by Ankit Mitra

Career Conundrum and Remedy

 

Career Conundrum

If you’re in high school right now, you’re at a great point of your life. The thousands of bizarre things that you did with your friends and the countless memories speak for itself. It must have been torturous at times but there’s no denying it that it was enjoyable. Unfortunately, this exhilarating journey will come to an end and you’ll soon be shifting gears to college life. Having your whole life ahead of you, now is a proper time to start thinking about your future and the career that you’ll eventually opt for. Perplexities are sure to surround you and you are to make the most optimal choice considering   the set of skills and interests you possess.

Alongside various other problems, the selection of a career or profession is equally challenging for a teenager. A right choice to a career will decide how a person’s rest of the life would be shaped. It will also determine the person’s social status, lifestyle, the social circle and their relations with relatives. A right choice will lead to a happy, prosperous and satisfying career as well as life, whereas one wrong choice can turn the tables at once. Choosing a career is a life changing decision and the numerous consequences that lie ahead are to be kept in mind and one is expected to act cautiously.

There are various factors that give rise to  challenges that students face while taking thoughtful decisions on stream pursuing or career choosing

The factor of marks/grades – it seems like right after the results are out, the careers are decided beforehand, considering the marks one shall obtain. Whenever someone scores exceptionally well, they are told to take up science and made to choose between being a   doctor or an engineer. They are not given the slightest opportunity to decide what they want and where their true interests lie. And if somebody scores less, they are labeled with the title of “dimwit” and knowing that they can’t make it big in life they are shoved with streams such as arts and commerce down their throat. Thus, present day scenario tells us that academic streams are not just fields of study, but  a major classification of the sharp witted and the dim witted done on the basis of marks scored, with their skills and interests sidelined.

The society factor – the society also plays a crucial role in deciding one’s career. Wordly influence plays the part here. There are numerous instances where people choose careers keeping the view of society in mind. Aspiring for social status and acknowledgement they let go of their passion that they have been weaving since long. The society seems quite inclined to the science stream as they believe that there are various huge prospects that lie ahead if one takes up so. Little or no importance is paid to the other streams as they are considered to be demeaning.

Family and peer pressure – family and their opinion is a crucial element as well. If your siblings are successful and your family is inclined to a particular profession, they’d expect no less of you. But that doesn’t mean they would suppress all your dreams and aspirations within you or   just trample upon them.

Teenage problems – the common problems that teenagers face today are related as well. Stress, bullying, self-esteem, cyber addiction, drinking and smoking, defiant behaviors, peer-pressure and competition are quite a few. Resulting consequences are the person loses track of their life and is not able to fulfill their aims and aspirations.

Improper guidance from family’s side – with illiterate parents and family members, the students are not able to attain proper career guidance which results in complexities and challenges in career choosing.

Course cost– alongside various other factors that give rise to career pursuing problems one such problem is course cost, faced mostly by the economically deprived classes where they lack sufficient amount of capital to invest, resulting in the inability to attend the course one dreams of.

Demand of profession – if a student is really aspiring for a particular career he or she is passionate about, but the market demand of the profession is not considered adequate, he or she wouldnot be able to make the most of it and hence would have to undergo great deal of suffering and agony. A proper market research is recommended before one decides to take up any job or profession. The person is to be at equilibrium where the demand for the job must coincide with the maximum satisfaction he gets after utilizing his energy in it and feels no urge to change thereafter.

After finishing school everybody acknowledges the battlefield of life and the cut throat competition that has been going. The naive students after coming out of school are baffled as to choose which profession. It is better if one decides at the school level what career he or she is going to adopt in future. But the school going students are quite young, inexperienced and full of raw emotions and hence are unable to take the right decision. Proper guidance, counseling, advice, vocational training, encouragement and orientation are required, where experienced personnel both on and off the internet are always eager to provide assistance. They must also assess their skills and fields of interest. A proper market study is also to be done to ensure there’s ample demand for the profession.

Last but not the least the students are expected to listen to their hearts and they ought to take up something that really excites them the most. No matter whatever it is, the person is expected to offer his best   and prove himself worthy enough. Parents are always by your side extending out their love, support and encouragement in times of need.

A Suitable Remedy

As explained, teenage is a very challenging phase of life, when individuals go through major physical, mental and psychological changes. Alongside various other problems this phase is accompanied with needs and expectations. Tons of problems surround the individual such as stress, bullying, self-esteem, cyber addiction, drinking and smoking, defiant behaviors, peer-pressure and competition are quite a few. Resulting consequences are the person loses track of their life and is not able to fulfill their aims and aspirations. Alongside these problems, the selection of a career or profession is equally challenging for a teenager. A right choice to a career will decide how a person’s rest of the life would be shaped. It will also determine the person’s social status, lifestyle, the social circle as well as his relations with relatives.

Career being the metaphorical “journey” of an individual through learning, work and other aspects of life holds quite the importance in a person’s life. But considering the fact that school students are still raw, inexperienced and naive they are definitely not in a perfect position to make the right decision. Proper guidance, counseling, advice, encouragement and orientation are what they require, and family and friends turn out to be quite the relevant source in providing so. But the internet as of now has been helping in such matters as well.

Websites and mobile applications that run via the internet has employed experienced personnel who assist students on such matters. One such modern day application that has been narrowing the search of suitable professions and careers  is  “ProTeen” since it:

Helps point out the strengths and weaknesses of an individual, by analyzing their profile and a game that the users are expected to play. The game itself reveals what the users are good at and narrows down the search of suitable jobs where the user might take great interest.

 

Brings out the fact whether your brain is analytical or creative. It analyses certain factors such as individual traits and preferences, hobbies, abilities, personality, experience, education etc.

 

Does market research on various professions, with key emphasis ranging from pay scale to the total industrial jobs in present time and the projected number of jobs in upcoming years.

 

Provides alternatives such that the “usual” inclination towards medical and engineering professions and many such are reduced, as it serves as the perfect platform for spreading awareness about various contemporary professions that are in high demand and hold equal importance as of today.

 

Helps you collaborate with peers through its full fledged network that has made community interaction possible, where it is quite easy to find people sharing the same career conundrum as you do and interact with them just as any other social media platform, exchange ideas and share other relevant career related information.

 

Provides unique features where you can track your progress through the goal tracker, where it analyses your strengths, performance score etc. Along with this you can also add your parents and mentors so that not only you but they can also keep track of your progress.

 

Narrows down your search without limiting your choices of a suitable profession after analyzing the data you provide of yourself. So considering the data you provide you shall be shown a profession that suitably matches your skill set and interests.

 

Involves all the stakeholders of the ecosystem; students, parents, schools, colleges, teachers, professors and counselors are benefited from its use.

This new-age career guidance companion is the perfect complementary tool that every school going student ever wished for. It is not just an information provider tool but it is very engaging and is inspiring young adults to make crucial life decisions .  Also a major booster of confidence it has been playing quite the part in enriching student lives.

Author – Ankit Mitra

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