Student's Corner:- The Counsellor - 37

THE COUNSELLOR

 

 

 

   
Embracing change

Although my company has not yet announced "loadshedding", the rumour is that it's inevitable. Like my colleagues in IT, I am in total panic. Perhaps I shouldn't have chosen finance at all. Should I look at marketing? Please advice.
    Rajesh Verma

You know, there's a classic stock market aphorism: Invest when there's blood on the street. Sound advice, except when it's your blood on the street.
   The popular debate is not how much the economy would dip, but where the bottom would be, and whether at all it would bounce back. Of course it will, says the incurable optimist in me (but this is not about what I 'feel').
   The question is When? And does that mean that until that happens we stop planning for our careers?
   Instead, if we stick to the classic concepts of career selection and career retooling - choosing the field we love, and preparing for a long-term stint in that career, chances are we won't come to grief.
   So instead of moping and lending ear to all the doomsayers gathered around the water cooler (or office corridor), take stock of your current situation, review your skill-sets and experience. Better still, get a proven expert to review it for you.
   Use the slack period to acquire new skills, spruce up your bio, network with people in your industry as well as in others that interest you. Look at related upcoming fields that you idly toyed with all these years. In short, put your head down and think and act innovatively. Follow my favourite maxim: “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”
   No stream or profession is “recession-proof.” Every industry has its cycles — its ups and downs.When the earth shakes, all trees shake - some more some less.
   At this point, your industry may be in a down cycle. Which means you may have to settle for a lower raise / payscale than your counterparts in some other fields.
   And remember, you didn't plan this. It happens. These are cyclical events that happen from time to time - globally (although this is one hell of a whopper). Just concentrate on doing your job the best you can, volunteer to take on extra tasks - in short, make yourself indispensable.
   Also consider investing in a short-term course - that finance or marketing module, you always wanted to pursue or that language which would give you a leg-up (computer or foreign). Catch up on your fitness regime. Learn Yoga, Tai Chi, Karate, Salsa, Bhangda, whatever.
   Among others, you'll have the advantage of keeping abreast of new developments in your field. And when this downturn lifts, you'll be all shining and ready to grab the new opportunities that open up and reap the harvest and perhaps even command a huge premium. Keep learning and growing and the rewards will come - as sure as day follows night.
   Historically, our economy has shown tremendous resilience whenever it's been down for the count. There's no denying that the global turmoil has had its impact here, but since the global services sector relies so significantly on Indian talent, experts feel that if the slowdown is a short one, it could even fuel business for Indian firms as US companies look to cut costs. Perhaps this will also catalyze Indian outsourcing firms, predominantly dependant on the US market, to diversify. So, let's keep our fingers crossed. The psychological impact aside, domestic IT growth may not suffer overly.
   The question is, do you have the self-confidence and conviction to weather the storm?

 

   
Animation basket

I could not get into a good computer engineering course because I am not very good in studies. What is the scope of multimedia and animation? Could you please tell me something about these fields? I am fairly creative.
    Kushal Sehgal

So what if you couldn't crack the engineering entrances, your creativity can take you places.
   Multimedia covers a number of areas like animation, web design and CD authoring. Students who are not so comfortable with the English language can do the web designing and multimedia course easily. For hardcore programming jobs, companies prefer those with BTech or MCA degree but for multimedia and web designing jobs, these degrees are not so important. Any student who has completed a multimedia course and has a thorough knowledge can easily get a job.
   Besides this, you can also start your own DTP, multimedia or web designing business with a small investment. Several private and some government institutions offer courses in web-page designing and multimedia. But all these courses must be weighed for their worthiness with a pinch (if not a handful) of salt.
   Make sure you select one that focuses on the fundamentals of web-page designing and production processes besides relevant languages like HTML, XTML, java, etc.
   A good 6-12 month course should familiarise you with getting onto the net and working with these languages, using the various multimedia software used for animation, moving images, colouring text, etc which go on to make a web page.
   After that, the next step is to team up with a websitedesigner or developer to get the necessary hands-on exposure. You could even work as an assistant to a web-master initially. Also, it makes a lot of sense to invest in your own computer. This work requires a lot of practice and self-learning.
   While reading and practice will sharpen your skills, finally it's your talent and speed that will take you places.
   According to Nasscom, animation and gaming are set to register a CAGR of 35% and 78% respectively to reach $950 million and $300 million by 2009. Large companies like Sony Entertainment are looking at India as a market as well as a resource base for technology partnerships. By the 2009-end there will be a need for more than 30,000 animation professionals - give or take some thanks to the slowdown.

 

 

 

 

 

Sunil Sharma

   Moderator

Dil Se Desi Group

&

www.dilsedesi.org

 

Visit My Forum"Sunil Ke Adde Main" on the website, click from below to visit any of my sub forum:-

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Student's Corner:- The Counsellor - 36

THE COUNSELLOR

   
Beyond boundaries

I am residing in Gurgaon and I want to pursue MBA from a reputed college. Please give me a list of B-schools in Gurgaon.
   Suresh Mishra

I would urge you not to confine your choice of a B-school to Gurgaon or even Delhi for that matter. An MBA is your brand equity for life. Make sure you do it from the best school possible — regardless of where or how far in India you may need to go for it.
   
Visa issues

Please tell me something about the new point-based immigration system introduced in UK. Does it mean that it will become very difficult to immigrate there? I work in a hotel and I am very keen to move to London.
   Vikas Rajan

The new points-based system was introduced in February this year to rate prospective immigrants based on their skills. Besides making people aware of whether they could settle down in the country or not, this would increase the immigrant flow, although the prevalent view is that it has been brought about to restrict the number of people coming into the UK. Europe being in need of skilled manpower due to its declining population, the points-based immigration system would, in principle, provide a fair chance to skilled Indian workers to work and settle in UK. However, there are always some “ifs” and “buts”. Since the US slowdown has had global ramifications, jobs and hiring have taken a severe beating in the UK as well. And some sectors are more affected than others.

 

 

Right bet

I completed Master’s in Urdu in the year 2006. I also cleared NET (Urdu) with 63.11% marks. What type of jobs can I look at?
Gokul Chand

After completing a PhD in Urdu, you can take up teaching at the college or university level. With the proliferation of the media, there is a growing demand for those who can communicate with style, ease and competence. There are large number of Urdu based channels being telecast worldwide. So you have the option to join electronic media. You can work there as announcer, newsreader, anchorperson or scriptwriter. You can also work as a journalist in print media and web content creator in the online medium. Creative writing is yet another option. You can be a copywriter in an advertising agency, technical writer, public relations executive or editor. An additional course in public relation, journalism, advertising or mass communication would give you the necessary professional edge.
   You could also look at openings abroad in countries where Urdu is widely spoken. It is in the Middle-East countries and some of the western South Asian countries where you could look for job openings, but be prepared to face stiff competition from the local applicants who might have similar qualifications and the added advantage of regional and market familiarity.If you are fluent with any language other than Urdu ie English or French, a translator or interpreter's job may be worth. The Indira Gandhi National Open University (Ignou) has introduced BEd (Urdu) in collaboration with Maulana Azad National Urdu University, Hyderabad, www.manuu.ac.in.

 

   
Looking ahead

I belong to a family of farmers in Himachal Pradesh. I have heard that cultivating aromatic medicinal plants is a very lucrative option. Hoe far this true?
   Vijay Kumar

Plants have been used medicinally since antiquity. According to the World Health Organisation’s survey, 80% of the world’s population uses plants as medicine for primary health care. Plant based medicines are used in various systems ie Ayurveda, Siddha, Unani, Homeopathy and even in Allopathy to some extent. Nearly 90% of plant-based medicines are obtained from nature, while 10% are from medicinal plants cultivated in farms. However, owing to the growing demand of plant based medicines, there is an urgent need to grow certain medicinal plants on a large scale. Some common spices and condiments are being cultivated in farms on a large scale eg black pepper, chilies, coriander, cumin, fennel, garlic, ginger, mustard, mint, onion, turmeric etc. You could also consider this option.
   India has rich plant diversity to meet the growing demands of plant based medicines, perfumery and flavouring. India’s favourable soil and climate plays host to over 320 of the 400 families of flowering medicinal plants in the world. As we have some of the rarest and most needed medicinal plants in
India, we can capitalise on this to capture a large share of the growing global trade. Organic farming would go a long way in increasing the acceptability of these plants. Pharmaceutical companies, manufacturers of ayurvedic medicines, herbal cosmetics, health food, perfume industry and nature cure clinics — in India and abroad namely USA, EU, Japan and Australia constitute the major market for Indian medicinal plants. On the other hand many others like New Zealand, Germany and Korea have shown keen interest. While our domestic market alone is huge, and growing steadily, our herbal exports to the US exceed that of China.
   The National Medicinal Plants Board, www.nmpb.nic.in, expects export of medicinal and value-added products from India to double from the present Rs 800-900 crore, by 2011-12. Several states eg Kerala, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and Uttaranchal offer incentives for plantation of medicinal herbs. The entire Himalayan region of Himachal Pradesh, particularly the higher reaches of Chamba, Kulu, Shimla and Sirmour districts, is home to over 3,500 species of herbs and aromatic plants. Of these as many as 70 endangered Himalayan herbs with rare medicinal properties are on the verge of extinction.
   By 2011-12 government’s new National Mission on Medicinal Plants (NMMP) expects to bring some 80,000-1,00,000 hectares of land under medicinal plants through direct financial assistance for cultivation, and an almost equal area, which will be covered by incentivising farmers who may switch over from traditional crops to medicinal plants. Some 200 nurseries are proposed to be set up, both in the public and private sector, for making available seeds of certified quality.
   New testing labs are being created through public-private partnerships.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sunil Sharma

   Moderator

Dil Se Desi Group

&

www.dilsedesi.org

 

Visit My Forum"Sunil Ke Adde Main" on the website, click from below to visit any of my sub forum:-

1. Careers

2. Computer Tips & Tricks

3. Medical Info

4. Management Lessons

5. My Creative Works

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The Counsellor - 14

 

 

Which way


I am a final year student pursuing MSc in biotech. I am confused whether to pursue PhD or some professional qualification like an MBA. Can you tell me something about research prospects?
Chandra Babu

 
There are vast opportunities in biotech particularly for those who have specialised in areas like clinical research and manufacturing, field testing of GM crops, regulatory affairs such as IPR and biosafety, consultancy for business planning and global collaborations. The need for trained manpower in biotech has increased as the industry has grown 35% in the last four years. While there is sufficient number of people in the industry with MSc in biotech, more quality PhDs are required.

 

   India needs biotech schools with state-of-the art facilities to produce biotech professionals for the industry. India can become a global R &D hub if incentives are provided for research on a longterm basis. The country's future growth would mainly depend on innovation and ability to bring new technology from overseas.

 

   Our scientific pool of qualified researchers and the largest number of U S Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) approved plants outside the US, would help also us grab a large chunk of the $ 100 billion contract manufacturing and research pie which is expected to grow manifold in the coming decade. So if a career in research interests you, you have little to worry.

At Crossroads


I have been working in a bank for the last four years and wish to pursue an MBA but I can’t go away from my family. Should I opt for an MBA through distance learning mode?
Alisha

 
I should think not. A good MBA degree coupled with a great time with the family is drawing midcareer professionals to bring their families along to B-school campuses. Increasingly, experienced married executives who want to pursue an MBA are taking their families to campus so they don't miss out on spending quality time together. An evolved support system across B-schools is encouraging them to take this decision. From fully furnished housing facilities, convenience stores, recreation centres to play area for kids, B-schools are offering all these.

 

   The new concept has been introduced by the premier Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad and is soon catching up with others. Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad (IIM-A) and IIM-C also plan to provide similar facilities. ISB has 118 families staying on campus while 67 students out of 72 from IIMA's PGPX 2008 batch (residential programme for experienced professionals) were staying en famille and 16 out of 42 students from IIM-C' PGPX course this year had their spouse and kids staying with them. Don't worry; you will be allotted a fully furnished studio apartment. And when the kid comes along, there are daycare facilities with a special play area for toddlers and young kids. ISB charges an extra Rs 90,000 for such facilities.
   In case, the B-school does not have family accommodation, you can always take up a flat near the campus, after requesting for special permission to do so. I doubt if any Bschool would object to that.

Looking ahead


What is the cost of acquiring a Seibel administration certification and how can I get it? Do I need to attend a training programme organised by Oracle or can I do it by myself ? If I can’t clear it in the fiirst attempt, will I get a second one?

 

Rohan

 

 
You'll need to do ORACLE Siebel 7.7 essentials course + siebel 8.0 case study course to be able to take the certification test. You can't do it by yourself, you'll have to take the coaching from Oracle University and this can be pretty expensive. I think $195 is just the exam fee and a whopping $2625 is the training fee.You can get the exact prices on the Oracle/Siebel website or on metalink3.oracle.com

 

   As far as the number of attempts is concerned,you can try as many times as you want, but you'll have to wait for a period of 14 days between the tests.

Labour Laws

I am keen to work with the International Labour Organisation (ILO). How can I get an assignment? KL Satish Thakur

 
Since you have not mentioned your present qualifications or field of work, let me give you a general picture.
   The International Labour Organisation (ILO) is a UN body. Its primary aim is to promote opportunities for men and women to obtain decent and productive work in conditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity.

 

   India is one of the founding members of the ILO and has been a permanent member of its governing body since 1922. The ILO recruits in the general services category and professional services category.

 

   The general services category is concerned with three major occupational groups viz. administration related support work, technical support work and manual trades and other support work. The basic requirement is a good knowledge of the prevailing labour issues and laws, nationally as well as internationally. At the national level, applicants must preferably have local expertise/experience in a labour organisation e.g. lawyers specialising in labour issues, social scientists and people associated with labour organisations.

 

   Professional services category deals with the theoretical or practical aspects of fields such as finance and accounts, law, education, social science, economics, business and administration , managerial and other technical specialisations. Most of these require substantial academic preparation, normally at the advanced university level.

 

   The ILO also conducts an internship programme for undergraduate and postgraduate students (involved in a specialised field related to ILO's work) where they can complete their studies by acquiring practical knowledge and a better understanding of ILO policies and programmes. Interns are assigned either to the ILO Headquarters or its field offices.

 

   For ILO's associate expert programme, you must have a Bachelor's or Master's or an equivalent technical qualification along with some years of work experience. The typical age limit is 32 years. The assignment varies from two to five years depending upon the policy and financial possibilities of the donor.

 

   The ILO essentially looks for candidates with multi-disciplinary knowledge about various labour issues; an awareness of international developments; and a 'can-do' and acceptable personality. For further information log on to: www.ilo.org  

 

American dreams


I am keen to get into University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) in the US. My class X preboard marks were not too good but I worked hard to improve my performance in the board exams. If I score well in class XII, will I have a good chance of getting into UCLA? Also, which subjects would you you recommend if I want to study genetics?
Durwasa Singh

 
The University of California's general catalogue states two principles on which entrance requirements are based.They are:The best guarantee of success is high quality of scholarship (academic performance) in previous work.

 

Study of certain specific subjects will give a student both a good preparation for studying at the University and reasonable freedom of choice of a major field of study. In your case it would be biology.

 

Undergraduate applicants must possess what is considered a ‘satisfactory’ SAT score as determined by the University.
If you are going to be a geneticist, take biology, physics, chemistry as well as math in class XI and XII. Although it's often believed that bio-sciences don't require any mathematical ability, this simply isn't true. Also remember, that most people's career choices change several times before they finally opt for specialisation at the postgraduate level, so keep an open mind.

 

 

Sunil Sharma

    Moderator

Dil Se Desi Group

 

The Counsellor - 12

 

 

 

Career Wise

I have great interest in anthropology and want to pursue it at the BSc level. Can you tell me the career prospects in anthropology?
Sheela Singh

 
If people, their behaviour, customs and rituals fascinate you, anthropology may well be your cup of tea.

 

   Mainly divided into two branches - cultural and physical (with further sub-branches under each) - anthropology is a social science like history and sociology that studies human beings. It focuses particularly on their physical characteristics, evolution,racial classification,historic and present-day geographic distribution, current social formations, group dynamics and cultural history.

 

   Several universities offer anthropology -- both at the BA as well as BSc-level.

 

   Students of anthropology go on to pursue postgraduate courses either in anthropology or sociology, which is related to field. With a Master's in this subject, you can look at opportunities in teaching, anthropological research,museology and developmental work. While some become anthropologists,some pursue forensic science, or even go for market research. Several consumer product companies like Nokia, Motorola, Intel, Microsoft employ trained user anthropologists or human behaviour researchers to study potential customers and their requirements so that this knowledge can be translated into betterdesigned products and services. The information is valuable to the technologists, designers and marketing people in the organisation.

 

   Appearing for Civil Services examination is yet another popular option. Besides the Anthropological Survey of India, museums, archives, NGOs, universities, hospitals and organisations such as the Indian Council for Medical Research, World Health Organisation, department of child and family welfare employ anthropologists as social scientists.

 

   At the Bachelor's level, in Delhi University, there are 10 papers in all, two in the first year, physical anthropology and social anthropology.There are three papers in the second year: social institutions, prehistoric anthropology and fundamentals of human origin and evolution. Third year papers include human genetics, peasantries etc

Which way

I am a student of BSc (nursing). Due to acute rheumatoid arthritis, I will not be able to work in a hospital or a clinic. I have heard that there are some options for medical professionals in the BPO sector. Is this true?
Sukanya Balu

 
More and more outsourcing firms in India are now hiring medical professionals as they look for new areas of business to supplement shrinking incomes from sectors that have traditionally opted for outsourcing like finance and banking. Four outsourcing firms Wipro BPO, TCS, Cognizant and HCL are hiring doctors, nurses and paramedics. About 15-18 people come on board every month. The pay obviously depends on experience and quality of work, but it is common for these BPOs to offer the doctors double of what they have been making. The average salary could start from Rs 45,000 and go up to Rs 3 lakh per-month.Those with pharmacy, medicine, dentistry, nursing and homeopathy degrees are in great demand. So don't worry.

What next

Could you please tell me if there is any way I can do my PhD in IT through distance learning. I have an MTech qualification and I am presently working in Information security.
   Eknath Bhupia

 
Perhaps there are others, but here are some you can start checking out right away:
   Pondicherry University, Directorate of Distance Education, Puducherry
   Thapar Institute of Engineering and Technology (TIET), Patiala, www.tiet.ac.in  
Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore (PT/Ext)
BITS, Distance Learning Programmes Divn, Pilani 333031 (www.bits-pilani.ac.in )
Karnataka State Open University, Karnataka

 

Looking ahead

I am planning to join a pre-sea cadet course. What is the scope of a career in the merchant navy?
   Mansukh Khan

 
   Currently there is a worldwide shortage of officers in merchant navy. Similarly, an increasing shortage of qualified officers to man sea-going vessels continues to confront the Indian shipping industry, even as the shipping fleet is expanding with ship owners lining up significant investments to buy marine assets. The worldwide demand for seafarers is estimated at 4.76 lakh officers as against an availability of 4.66 lakh.
 

 

  This shortfall of 10,000 may treble to 27,000 by 2015, as new orders for ships have increased and scrapping has dropped. Also India is unable to provide an adequate number of seafarers to man (and woman) the Indian flag vessels with many officers preferring to sail on board foreign flag vessels owing to discrepancy in taxation policies. Out of the total of 26,900 Indian officers, only 8,900 are employed in Indian flag vessels while 18,000 are serving in foreign flag vessels.

 

   Indian officers are rated right at the top particularly in segments such as specialty vessels and tankers that require quality seamen, where they even command a premium over their counterparts from Philippines, Russia and China.
 

 

  Many ship manning and management companies are looking at India as a major supplier of quality crew. Several have made commitments in the country's premier training institutes.
 

 

  The scope for further recruitment in India will go up as the export tonnage increases. And this is expected to continue well into 2010.

 

Connecting link

I am a student of electrical engineering. A number of telecom companies have been coming to campus for recruitment. Since we don't have much knowledge about this sector, as our college does not offer this branch of engineering, we are confused whether to accept these offers. Could you please help?
   Budhdev Rao

 
India has the third largest telecom network after China and USA. More than two lakh lines are added every day. And while there are more than 3.3 billion mobile phone subscribers worldwide, there are at least three billion others who do not own cellphones, the bulk of them in Asia and Africa. Even the smallest improvement in efficiency across those additional three billion people could reshape global economy in ways we may just be beginning to understand. In fact a study conducted by the London Business School concludes that for every additional 10 mobile phones per 100 people, a country's GDP rises 0.5% by raising people's productivity, earnings and well-being.

 

   Telecom requires trained, experienced and multi-skilled professionals. The burgeoning cellular segment offers great employment avenues. What's more, the demand is much higher than the supply. You could also look at data services ie Internet, leased lines, DSL and cable, which are the other constituents of this sector.

 

   This is also one sector, which is open to experimentation as far as recruiting people from different backgrounds is concerned.
   For the lower-end jobs, freshers have a great potential here so do techies. Software powered applications will drive the future of telecom, especially mobility.

 

   There is also a great demand for electrical and telecom engineers. In fact, Nasscom predicts a demand for one million telecom professionals over the next 5-10 years.
   A growing sector, a sound training base, rich dividends, and a host of incentives for freshers, it sure is a sector to watch.

 

 

 

Sunil Sharma

    Moderator

Dil Se Desi Group

 

The Counsellor - 11

 

 

Looking ahead

I want to pursue Master of fine arts (MFA) in applied arts by correspondence. Could you please suggest some universities?
   Prgya Mishra

 
Leaving aside the merits or demerits of studying art (that too, applied) through correspondence, you could check out the following options:
   

 

Jiwaji University, Institute of Distance Education, Gwalior offers MA in drawing and painting, www.idejug.org  
   

 

Madurai Kamraj University, Directorate of Distance Education, Madurai (TN), www.mkuniversity.org , offers MFA, M.Sc. in visual communication
   

 

SNDT Women's University, Centre for Distance Education, Sir Vithaldas Vidyavihar, Juhu Road, Santacruz (W), Mumbai 400049, offers twoyear MA in fine arts with specialisation in art and painting, www.sndt.digitaluniversity.ac.in  
   

 

Guru Nanak Dev University, Centre for Distance Education, Amritsar offers a one-year postgraduate diploma in commercial art,  www.gndu.ac  
   

 

Sikkim Manipal University, Gangtok offers one-year postgraduate diploma in graphics and animation, www.miteindia.com  

Distance education

Please tell me about recognised institutions and universities from where can I do MEd through distance mode.
   Lucky Pandey

 
Working teachers who have completed their BEd can opt for MEd from January 2008 through distance learning offered by various institutions/universities approved by the Distance Education Council (DEC). DCE and the National Council for Teachers Education (NCTE) have joined hands to develop a nationallevel curriculum for the MEd programme. More than 30 universities offer MEd (distance education) courses.
 

 

  I am listing a few of them in north India for you:
   Indira Gandhi National open University (IGNOU) www.ignou.ac.in  
   

 

Barkatullah Vishwavidyalaya, Bhopal 462026
  

 

 Himachal Pradesh University, International Centre for Distance Education and Open Learning, Shimla 171005, www.hpuniv.nic.in  
   

 

Vardhaman Mahaveer University, Akelgarh, Kota, Rajasthan, www.vmoukota.com  
  

 

 Kurukshetra University, Directorate of Distance Education,
www.kukinfo.com  
  

 

 Maharshi Dayanand University, Directorate of Distance Education, Rohtak, Haryana, two-year correspondence in Med
   Nalanda Open University, Patna, Bihar
   

 

Panjab University, Department of Correspondence Studies, Chandigarh 160014, www.puchd.ac.in  
   

 

Punjabi University, Department of Correspondence Studies, Patiala 147002, www.universitypunjabi.org  
   University of Jammu, Directorate of Distance Education, Jammu, J&K
   University of Kashmir, Centre of Distance Education, Hazratbal, Srinagar 19006
   For further details, log on to the website or write to Director, Department of Distance Education of the respective

 

universities or the Distance Education Council (DEC), www.dec.ac.in  You could also get the relevant information on

 

www.ncte-in.org  which is the website of the National Council for Teacher Education which governs all education in this field.

 

Which way

Can you please tell me something about IPR (intellectual property rights) practice and suggest a few courses?
   Rakesh Jivan

 

There are barely 1,000 practicing patent professionals in the country. According to a NASSCOM report, 33% of the intellectual property (IP) professionals demand is from the knowledge process outsourcing (KPO) sector. According to a McKinsey report, the market demand for IP professionals is likely to touch 15,000 in the next three years.
   The study and application of IP laws has gained further momentum due to the IT and entertainment revolution and globalisation of the business environment. The importance and goodwill of a brand in the modern scenario has driven the demand for registering trademarks and patents.
Anyone pursuing law can opt for IPR as a specialisation during the final year of LLB.
   Practicing advocates and company secretaries can also practice as trademark agents. A practicing lawyer can also practice patenting.
   Non-lawyers need to acquire the IPR qualification to practice trademarks by giving a one-day exam and viva at the trademark office.
 

 

  Similarly, you need to take a oneday exam at the patent office to be eligible to practice patenting. Patenting being a somewhat technolegal area, you also need the basic skill of writing patents, which is honed only by experience.

 

   You can either top up a Bachelor's in law with a degree in IP law or if you have expertise in a given domain that too can be topped up with a qualification in IP law.
 

 

  Check out some of the following courses:
   National Law University, Jodhpur, Rajasthan, www.nlujodhpur.ac.in  offers a Master's degree in IPR and a postgraduate diploma in IPR Laws

 

   Amity Law School, Delhi ( www.amity.org )
   Delhi University's department of law offers diploma in IPR,  www.du.ac.in  
 

 

  FICCI Institute of Intellectual Property Development, New Delhi, offers a six-month postgraduate diploma in intellectual property management administration and law. The course is recognised by the ministry of human resource development.

 

   The Global Institute of Intellectual Property (GIIP) has tied-up with the University of Washington's Centre for Advanced Studies and Research on Intellectual Property (CASRIP) to offer an advance certificate programme on patent and intellectual property.

 

Programmes are offered through Software Technology Group (STG) training centres in Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata and Mumbai.
IGNOU and Queensland University of Technology Australia are jointly developing an online course on IPR. The two-year Master’s programme will be a unique course and it will aim at developing knowledge, awareness and practical skills in IPR. The course will commence from January next year.

 

Nursing hopes

Can you please tell me something about the scope of perfusion technology? I a student of BSc (nursing).
   Pryanka Sharma

 
A perfusionist is a skilled and qualified allied health professional who works as a member of an openheart surgery team, responsible for the selection, setup, and operation of a heart-lung machine and other life support systems such as artificial lungs, lABP LVAD, RVAD, and ECMO.
 

 

  Clinical perfusionists are required to operate circulation equipment when it becomes necessary to temporarily and artificially replace the patient's circulatory or respiratory functions. They also control the patient's body temperature during surgery.

 

   The perfusionist ensures blood supply to each cell during an openheart surgery even when the heart and lungs are not functioning. The removal of carbon dioxide from and addition of oxygen to the blood takes place through the machine when blood is pumped through it. This enables surgeons to make necessary cardiac repair. Understandably, this is a highly specialised job that requires total dedication.
   Following institutions offer courses:

 

   AIIMs, New Delhi offers MSc (perfusion tech).The eligibility criteria is BSc biology/perfusion tech
   CMC, Vellore (TN) offers one-year postgraduate diploma in perfusion tech, www.cmch-vellore.edu  
   Indian Society of Extra Corporeal Technologists (ISECT), Vadodara, Gujarat
   JNTU, Guntur, AP, offers a postgraduate diploma in perfusion at Yashodha College of Nursing, Hyderabad, AP
   Nizam Institute of Medical Sciences, Hyderabad, AP.
   Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences, , www.rguhs.ac.in , offers BSc in perfusion tech at Fr Muller Med College, Mangalore 575002; Jawaharlal Nehru Medical College, Belgaum 500001, St John's Medical College, Bangalore 560034, Narayana Hrudayalaya Institute of Medical Sciences, Bangalore, www.hrudayalaya.com . Eligibility is PUC with PCB with 50% marks
   SV Medical College,Tirupathi
   Sri Chitra Tirunal Institute of Medical Sc adn Tech, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala,
www.sctimst.ac.in/academic/allprogram.htm+perfusion  offers two-year postgraduate diploma in clinical perfusion. The eligibility is GNM plus one-year work experience/BSc (nursing).
   KEM Hospital, Mumbai, offers oneyear diploma in extra corporeal perfusion technology
You can find jobs in specialty/super specialty hospitals like Apollo, Escorts,Wockhardt, Fortis etc.

 

Sunil Sharma

    Moderator

Dil Se Desi Group