Virtual reality soft skills training

About the project

The Virtual Reality Soft Skills Training project developed six immersive, scenario-based training experiences to help job seekers and employers strengthen interview preparation, employability, workplace communication, and early job-retention skills. The project prioritized job seekers who were new to Canada or had accessibility needs, using language targets of Canadian Language Benchmark 6 for job seekers and Canadian Language Benchmark 8 for employers. Five scenarios were developed for Meta Quest and one for Microsoft HoloLens.

The project reached 422 participants, including 381 job seekers and 41 employers, across Edmonton, Red Deer, Lloydminster, and St. Albert. Delivery partners included Alberta for Healthy Communities and EmployAbilities. The scenarios were designed for seated participation using hand tracking, which supported delivery in smaller spaces and at group events.

Participant feedback highlighted the usefulness of the job-search information, the immersive and supportive learning environment, and practical scripts for difficult interview questions. In follow-up responses, 50 of 62 job seekers said the training had been helpful, and 23 reported being employed.

The project demonstrated that immersive scenarios work best as supplementary learning within a larger course or facilitated session, where participants receive context before and after each experience. Key lessons included the importance of a structured development workflow, early planning for device and content management, consistent technical development, and timely participant evaluation.