Education, Careers & Professional News
Make the right move
Source
DECCAN HERALD
Date
2005-07-08
Information
Making sound decisions on higher study choices and career depends on the availability of clear and credible information. In an education marketplace marked by the din of claims and high profile promotions, however, such advice is difficult to get. The Hindu Education Plus Fair helped candidates achieve a measure of clarity and confidence.
SEEKING COUNSEL: A student poses a query to the expert panel at the Education Plus Fair. Photo: R. Ragu
It is that time of year again. May. The month during which students who have completed Plus Two and their parents get tense, sometimes to the point of losing sleep in their bid to take some hard career decisions for young people in the family.
Should I take ECE in SSN or settle for Mechanical in College of Engineering in Guindy?
Should my daughter take a seat in a self financing medical college or wait for BDS counselling?
Can my sister, who has finished Plus Two and gone through the TNPCEE, take the plunge into a B.Tech biotechnology course this year or write the improvement next year and take up medicine?
My dream is to take up aerospace engineering. What undergraduate courses can I pursue for this? Is it necessary that I enter only an aeronautical course for B.E?Is joining a deemed university preferable?
My cut off is 294. What are my chances of getting into MBBS? These and other such questions agitate lakhs of parents and students across Tamil Nadu. At every corner in schools and corridors of Universities, the debate is hectic, with no clear solution in sight. Not much help is available for parents and students looking for precise information to take informed decisions.
The Hindu Education Plus Fair organised over the weekend at the University of Madras, with the support of the main sponsor Indian Bank and several co-sponsors provided just those answers.
In the words of the Editor-in-Chief of The Hindu, N. Ram, the Fair — with its key component, namely the pre-counselling guidance sessions — was an
expansion of the publication that paid special attention to one segment of young readers. The core need is precise, reliable, specialised information and insights to enable young men and women to take informed decisions.
This is what the three day meet endeavoured to do. Using a panel of experts who have long experience in administering entrance tests, admissions or providing insightful analyses of educational trends, student choices, and making sense of the complex combinations of numbers, quotas and subject combinations.
They provided not only analysis or detailed explanations of the various complexities raised by students, but helped the students and parents decide which road to take in the maze that is professional education.
But clearly the most sought-after session was the guidance session for engineering education. A former Director of Entrance Examinations in Anna University and administrator who was behind several policy measures to make student admissions a hassle-free job, P.V. Navaneethakrishnan and career counseller from Turning Point India, Salem, Jayaprakash Gandhi fielded barrage of questions.
While Dr. Navaneethakrishnan answered some of the tough questions regarding admission procedures, improvement examinations, or policy matters, Mr. Gandhi clearly showed last years cut off marks position of Anna University and what would be probable cut off this year. Such as:
This year the number of seats in single window pool would be far lower.
Private Colleges have preferred to retain their quota unlike last year when some college surrendered a major chunk of management quota seats too.
The TNPCEE was so tough this year that the cut off scores would come down by three to five marks in major disciplines.
Biotechnology, contrary to popular opinion is not such a big job provider, when compared to the I.T and ITES Sector.
Similarly, aeronautical engineering may be high-sounding but jobs are few and far.
Also concentrate on core sectors such as production, mechanical and manufacturing engineering. Maybe they are not so high paying, but they are equally challenging professions.
One interesting question that was posed to the panel: Are deemed university degrees considered equal to Anna University?
Prof. Navaneethakrishnan put things in perspective. Deemed university degrees are equal to Anna University degrees. They have been recognised by the Human Resource Development Ministry.