Due to the present pandemic, it is essential that students sharpen their job-specific skills and become future-ready so that they are prepared to hit the floor, says Dr Pankaj Sharma
The economic slowdown due to the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic has made India's industry leaders and corporate houses reel under recession-like scenarios again. Therefore, it is essential that students should utilise sharpen their job-specific skills and become future-ready so that they can be completely ready to hit the floor. Institutions should also be working more with corporate to ensure that students’ skill sets match their job requirements.
There will be more partnership between enterprise training companies and universities so that companies too can bridge the tech-talent gap in their workforce. There will be an emergence of using competency-based education (CBE) curriculum for many institutions. It will offer many benefits including improved completion rates and easier access to the programmes.
Following are the areas, where job seekers can work upon:
Personality development and communication skills: Resiliency and congeniality are two most pertinent traits companies are looking at in their candidates besides how brilliant a worker you are. The art of communicating and interpersonal skills are another set of skills essential for people, especially whose work also needs client servicing. Therefore, enrolling yourself in a short-term personality development and communication skills programmes can provide you the requisite platform and realise your true potential.
Organise mock telephonic/video interviews and tests: Since one-to-one interviews are mostly not happening, one needs another game plan. The trend is leaning towards video and phone interviews. They both have their positives and negatives. It's difficult to get social cues, whether the interviewer likes the answers. In a telephonic interview, it’s easy to fall back on your casual tone.
Don’t forget the fact that it’s an interview and you need to keep it formal and professional. You need to practice telephonic or video interviews at home to learn the etiquettes of such interviews.
Virtual internship training: Practical training that involves how a particular industry works is pivotal for making an individual job-ready. So, students should look out for those companies now which are providing such training. Even college should have an advanced syllabus module, focusing more on projects.
In order to prepare for the same, students should enroll themselves in various virtual internship programmes during the course of their education. These programmes are the biggest source of gaining practical knowledge and also give them an edge of getting recruited.
Problem-solving skills: These skills require using your own logic and imagination to sense the situation well and coming up with relevant solution to deal with the challenge. In reality, the problem solvers have the innate potential of anticipating future problems and solutions to prevent them or to mitigate their effects. Problem-solving abilities are connected to a number of other skills, including analytical skills, innovative and creative thinking. A lateral mindset, adaptability and flexibility are the keys.
Learn to keep calm: In light of COVID-19, it’s likely that your job search may take longer than the graduates of years past. So, you will have to develop a thick skin. You need to stay mentally and emotionally strong. It's understandable to feel badly that after working so hard, you now have to face such a job market. Temper your expectations so that you won't get disappointed if this takes a long time.
You need to think about the bigger picture rather than worrying about the temporary phase. Utilise this phase to build a stronger version of yourself as unforeseen problems will keep coming in future too.
The writer is Director Admissions, JK Lakshmipat University, Jaipur