Bharat Jain guides students on alternative career paths

Around 100 students and their parents attended a career guidance session at Hotel Shivalik view, Sector 17, Chandigarh, on Sunday, where career expert Bharat Jain highlighted opportunities beyond conventional professions such as medicine and engineering.

The interactive session, titled “Careers Beyond the Obvious”, aimed to broaden students’ understanding of career options and encourage them to select professional paths according to their interests, aptitude and abilities.

Jain, with 31 years of experience in career guidance, said many students and parents still view becoming a doctor or engineer as the primary route to a successful career, despite the range of opportunities available in other disciplines.

Law, management and media offer diverse options

Jain said students had different interests, abilities and ways of thinking, making it important to recognise that a single career path could not suit everyone.

He emphasised the need to provide students with accurate information about alternative professions at the right stage of their academic journey. He said students should assess their own strengths and interests before choosing a career, rather than following others, and added that Career Launcher could guide them through the process.

A law degree can lead to careers in litigation, corporate legal affairs, cyber law, and legal consultancy. Management education offers opportunities in marketing, finance, human resources, business administration and entrepreneurship.

Other options highlighted during the session included hotel management, tourism, fashion designing, journalism, public relations, psychology, filmmaking, sports management and event management.

The discussion focused on familiarising students and parents with the breadth of professional opportunities available across different sectors and challenged the perception that success is limited to a small number of traditional career choices.

Higher education offers multiple pathways

Data from the Ministry of Education’s-All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2021–22 shows that approximately 4.33 crore students were enrolled in higher education institutions across India.

At the undergraduate level, 34.2 per cent of students were enrolled in arts, followed by 14.8 per cent in science, 13.3 per cent in commerce and 11.8 per cent in engineering and technology.

The figures show the range of disciplines in India’s higher education system, with substantial enrolment beyond engineering and technology.

The session highlighted the importance of helping students understand these academic pathways and the professional opportunities they offer before deciding on further studies.

Early career planning can help students make informed choices

Classes X and XI were highlighted as key stages in a student’s academic journey, when subject selection and higher-education plans begin to take shape.

Awareness of available courses, entrance examinations and employment opportunities can help students make informed decisions rather than choosing subjects or professions hastily or under social pressure.

The programme also encouraged parents to recognise their children’s individual interests and abilities and guide them accordingly.

The session aimed to broaden students’ understanding of career options and help them approach decisions about their future with greater awareness.