Make your Passion your Profession

'Choose your career on the basis of who you are'

Many regions and states in India are highly developed. If you looked around major cities in the North especially you would be surprised by the wealth and development which surrounds you. Not only is the landscape varied and the culture diverse but the opportunities between states and communities are vast. Each region though governed by the state controls education separately and government led schemes for health and livelihoods. This impacts the equality of how the system works and schemes are implemented. With so many rural communities and a ever growing population even on a state level villages and some districts can miss out. Opportunities are often said in England to be brighter for the upper classes, in India it is also true, the higher castes are more wealthy.

Part of the work which we are doing here in Tamil Nadu involves talking about career options after 10th Standard (Year 11), Degree courses at University, Diploma options, CV writing, personal development and training scheme and job hunting advice. Whilst in Vellore are target is to work with at least 24 individuals between the ages of 14-32 to create their own action plan. The action plan aims to help the individual think about their own qualities; strengths and weaknesses, skills and to get them to think about what they want to achieve, their dreams. To help them think about what they could achieve, a realistic plan for their future taking into consideration any issues which may prevent their success.

Our target communities in Vellore, the rural villages of Vanjur and Jebrapet have two primary schools and one secondary school between and many children from the surrounding villages  also attend them. The classes range from 30-100 pupils with few girls staying on past 9th Standard. However  the growing importance in some families is getting stronger in these communities and girls and boys are travelling to the city to continue their education, though the options of course continue to be very limited.

 Commonly known jobs, such as a Mechanical Engineer or a Doctor, are often oversubscribed and thus finding work is an extremely difficult task. However there are many roles within the fields of Engineering and Medicine that are less well know, and many other entire fields of work that are often overlooked, that can provide secure well paid work. On Monday we went to Don Bosco's Matriculation School and held a careers fair. As we were told it was for 9th Standard boys we planned to talk mainly about post 10th Standard  subject options and leading into why these choices would effect the degrees they can apply for later on. Not only did we want to inform them of the variety of career opportunities available to them but to inspire them to think about what they like , hobbies and subjects, what their passion is.Qualifications, education can be the key to their success as long as it is paired with your own interests and personal qualities.  When we arrived the headmaster gave us 11th Standard which was even better. We got the boys to promise that when they think about the next step to remember that you must Make your Passion your Profession! 

 While being in Vellore I have discovered that they choose to study Engineering or Medicine because they are told to and they aren't aware of the other choices. Sassi one of the national volunteers studied Electrical Engineering but doesn't ever and has never wish to be an Engineer. 'I never enjoyed Science or the course, I like Maths though'. When I asked him why he had studied it he said that his parents had never been to University and wanted him to study Engineering for it is thought to be a good thing to study. 'We don't know about the other jobs or degrees, people just know Doctor or Engineer.' Two young boys came over to talk to me after the careers fair to say thank you. One of the boys told me that he has always wanted to be an Electrical Engineer for that is all he knew but now he sees that even in that field of work he could train in 46 other types. The other had wanted to be a doctor but now thought his skills in Maths means he should be an accountant instead. They were so grateful and sweet, I hope to stay in touch so that after their exams we can support them further if they so wish. 

On Monday we also held a session in the Secondary school grounds for 258 6th-9th Standard pupils.  We spoke about the importance of reading and writing and education to be able to achieve their dream. We asked them what they wanted to be when they grew up. Out of all those children  they knew 5 career choices; 

• Doctor/Nurse

• Engineer

• Teacher

• Police

• Army

Then we held up 6 pictures of other career choices and the children guessed what they might be and we talked about them. By the end of the session some children said they now wanted to be an accountant or a beautician instead.  We tried to encourage them to follow their heart and to explore as many options as possible before deciding what route to take to make sure you as an individual find work that is engaging for you interests and provides the support you need.

It's easy to think that running these sessions has no impact for their is no instant evidence of change. But it's a start and it's something, a seed of new knowledge has been planted. Even if just one of these children we met on Monday starts to think about the variety of options available to them or has a happy memory. Then it's a success. Why begin to help change happen tomorrow when you can begin today?

The next few weeks will be busy filled with many more of these awareness raising and education sessions. I am so thankful to be here in India. Waking up each day to visit more children and plan sessions to help them gather the skills they need to create a sustainable and enjoyable life.

Stay Beautiful,

Zsofia xxxx