Career Options

Every successive generation seems to have more and more opportunities and options, but we as parents are not always aware of the many varied careers that seem to be constantly mushrooming. As a result, even though we would like to give our child the best advice, we are unable to do so due to our own limited knowledge. When a child completes his tenth standard, it is often time for him to choose certain streams for which he has an aptitude towards, or which he is interested in. In this articleDecisionsGeneral ideaInformationDecisions However, when you think about it, if the choice is left up entirely to your child, he will most certainly be unaware of all that is out there, and as a result may not make the right decision. For example, your child may wonder if he should do arts, but then may feel that he has got such a high percentage in his boards, that he can gain admission in science. So why should he do arts? In addition, after science he can do medicine, engineering, architecture etc. What can he do after arts? And so thinking, he makes a decision. Whether or not this was the right decision, only time can tell. But one thing is for sure - he didnt base his decision on the right parameters. Your childs career is something that will stay with him through his life. Although numerous people do change their careers, it would be best if your child is able to identify what interests him at the outset, so he doesnt need to change careers or jobs very often. The only way your child will be able to identify what he wants to do, is if he knows what opportunities are available out there. Many children make the mistake of letting their marks decide what stream they should take up. What they should do instead is first identify, broadly, what they want to do, and then they should find out what they need to study in order to get their dream job. If they do this the other way around, that means that they are being dictated by their circumstances, instead of the other way around. General idea Your child may not know exactly what he wants to do, but he may have a general idea. For example, your child may want to work for Microsoft just because he likes the thought of doing so, but he doesnt know that he need to be a programmer to do so. He can even be an MBA, a graphic designer, a researcher, or be in the human resources, public relations or legal departments and so on. So, if he is keen on a particular organization but not really on a particular stream of work, then identify what are the various departments available, and then let your child see for himself how broad the choices are. Information It always helps to see a career counselor, just so your child knows what the choices are. Alternatively, you could speak to various friends and relatives to get an idea of the options available, and then discuss them with your child, or let your child speak with them as well. One of the best ways to lay out the options for your child, would be to start at the level of the streams available, like science, and narrow it down and outline options, with names of Companies your child can work for. So if your child does biology, he can go in for medicine after the 12th, or law, and perhaps specialize in medical law, or biotechnology… The options are endless, and letting your child be aware of the options available at the outset will help him make the choice, instead of the other way around, where he chooses from what he knows, and then suddenly finds that there are so many other things he could have done - if only he knew.

Every successive generation seems to have more and more opportunities and options, but we as parents are not always aware of the many varied careers that seem to be constantly mushrooming. As a result, even though we would like to give our child the best advice, we are unable to do so due to our own limited knowledge.

When a child completes his tenth standard, it is often time for him to choose certain streams for which he has an aptitude towards, or which he is interested in.

Decisions

However, when you think about it, if the choice is left up entirely to your child, he will most certainly be unaware of all that is out there, and as a result may not make the right decision. For example, your child may wonder if he should do arts, but then may feel that he has got such a high percentage in his boards, that he can gain admission in science. So why should he do arts? In addition, after science he can do medicine, engineering, architecture etc. What can he do after arts? And so thinking, he makes a decision. Whether or not this was the right decision, only time can tell. But one thing is for sure - he didn't base his decision on the right parameters. Your child's career is something that will stay with him through his life. Although numerous people do change their careers, it would be best if your child is able to identify what interests him at the outset, so he doesn't need to change careers or jobs very often. The only way your child will be able to identify what he wants to do, is if he knows what opportunities are available out there. Many children make the mistake of letting their marks decide what stream they should take up. What they should do instead is first identify, broadly, what they want to do, and then they should find out what they need to study in order to get their dream job. If they do this the other way around, that means that they are being dictated by their circumstances, instead of the other way around.

General idea

Your child may not know exactly what he wants to do, but he may have a general idea. For example, your child may want to work for Microsoft just because he likes the thought of doing so, but he doesn't know that he need to be a programmer to do so. He can even be an MBA, a graphic designer, a researcher, or be in the human resources, public relations or legal departments and so on. So, if he is keen on a particular organization but not really on a particular stream of work, then identify what are the various departments available, and then let your child see for himself how broad the choices are.

Information

It always helps to see a career counselor, just so your child knows what the choices are. Alternatively, you could speak to various friends and relatives to get an idea of the options available, and then discuss them with your child, or let your child speak with them as well. One of the best ways to lay out the options for your child, would be to start at the level of the streams available, like science, and narrow it down and outline options, with names of Companies your child can work for. So if your child does biology, he can go in for medicine after the 12th, or law, and perhaps specialize in medical law, or biotechnology… The options are endless, and letting your child be aware of the options available at the outset will help him make the choice, instead of the other way around, where he chooses from what he knows, and then suddenly finds that there are so many other things he could have done - if only he knew.