Develop a long-term vision

Study in India

Dear Sir,

My daughter is studying in Class 10. She wants to be a chef. Can you please suggest an appropriate degree, which will also cover culinary arts? Kindly suggest colleges which offer these courses in Bengaluru.

Shobha

Dear Parent,

First check out whether she has sufficient talent and skills in cooking and food production, and it is not just a hobby. She also needs to have kinaesthetic(mind-body connection) ability, capacity to handle labour force, and a creative bent of mind.

Then you can decide on the most suitable course. Some of the reputed institutions in hospitality are ITM Institute of Hotel Management, Presidency College of Hotel Management, Institute of Hotel Management and Catering Technology, PES Institute of Hotel Management, M S Ramaiah College of Hotel Management and Christ College.

Dear Sir,

I have done my post-
graduation in Ayurveda and have been working as a consultant and professor at an Ayurveda institute for 12 years. I am interested to pursue an online course in dermatology. Please suggest affordable online courses.

Harini

Dear Harini,

Having qualified in Ayurveda, you are not eligible to pursue allopathic medicine, and online courses in medicine are generally not recognised by Indian Medical Council.

Hence, you may seek to upgrade your qualifications and skills only in the Ayurvedic or allied fields, whose information you will get from the AYUSH Board (www.karnataka.gov.in/Ayush).

Dear Sir,

My 11-year-old nephew wants to study space sciences. What are the options available to him in space sciences and related fields? Are there any clubs or groups for children of his age, where he can engage with others to broaden his horizons.

Pavan

Dear Pavan,

Do encourage him to explore but also be aware that his interest, inclination and aptitude may keep changing till he comes to Class 12 when he has to actually select his degree course. You may take him to the Nehru Planetarium, Aerospace Museum of HAL etc, and also see if you can arrange a meeting with people working in organisations like ISRO, NAL, DRDO. At the same time give him information and raise his awareness of various other careers so that he has a wider choice and will keep narrowing down in the years to come. Do not allow him to pressurise himself in believing that he has to pursue space sciences.

As he may qualify in either Aerospace Engineering or related fields about 10 years from now, we cannot predict options that will be available to him at that time. Hence you should keep monitoring how deep his interest is, whether he has had a chance to explore alternatives, and then finally check out whether he has the right aptitude to back up his interest.

Dear Sir,

I am studying in I PUC Arts stream with a combination of economics, sociology, political science and psychology. I wish to serve the Indian armed forces as a military psychologist. My performance in academics has been impressive. What qualifications are necessary to become a military psychologist? Please let me know the exams I need to take up. Kindly give information on how to join the Defence Institute of Psychological Research. Also, recommend other colleges where I can pursue the relevant course.

A student

Dear Student,

It is good that you wish to serve the defence forces. You may take up a degree course in psychology or psychology (honours) from any recognised college in your city. After qualifying, you will be eligible to apply for the Common Defence Services Exam (CDSE) held by the UPSC (visit www.joinindianarmy.nic.in).

The selection process is very competitive and the number of vacancies every year are few, hence be mentally prepared for alternative careers in psychology in case you are not selected. You can get opportunities to be posted in the Defence Institute of Psychological Research only after being commissioned as an officer.

Dear Sir,

I scored 59% in Class 12 boards, and 7.88 GPA in BE Computer Science. As my scores aren’t good enough, I want to know if I should pursue an MBA or do a master’s in Computer Science.

Kiran

Dear Kiran,

Your decision should not be based on your marks but on your interest and aptitude. Also, do not look down upon yourself thinking that your scores “aren’t good enough”. Many people with average grades have done exceedingly well if they have understood their strengths and pursued a career based on what they are good at.

Since you have already graduated as an engineer it is time for you to develop a long-term vision on whether you would like to be a hardcore technocrat or a management or people person. This should be based on your interest, awareness, aptitude, skills, personality traits and your specific intelligence. If you are unable to narrow down, then it will be better for you to get work experience by taking up an entry-level job in a medium or small organisation where you get exposure to different types of work profiles. It is not advisable to go in for an MBA until you have some work experience and are clear about the domain specialisation you wish to acquire.

Dear Sir,

I have completed my BE in Electronics and Communication and am currently pursuing a course in software testing. I am halfway through the course and I want to know if there is any demand in the market for test engineers and also if I would be able to get a job in this domain. I am also learning to code in java and python online. Will I be able to shift to software developing later on?

Parvathy R

Dear Parvathy,

The IT industry is in a constant state of flux and change, and no one can predict what will be in “demand” in future. You should identify your skills and match them to the requirements of software testing, software development etc. If you are able to learn fast and deliver results, the demand will automatically be created regardless of how the market moves. In future too, you should be willing to change and adapt as and when required.

Software testing needs slightly different aptitude than software development. If you start your IT career as a tester, you may be able to gradually shift to development depending on your interest and aptitude. However, many companies today expect testers to do programming as well. It could be challenging to move from the testing discipline to the development discipline, as you will need to find companies that would be willing to hire you as a tester and also give you opportunities in development later. Online courses that you’re doing in Java and Python may not be sufficient and you may have to do some self-initiated side projects to gain experience in these technologies. Be aware that all the manual and repetitive work in testing is getting automated, hence testers are also expected to do some testing-specific programming. The tools and processes for testing are constantly changing and you will need to continuously stay updated.