Career counselling: questions and answers

Q1: Respected Mr Abidi, I am doing BDS, but I'm not interested in clinical work after BDS. My interest is in MSc epidemiology & Masters in Public Health. Please guide about jobs and scope of these master programmes. (Mustansir Gujjar-Gujranwala)

Ans: Dear Mustansir, the most in-demand and emerging specialism in dental surgery has now become Dental Hygiene. These specialists are very popular across the world especially in Australia and Canada offering PR possibility. However, your decision to do MSc Epidemiology is also good alternately you can look towards doing Orthodontics.

Q2: Dear Mr Abidi, I have done my MSc (Hons) Development Economics. Please let me know, I should apply for PhD now or should do some short computer course? Please advise which courses will be beneficial for me? (Mukhar Kahloon-Sialkot)

Ans: Dear Mr Kahloon, I will advise you to find an internship in case that you are finding difficult to get a job. Sometimes internships without a salary help you to engage with the work environment and help to develop contacts that ultimately connect you to a job opportunity. An internship is also a good way to gain relevant experience. Internships are available in Pakistan and internationally for which you need to browse internet regularly.

Q3: Sir, I am doing BSc in Microbiology from a public sector university in Lahore and wish to study further in the area of Genetics or Stem Biology? I would appreciate your suggestion if my decision is right and where should I study for my MPhil. (Dameer Yousaf–Lahore)

Ans: Dameer, Microbiology and Molecular Biology both are very strong subjects when it comes to research in Biological and Health Sciences. Genetics, Cell Biology and Cloning are among the most popular areas of research. Stem Technology on the other hand has opened up new dimensions in finding cure in oncology or cancer in particular. MScs and MPhils are offered across the OECD countries, including US, UK and Germany with scholarships. I am sure you will find more information on Internet.

Q4: Dear sir, I am doing Computer Science and right now I am in my last semester at COMSATS. I attended your presentation in Islamabad and I was very much impressed with your advice and suggestions for the emerging subject areas in Computing Science. I wish to take further advice from you on the different option available. (Yamin Raja-Islamabad) Ans: Dear Mr Yamin, please note that Computer Science is now very vast and huge domain, the specialism that I spoke about during my presentation included Internet Security, Digital Forensic, Cyber Crime, Cloud Computing and IOT (Internet of Things). Most Universities in USA, Canada and UK offer these degrees many with scholarships depending on merit and grades. I hope you are able to find career of your choice based on your interest within the Computer Science area.

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