More than a decade back when I asked my son about the plans he had once school was over, he switched on the desktop and opened an excel sheet that had all possible details of colleges, institutes, and universities with courses in architecture. I remembered never having been so diligent about my own choices in my time and I had opted for the first course that came my way. In a way my son taught me the importance of choosing specialization at an early stage.
On the other side of this approach is the one where students keep ignoring the importance of waking up early and leaving all critical decision-making about their choice of course and career until… well, until it is too late to make a reasonably informed one.
Wake up early
The point that I am making is that we are living in times when specializing in one or the other subject of choice is vital. The sequence of this decision-making process is quite simple. Just decide on the range of subjects that interest you, employ the internet to help you research on the various alternatives available, go through course content and see if it will hold your interest, explore the quality of the universities that offer these courses, look deep into the course duration, understand the entry requirements, be aware of the costs involved, and browse through the career opportunities at the end of the courses that you short-list and your job is done. You cannot leave all this until you walk out of school and then wonder, ‘Now what?’
The sequence of actions that I have underlined is valid at any stage of your educational journey. We are living in times when every successful person has the benefit of riding on some form of specialization. However, they have all specialized in areas where their interest lay… and this is invariably a conscious decision taken at the right time.
The future isn’t as far away as you believe
Time flies. Taking the right decision will help you reach where you will be able to give your best with a smile. I guess it is best to teach yourself how to think and this is quite different from merely following what others do. For instance, if everyone around you is opting for engineering or computer science, it isn’t necessarily the best choice for you if you are always dreaming about design problems or business strategies or the way our legal system needs to be over-hauled. I’m sure you get the drift of what I am talking about. I am talking about knowing yourself and understanding that parameters of success include action thought of and executed before it is late. The future is never too far away and arrives sooner than you generally expect it to. It is never wise to allow the future to arrive to find you disheveled and disoriented. In simpler terms, it is only a specialized course that propels a person in an upgraded avatar. Specialized courses are forms of restricting that is essential to caress success in the current scenario. Advanced skills are routed through such courses.
The right direction
Specialized courses are spread all over and it is never too easy locating and finding one that suits your needs. One alternative that comes to mind is UPES in Dehradun, one of the leading multidisciplinary institution, offering specialized courses in fields like as diverse as engineering, computer science, design, business, and law, among others, to produce industry ready and future-ready talent. Even a cursory glance at the website of this university tells me that this is the sort of place for whom Plutarch wrote centuries ago: ‘The mind is not a vessel to be filled, but a fire to be kindled.’ Students who have ambitious plans for their future need to be a part of a university where the goal is bringing intelligence and character walk together. No arrogance. No misleading thoughts. No maverick actions that are up to no good.
The right direction is obviously to choose a place of specialized study where sound knowledge, extensive information, and path-breaking ideas support each other… a place where challenges spur you towards actualization of your dreams… a place of study where being future-ready isn’t just about academic brilliance but also about a personality that is impeccable… a place that inspires innovative thoughts as well as the urge to create for the benefit of mankind… a place where every thought remains steadfastly focused on the end-user and the sort of life he would ultimately have.
Some pundits would call all these attributes in a place of learning their professional approach. I just call it the right choice that a worthy student made at the right time.
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The right direction is towards specialization
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Arvind Passey
28 January 2019
