Career counselling: Q&A

Q-1) Sir, I seeking your help regarding my son; he obtained 62pc marks 667/1100 in FSc and completed his BS (Hons) in Physics degree with 2.65 CGPA (70pc) from COMSAT Lahore. Now I want his admission to M.Phil Physics but he has no more interest in the subject and desires to take admission to Economics or MBA? You are requested to please advice us in which subject/university he should take admission i.e. MSc/MS or M. Phil and what will be better for his professional life. (Ali Khan, Lahore)

Ans: Your son has a lot of options with his physics background. These may include environmental science, clean technology and information systems (provided he has interest in computing science). However, if he has no more interest in science the other option would be to let him do Economics and Finance, MBA is only for those who have work experience. I doubt whether he would be successful doing Economics at master’s level starting from scratch. 

Q-2) I am a PhD scholar in Urdu language with 33 years of age and have been working as Urdu lecturer for seven years in Pakistan and have also served one year in Qatar (Bright Future International School Qatar) as Urdu teacher.  I am impatient to excel in the field of Urdu from well-recognised institutes of the world (summer) 2017. My institution would surely support me to attend all conferences / training which last minimum of 10 to 15 days. (Khalid Hussain, Karachi)

Ans: I understand that you have completed your PHD in Urdu language which means that you would need information on postdoctoral studies or specialised training in Urdu for which there are scholarships and funding available. A number of universities offer the scholarships and to mention a few are Kings College London, University of Oxford UK and Berkley USA. However, they will need to know some specific information on your synopsis and research area. Please prepare this information and write to them and I am sure you will get a positive answer.

Q-3) Sir, my son is about to complete his DAE (Mechanical). What will be suitable for his future studies? (Taimoor Mushtaq, Islamabad)

Ans: Your son has various options available that lead to further study and or work in the area of mechanical. However, my suggestion is that he finds relevant work experience in Pakistan for a couple of years and then proceeds for further education whether in Pakistan or abroad. His DAE mechanical will easily get him an admission to year 2 of BSc mechanical in any country provided he passed his DAE with good grades and thus an IELTS of TOEFL with the required levels. 

Q-4) My son has done BSCS from Fast and he is looking towards doing a master's with an specialism in the same area. Your guidance is required to help him choose a specialism that has more future prospects. (Humayun Sheikh, Lahore)

Ans: Computing science is now a huge domain with a number of sub-specialisms that narrow down the CS into niche areas. I am sure if your son has interest in software development or networking etc, however, depending on his skills he could look at MSc cyber crimes, MSc network security and MSc digital forensics. I recommend he Google the information first and evaluates modules and contents before making a final decision. All these areas have future growth prospects.

Syed Azhar Husnain Abidi is a renowned educationist in Pakistan, with more than 20 years of experience as provider of education counselling services.