Soft Skills for Stem (S3)
Soft Skills for STEM (S3) delivers awesome soft skills training and development programs for STEM students, early-to-mid-career professionals. and people working with them. Started in 2017 by Dr. Michelle B. Lee, S3 is experiencing explosive growth, rave reviews and has already impacted the lives of thousands of students and professionals from K-12, prominent colleges & universities, National Laboratories, and other organizations.
Program highlights include:
- The Exceptional Young Professional™ (K-12, College, and Early Career editions) - an immersive soft skills training program . Available formats: Virtual and On-site
- Annual Lessons Learned S3 Workshop - an annual two-day, highly interactive and FUN workshop attended by S3 family from across the globe.
- Fall/Spring Professional Development Series - an on going virtual series providing in depth training focused on crucial career and professional development topics.
- Virtual Soft Skills Success Lab - Videos, articles, tools, and other resources to help you master your soft skills.
We also provide custom training for:
- Small Teams & Departments
- Middle and Upper Management
- HR and Talent Development Professionals
- STEM Educators and Learning Professionals
- Mentors & Coaches
S3 is funded in part by NNSA.
Al Duncan, Managing Partner & Lead Trainer
![Duncan's Five Soft Skills Clusters [IMAGE]](http://img1.wsimg.com/isteam/ip/9742186a-d4b0-48bb-9328-c31b3e4eb0c3/Duncan's%20Five%20Soft%20Skills%20Clusters%20-%2011.png/:/cr=t:0%25,l:0%25,w:100%25,h:100%25/rs=w:1209,cg:true)
What are soft skills?
Duncan Nugget® #144: Soft skills are personal abilities that help you perform better and interact better with other people.
Soft Skills for STEM (S3) uses Duncan's 5 Soft Skills Clusters as the foundational framework for our tools, resources, curriculum, and events.
Duncan's Five Soft Skills Clusters and key behavioral indicators are:
- Communication Skills: The ability to send AND receive clear messages
- Decision Making & Problem Solving: The ability to recognize, create, and choose effective options & solutions
- Teamwork & Collaboration: The ability to work with others toward a common goal or objective
- Self-Management & Professionalism: The ability to demonstrate behaviors and character traits on par with the highest standards of your role or position
- Leadership, Influence, & Persuasion: The ability to inspire and move people to action
Why are soft skills important for success?
Pursuing science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) disciplines require many years of technical knowledge and skill acquisition. Soft skills compliment and support the technical requirements necessary to acquire and maintain employment. So, it is crucial to identify and develop key soft skills for success in your chosen field.
A lack of soft skills development can derail the career of even the most accomplished professionals because many soft skills are required to navigate general business rules as well as the unwritten rules and politics of work culture.
Some key benefits of having strong soft skills:
- Highly valuable to employers
- Help facilitate career advancement
- Improved co-worker and customer interactions
- More effective relationship building and networking
- Transferable across jobs and careers
The National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA) is a United States federal government agency responsible for enhancing national security through the military application of nuclear science.
Soft Skills for STEM is funded in part by the NNSA Minority Serving Institution Partnership Program.