CAREER OPTIONS FOR THE YOUTH IN THE NEW MILLENNIUM

The dawn of the new millennium has thrown up a plethora of new career opportunities that were hitherto unknown to us. They have made the task of choosing a career for the youth more confusing and perplexing. This decision at times is fraught with suspense and anxiety, similar to that we see in a gambler, who with trembling solitude throws his dice. Fortunately for us, there are vast avenues for getting career information, through newspapers, electronic media and the Internet. There are an equally large number of career options to choose from.

The new millennium shall see major advancement in the field of Information Technology. The advent of the internet and associated e-commerce shall offer immense possibilities for trade and industry. This would therefore require manpower with specialized skills, thus creating enormous employment opportunities for the youth. They would have better career options as web designers, administrators, developers, etc. This would be in addition to the existing career opportunities as programmer analyst and hardware engineers.

In science and technology, we have so many new fields like Biotechnology, Environmental Sciences, Genetic Engineering, Nuclear Medicine, etc. In the field of medicine and health care, there are a host career opportunity in acupuncture, magnetic therapy, and hospital administration, etc. There are a variety of career options to be found in the hospitality industry, and the fashion industry, as managers or fashion designers. These careers are over and above the traditional options of becoming a doctor, lawyer, engineer or a teacher, that even today continue to attract talent. The host of career opportunities is no cause for despair, for there are some basic cardinal principles that we must bear in mind while exercising our choice.

The first and foremost thing that we must objectively identify our inclination and aptitude, strengths and weaknesses, likes-dislikes and inborn propensities. Keeping this in mind, we should identify the careers that are best suited with respect to our disposition. We should also closely examine the future career prospects that exist for that particular branch of study by reading and discussing extensively about it. It is very common to find young people, enamored by the glamour and razzmatazz of a particular profession, opting for it only to have their dream shattered on discovering that it does not suit them temperamentally. They thus end up highly dissatisfied and frustrated.

We should also give due weightage to the views of our parents, friends and peer groups. Our parents and peers can guide us by their experience. It is important that they render their advice objectively and dispassionately because it has sometimes been observed that the youth takes up a career, bowing to the wishes of his parents. Thus, we see the son of an eminent doctor, taking to the medical profession, just to please his father. He may become a doctor, but in the absence of aptitude and inclination, he can never achieve his father’s eminence.

The innovative career options in the new millennium are indeed very exciting, and a timely decision needs to be taken for as they say, “Well half begun is half done!” With the right option, we shall work more assiduously for realizing our dream. It does not matter if we do not get admission into the best of institutions, what matters is that after getting the requisite qualification, we excel in the field which is closest to our heart. We must remember the words of HW Longfellow when he says, “Life’s battle don’t always go to the stronger and the fastest man. But sooner or later the man who wins is the man who thinks he can.”

Richa Singh is a student pursuing Economics from Jamia Millia Islamia.

Edited by: Shaireen Khan

Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of The Jamia Review or its members.