence, creativity and flexibility. These are things I’d be trying to cultivate in a wellbeing program and yet here they are in a Careers setting. Cool 😎
The Award sits within the Future Skills Program, run by the New Venture Institute (NVI). The Future Skills Program blends hands‑on workshops with self‑paced online learning to help students develop the unconventional and in‑demand skills that are shaping new and emerging industries. The Award is essentially a semi-structured way of engaging with the skills program in a way you can get formal recognition at the end.
In the Award there are six skill tracks, each representing a future‑focused capability. Complete all six to earn the full Future Skills Award (I really hope it is a medal or garish trophy) or just do the tracks that interest you most. You’ll receive a digital badge for every track you complete (I wish it was an actual badge. I have a denim jacket needing decoration).
The six tracks are:
- Creative thinking & innovation
- Leadership & social influence
- Critical & analytical thinking
- Digital literacy & technological skills
- Resilience, flexibility & adaptability
- Lifelong learning & curiosity
Each skill track has three levels designed to suit different schedules and levels of involvement.
Level 1 = Spark ⚡
Short, bite‑sized online modules you can do anytime, anywhere.
Level 2 = Go Deeper ⬇
Hands‑on workshops and clinics held at The Exchange, a creative, recently refurbished space in the Hub at Bedford Park. These let you explore the skills in action and connect with other students.
Level 3 — Connect the Dots …
Summits, hackathons, volunteering gigs, wild‑card events — bigger experiences that tie together everything you’ve learned.
Do all three levels for all six tracks if you want the full Award. Or dip in and out wherever it fits your life.
OK, you’ve convinced me, where do I find it?
Well, you can click this..,..
But for future reference, you can click through to the Future Skills Hub via the suitably named tile inside your OKTA dashboard.
There is plenty that you can do on the website itself (e.g. self-directed stuff) and then there are workshops you can sign up for. The workshops themselves take place online or in The Exchange at Bedford Park, the on‑campus home for hands‑on innovation, creativity and entrepreneurship.
Why I think this all aligns well with BetterU
BetterU is quite literally about growth and personal development. Now we tend to focus on the type of personal development that leads to improvements in physical, mental, social and spiritual health.
But there is huge overlap with professional development, the growth that supports our career.
And the way that brains and minds work, growth in one area, typically benefits related areas. So, if you do a meditation program for wellbeing it will probably improve aspects of your study. Conversely, if you do a creativity and innovation program for work skills, you’ll likely see benefits in terms of wellbeing.
So when I see the Future Skills Award, I see it as a powerful way to do professional and personal development at the same time. And to have that effort and dedication recognised in a formal sense.
What next?
Watch the short video walkthrough
Then do it for yourself.
- Log into OKTA
- Click the Future Skills Hub tile
- Choose one of the six skill tracks
- Start with a Spark module, book into a workshop, or browse upcoming events
Final thoughts
I reckon the NVI crew have built something genuinely impressive here. A comprehensive set of opportunities to grow in creative, meaningful and practical ways.
Whether you’re trying to boost your employability, strengthen your adaptability, or just explore who you want to become, the Future Skills Award is worth your attention.
If you are doing the Award, I’d love to hear your thoughts on it in the comments below. You use your FAN and password to login in order to be able to comment.
