When Robert Frost in his famous poem ‘The Road Not Taken’ said, “Two roads diverged in a yellow wood and sorry I could not travel both”, he was probably referring to how difficult it was to make a choice; career or otherwise.
Well, he was lucky, he had just two roads to choose between; today the roads that lie ahead us are numerous; it is up to us to choose the right one.
Making a career choice is one of the most difficult and the most important decisions we will ever make in our lives. It has to be made with much thought and deliberation. Moreover, career choices cannot be made based on just a few criteria alone.
This time of the year, Muslim parents and students are generally very tense and frustrated. Many dreams are shattered and many Muslim households go economically bankrupt paying steep fees for the professional courses.
The real reason for the frustration is running after a career where the seats are limited and fees exorbitant. It’s a rat race which is killing the aspiration of many Muslim students.
Minority seats in Muslim managed institutes are grabbed by students from upper middle class donating lakhs of rupees. Meritorious, yet poor and lower middle class Muslim students are left to fend for themselves. Thousands of Muslim students are stranded as they do not know what to do with their career.
Those students who are not able to get admission in Engineering because of the expenses or low percentage, the best option for them is to do graduation in information technology (IT) or Computer Science (CS). Even if that is difficult to get in, then graduation in science (BSc with Maths) and simultaneously acquire skills in any of the domain in IT or CS such as hardware networking, database, any of software languages, operating system, web designing etc. There are numerous institutes in private sector which give quality IT education at low cost.
Simultaneously certification in the relevant domain can be acquired at nom-inal cost. Such as Cisco network associate certific-ation (CCNA), Micr-osoft Certified Profe-ssional Developer (MCPD), Certification from Red head in Linux, Oracle Certified Professional (OCP), Sun’s Java techn-ology certification etc.
These certifications along with the normal graduation are more than enough to have a secure career. Masters degree options are ever expanding which can be unde-rtaken after grad-uation.
Those who are unable to afford a medical seat could opt for paramedical careers such as Dieticians and Nutritionists, Physio-therapist, nursing or psychologist or psychoanalyst etc.
For Arts students graduation in social service is very lucrative, as hundreds of NGOs, social and welfare organisations and corporates are hunting for BSW (Bachelor in Social Work). Then there is lucrative career in any of the foreign language as tourism industry is booming. All one is required to do is to spare 40 to 50 hours and small fees. This can be done simultaneously besides doing normal graduation.
There are numerous careers even today which can be pursued while doing normal gradua-tion. For those who are forced to work because of econo-mic reasons, then distance education is the best option. Today graduation in maj-ority of field can be completed through distance education.
Now, the balance of power is beginning to shift towards people possessing softer skills like language, communication and content capabilities. This is leading to Fine Arts and English literature graduates increas-ingly opting for a career in one of the fastest growing segments such as Advertising, Journalism, web content, IT sector etc.
Ask yourself where you want to be in ten years. Does a particular job fulfill this developmental need? Does it provide enough challenges for you to move ahead on your career path? Ask yourself about the environment you want to work in. Do you want to be your own boss? Or would you rather follow the leader? Do you want to work in a fast- paced world, or would you rather do something that moves slowly? Accept your own realities. Know your capabilities. You may think that working in a bank may sound great, but if you hate Mathematics and can’t adjust to long working hours then it is certainly not the choice for you.
Passion is the key word in selecting a career. Don’t select something because it is the latest in the job market. Let not your career selection be based on your whims and fancies.
As Howard Roark, the hero of Ayn Rand’s novel, The Fountainhead, says, “I have, let’s say, sixty years to live. Most of that time will be spent working... if I find no joy in it, then I’m only condemning myself to sixty years of torture.” So, be sure of the path you are planning to tread on. (The writer can be reached at mhl@rediffmail.com)
