Breaking Stereotypes
A Bunch of words no longer mean a string
1.5 million Engineers pass out every year in India alone,
what are we striving towards? Is it just the pressure of society? Are we
blinded by the fact that Engineering is the sole good professional career and
that it assures job security? There are many Best Engineering Colleges in India.
But, according to statistics, around 60% of these engineers are unemployed. Why
then, are we not understanding the importance of a shift to a different domain?
A very wrong and basic conception in our society is that you
are smart and educated only if you are an engineer (or a doctor). You can earn
and support yourself if and only if you have a 9-5 working job, i.e. an
engineer. A lot of youngsters these days take up engineering only due to
parental or peer pressure, against their will. There is a notion that taking up
engineering is a ticket to getting a stable job and settling down in life,
which I believe is a terribly flawed thought. It is a known fact that campus
placements are given in the Best engineering colleges in Hyderabad, Bangalore,
Chennai and other metropolitan cities. But, barely any student gets recruited.
Firstly, there is no such field which is a safe bet. Getting a job solely
depends on your interest in that line of study. Second, with the increasing
number of students taking up engineering and the reducing number of jobs, the
competition is greater than ever before, and the pressure is tremendous. Why
not consider a shift then?
Recent times have seen the emergence of a different,
multifaceted domain- Humanities. Are you interested in Shakespeare? Curious to
learn more about the past? Are you a little spiritual in nature? Does mother
nature fascinate you? An answer to all these questions is ‘Humanities’.
Humanities is a vast and interesting field including literature, law, history, archaeology,
philosophy, art, etc. Maybe, a basic way to define Humanities would be to say
that it is an understanding, processing and recording of human participation or
experience. It is the primary means of learning from the past and putting forth
new, better ideas; a platform for expressing oneself.
Humanities is a very fascinating field which is growing fast
at the moment. Jobs related to Humanities include law, teaching, sales,
technical writing, event organizing, editing to name a few. Humanities includes
communication which is one of the main skills any individual must possess.
Without communication, you are like a caged bird who cannot fly. One may have a
lot of knowledge or ideas but to put that forth and deliver the same effectively
requires a whole lot of Humanities! The importance of this field is highly
underrated. With advancement in technology, it becomes very necessary to
implement and present these achievements and advancements to an audience.
Currently pursuing my engineering, literature has always
been my passion. Shifting to humanities is easier said than done. It requires
undying enthusiasm and whole-hearted determination. There is a need to develop
certain skills to be eligible for hiring. Apart from professional courses that
are offered, if you are keenly passionate, there are other ways to get up
there. For a start, considering an example of pursuing writing, you could
always begin with freelance writing, then take one step further and start a
blog with your work. Further, you could go ahead and do internships as well. To
quote another example, in case you want to pursue dance, music, etc. you could
start a YouTube channel to showcase your artistic side and so on and so forth.
Remember, where there’s a will, there’s a way! It’s never too late, just
requires a little bit of patience and dedication.
A lot of young creative curious minds don’t pick humanities
due to societal views. A common misconception is that the income in this field
is low. Let’s get one point straight, not every Engineer has a well-salaried
job. There is an expanding pool of skilled workers, all having the same assets
which of course is of no use. With the increasing need for language communication
and translation, literature is an ever-growing necessary and interesting field.
With so many new products in the market, it becomes a necessity to sell these
to the buyers; Sales management comes into play. With the increase in the
number of suicides, a growing population is undergoing a lot of problems and
needs to be helped and shown the right path; Counselling is of utmost priority.
I have, as you can see listed hardly 10% of the career paths and opportunities
that this one field can offer, there are a lot more.
A shift from Engineering to Humanities? Yes, the struggle is
real but, worth it.
This article is sponsored by Getmyuni.com
