iDEA and GetMyFirstJob are pleased to announce an innovative new partnership to help young people gain the right social and professional skills to take the first step into a great job and career.
Who is iDEA?
The Duke of York Inspiring Digital Enterprise Award(known as iDEA) is an innovative Badge Store concept that helps people develop skills for free. iDEA is the digital and enterprise equivalent of The Duke of Edinburgh Award (the ‘digital DoE’). It’s completely free and accessible globally on any modern device, operating system and browser – so you can earn iDEA digital badges anywhere you can get online (free access and access for all!).
Who is iDEA for?
iDEA is for everyone – young people and adults alike. Bronze is beginner level, Silver intermediate and Gold advanced (iDEA is about stage, not age). The iDEA bite size badges are very flexible – you can do them with your friends, on your own, or in classroom or workshop or club environments. iDEA badges support both formal and informal learning – they have been mapped against the National Curriculum and the Skills Framework for the Information Age. Many teachers are using iDEA resources as valuable CPD to become acquainted with key digital and enterprise skills and knowledge eg about cloud computing and internet of things.
"Personal growth, new skill sets, it’s going to keep me busy for quite some time and I will go for the gold! The prestige itself from the award will make my CV look so much better along with the current skills I have."
I want to know more…
iDEA is creating as many experience badges as digital badges for the Badge Store. This enables iDEA to accredit partner activities such as learning events and workshops, so people can get points towards their Bronze Award in recognition of the learning in the ‘real world’. iDEA helps offer a broader spectrum of learning options this way, and by doing so plays a vibrant and active part in the digital ecosystem. The challenges are split into core main categories, each with its own series of badges – citizen, worker, maker, entrepreneur and gamer. As well as being fun, the badges provide a visual acknowledgment of achievement which can then lead to increased employment marketability in the technology and enterprise sectors. It’s about opening up opportunities for people in the job market.
The Silver Award is coming later this Spring and the Gold Award will be launched in 2019.
iDEA is being used by local authorities, educational institutions from schools to FE and HE colleges and Unis, corporate learning and development programmes; skills and activities programmes and by other tech companies as a digital skills resource.
What our partnership will bring
GetMyFirstJob and iDEA are delighted to be working together to raise awareness and the aspiration of young people for development of digital skills. The inspiring Digital Entrepreneurship Awards, from the Duke of York’s office, already has dozens of employer-accredited digital courses which can be taken anywhere, by anyone, to enhance employability and develop knowledge in this key area of 21st-century skills. We are working with the iDEA team to communicate with employers, local authorities and schools, as well as integrating the iDEA platform into GetMyFirstJob, allowing thousands more people to add to their skillset and enhance their online CVs every month.
Visit iDEA's website here
Visit iDEA's partnership page on TalentPortal here
