Career counselling; questions and answers

Q1: I have done MA Special Education with CGPA 3.11. Now I am doing MA Education Leadership Management in evening programme and in morning I am working in a school as Vice-Principal. Please advise me what I should do in future. (Muhammad Aslam – Multan)Ans: After completing your Masters in Leadership Management you can look up towards finding a better career opportunity. However, I am not sure what your future prospects are with your current job. I am hopeful that your management should consider promoting you after all the qualifications and experience that you have. There are opportunities for you to go abroad both for education and career prospects.

Q2: I have completed my Bachelors in Business Administration and I have done my internship. I wanted to pursue my career in education and after graduation; I joined an international school as a teacher. I am planning to start my MBA in Education Management and my basic goal is to be a management trainee or a lecturer. Please guide me that whether I have picked the right education programme and should continue this job while doing my MBA? (Sehar Bano – Gujrat)

Ans: You have diverted your focus from business administration towards education and the MBA you are doing leads in making you a manager in academia. I am not sure whether becoming a teacher or a management trainee will help you in building your profile. In my opinion, you should focus on getting a professional qualification and gain relevant experience to develop a career whether it is teaching or managing an institution.

Q3: My brother is about to complete BSc (Hons) in Biochemistry. He is confused to choose about subject specialty with best prospective. Please guide Clinical Pathology is better for him or Forensic Biochemistry, especially if he moves to UAE in future? (Muhammad Ali – Karachi)

Ans: Both clinical pathology and forensic biochemistry are subjects that are in huge demand; however, I am not sure which one would fetch your brother a job in Middle East. I can however advice you that forensic science is emerging subject area and there are a number of offshoots that he can take in making a career around this specialty.

Q4: My son did MSc in Genetics and Forensic from UAE in 2014 and since then he does not have any job in UAE or in Pakistan. Now he is working for a call centre in night shift in Karachi. It is very disappointing for me that after MSc he is not getting job for his standard or his field. Please give us some advice. (Shams Taj – Karachi)

Ans: I would advise him to do some research on his career prospects and locate the right agencies and institutions that are involved in research within the domain of genetics and forensic sciences. If he does not get a paid job he should opt for an unpaid apprenticeship and try to gain hands on experience and make contacts with relevant people to find future career opportunities.

Q5: I have done MA History and MA English Literature. I got 2nd division in MA English Literature. Now should I go for English MPhil and then PhD in English or should I do a diploma in TEFL which will equalise the MA English 2nd division. Kindly guide the scope of English subject. (Shakeel Ahmed – Attock)

Ans: The qualification you are currently perusing is a diploma in TEFL will surely help build your skills in learning about teaching English as a foreign language. However, you should focus on getting more practice to strengthen your command over written and spoken English and let me assure you English has huge opportunities for those who have command and can teach at all levels. 

(Syed Azhar Husnain Abidi is a renowned educationist in Pakistan, with more than 20 years of experience as a provider of education counselling services. He has represented Pakistan in over 100 national and international seminars, conferences and fora. He is the recipient of the most coveted civil award Tamgha-e-Imtiaz).