Have you considered a career in insurance? If you haven’t, then you’re possibly missing out on the opportunity of a lifetime! Here’s why. By the year 2020, the insurance industry will need to fill nearly 400,000 positions at all levels, and in all areas. Actuary, an insurance profession whose practitioners compile and analyze risk, is expected to grow 9% by the year 2024.

Insurance careers span an incredible range of skills and talents—from actuaries and analysts to data scientists and marketers to drone pilots and engineers. Insurance is the backbone of the global economy. Without insurers and the thousands of different professions in insurance, businesses wouldn’t be able to build factories and offices. Concerts, sporting events, the film industry, even universities, libraries, and parks—all are made possible in part by the careful management of risk—and that’s what insurance does: It makes great things happen.

Working in insurance or one of the many related fields offers opportunities that extend far beyond the bottom line on your paystub, or the walls of your workplace. Whether you’re interested in serving your community, or experiencing different cultures around the world, or choosing a career path that offers real opportunities to grow and learn every day, a career in insurance can help bring your goals and dreams within reach. 

Insurance brings to our mind Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC), which is the largest Life Insurance Company in India having 2048 Branches and 109 Divisional Offices. Life Insurance Corporation of India has released the recruitment notification for the post of Assistant. It is a golden chance for all government job seekers who have the opportunity to grab these jobs.

Age Limit (As on 01.09.2019):

Minimum Age shall be 18 years and maximum not be more than 30 years.

Age Relaxation:

Relaxations in upper age limit for Scheduled Caste (SC)/Scheduled Tribe(ST)/Other Backward Community(OBC)/ Ex-Servicemen/Persons with Benchmark Disabilities (PwBD) /Confirmed LIC employees shall be as under :

Relaxation of Upper Age Limit:

Gear up for the  Indian Economic Service/Indian Statistical Service Exam

If you wish to be placed in prestigious organizations like the planning Commission, Ministry of Economic Affairs etc, here is your chance. Gear up for the Indian Economic Service,(IES) Exam or the Indian Statistical Service,(ISS) Exam that would be conducted by the UPSC. 

What is the IES/ISS Exam?

The Indian Economic Service along with Indian Statistical Service is the administrative inter-ministerial civil service under Group A of the Central Civil Services of the executive branch of the Government of India. The Indian Economic Service was introduced for formulating and implementing economic policies and programmes in India. With the proliferation of the regulatory role of the government, such analysis and advice within the domain of the service have increased manifold. 

Indian Economic Service (IES) is an all India competitive examination conducted by UPSC to recruit group ‘A’ Officers (Includes Indian Statistical Services-ISS) to be placed in the Planning Commission, Planning Board, Ministry of Economic Affairs, and National Sample Survey and other allied offices and departments that need specialists on economics and statistics. A candidate for the Indian Economic Service must have obtained a Postgraduate degree in Economics/Applied Economics/Business Economics/ Econometrics from a University incorporated by an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India. The service conditions (pay scales, perks etc) offered by IES are similar to other Central Civil Services. The places of posting are usually in the State capitals or New Delhi.

Indian Economic Service (IES) & Indian Statistical Service (ISS) 

• Conducted by :Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) 
• Frequency : Once a year 
• Mode  Pen and paper-based (Offline)  
• Number of attempts  6
•  Duration of the examination  3 days 
• Vacancies (approximately) IES – 32 & ISS – 33  
• Test centres  19 
• Expected registrations  More than 2 lakh  

IES/ ISS Exam 2020, Important Dates:

The official notification for the Indian Economic Service (IES)/ Indian Statistical Service (ISS) will be released on March 25, 2020. Candidates can apply online between March 25 and April 13, 2020. The written examination will be held from June 26, 2020 and the interview would be in October 2020. The final result would be declared in  November 2020.

Eligibility Criteria:

A candidate must be either:a citizen of India, or (b) a subject of Nepal, or (c) a subject of Bhutan, or (d) a Tibetan refugee who came over to India before January 1, 1962, with the intention of permanently settling in India, or (e) a person of Indian origin who has migrated from Pakistan, Burma, Sri Lanka or East African Countries of Kenya, Uganda, the United Republic of Tanzania, Zambia, Malawi, Zaire, and Ethiopia or from Vietnam with the intention of permanently settling in India. 

Note: Provided that a candidate belonging to categories (b), (c), (d) and (e) above shall be a person in whose favour a certificate of eligibility has been issued by the Government of India.

Educational Qualification: 

For Indian Economic Service:

A candidate for the Indian Economic Service must have obtained a Postgraduate Degree in Economics/Applied Economics/Business Economics/Econometrics from a University incorporated by an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India or other Educational Institutes established by an Act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as University u/s 3 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956 or a Foreign University approved by the Central Govt. from time to time.

For  Indian Statistical Service:

A candidate for the Indian Statistical Service must have obtained a Bachelor’s Degree with Statistics/Mathematical Statistics/Applied Statistics as one of the subject or a Master’s degree in Statistics/Mathematical Statistics/Applied Statistics from a University incorporated by an Act of the Central or State Legislature in India or other Educational Institutes established by an Act of Parliament or declared to be deemed as University u/s 3 of the University Grants Commission Act, 1956 or a Foreign University approved by the Central Govt. from time to time.

Age Limit :

A candidate appearing for the IES exam must have attained 21 years and have a maximum age limit of 32 years. It has some upper age relaxation for certain categories of candidates like Scheduled Caste or a Scheduled Tribe is 5 Years and other Backward Classes is 3 Years. If a candidate has ordinarily been domiciled in the State of Jammu & Kashmir during the period from January 1, 1980, to December 31, 1989, – 5 Years Up to a maximum of three years in the case of Defence Services Personnel disabled in operations during hostilities with any foreign country or in a disturbed area, and released as a consequence thereof.  Up to a maximum of five years in the case of ex-servicemen including Commissioned Officers and ECOs/SSCOs who have rendered at least five years Military Service as on August 1, 2018 Up to a maximum of 10 years in the case of (a) blindness & low vision, (b) deaf & hard of hearing, (c) locomotor disability including cerebral palsy, leprosy cured, dwarfism, acid attack victims and muscular dystrophy, (d) autism, intellectual disability, specific learning disability and mental illness, (e) multiple disabilities from amongst person under clauses (a) to (d) including deaf-blindness

Pattern and Syllabus:

Part 1: Written Exam

The written exam of 1000 marks would test  the following subjects. The maximum marks allotted to each subject/paper and the time allowed will be as follows:

[A]. Indian Economic Service

Life is a series of tests and results. Anxiety and euphoria. Every test whether it is XII Board or AIEEE or NEET or any other ends with  how much did my child score v/s how much did your child score? It boiled down to as long as my child scored more than yours it is alright. The media painted stories of success of students who had been among the top rung of the ladder. How had they prepared? Coaching institutes rushed to make them their students. That made me think… How many of the students who are average scorers might wallow in self- pity today? When will the nation, nay their own family and friends turn its gaze on them? Are marks the only criteria of intelligence? Are schools the breeding grounds of competition? Are we competing to win or competing to excel? The former breeds negativity and frustration whereas the latter breeds positivity and passion.

 Now the question arises – Is competition harmful? Well it depends…

 If competition simply means that one person can succeed only if others fail, it proves to be very harmful.

 When it comes to competition, we typically recognize only two legitimate positions: success and failure. 

It all started when…

We played games of exclusion and making one child win. Consider one of the first games we as children played: musical chairs. Take away one chair and one child in each round until one smug winner is seated and everyone else has been excluded from play. You know that sour birthday party scene; the needle is lifted from the record and someone else is transformed into a loser, forced to sit out the rest of the game with the other unhappy kids on the side. That’s how we had fun and turned play fields into battle fields.

Slowly we passed it on to our progeny. We have been so obsessed with success that we feel the more we immerse our children in rivalry, the better. We have gotten so carried away with the need to be Number One, that we push our kids too hard and too fast to become winners. 

Below are the side effects of competition:

Competition plaques self-esteem:

 Most people lose in most competitive encounters, and it’s obvious why that causes self-doubt. But even winning doesn’t build character; it just lets a child gloat temporarily. Your value is defined by what you’ve done. Worse — you’re a good person in proportion to the number of people you’ve beaten. It starts from schools where a child is told that it isn’t enough to be good — he must triumph over others. Success comes to be defined as victory, even though these are really two very different things. Even when the child manages to win, the whole affair, psychologically speaking, becomes a vicious circle: The more he competes, the more he needs to compete to feel good about himself. 

When I made this point during the training session my objections were waved aside by the parents of a seven-year-old badminton champion named Rahul, who appeared on the program with me. Rahul had been used to winning ever since a badminton racket was put in his hands at the age of two. But at the very end of the show, someone in the audience asked him how he felt when he lost. Rahul lowered his head and in a small voice replied, “Ashamed.” 

Competition sucks productivity:

I have observed organizations and can safely say that productivity in the workplace deflates as a result of competition. Trying to be Number One distracts people from what they’re supposed to be learning in the process of doing. It may seem paradoxical, but when you work only for an appraisal, you concentrate so hard on it that you lose focus on what you are doing. The result: Performance declines.

Competition fractionizes:

When we look at the results and say 25 students out of 125 got a 10 CGPA, we are actually creating a class divide – of winners and losers. Competition makes it difficult to regard others as potential friends or collaborators; even if you’re not my rival today, you could be tomorrow. 

Competition precipitates hostility:

 By definition, not everyone can win a contest. If one child wins, another cannot. This means that each child comes to regard others as obstacles to his own success: this is the real lesson  children learn in a competitive environment. 

Competitors will always hate and envy each other. But trying to outdo someone is not conducive to trust — indeed, it would be irrational to trust someone who gains from your failure. At best, competition leads one to look at others through narrowed eyes; at worst, it invites outright aggression. Existing relationships are strained to the breaking point, while new friendships are often nipped in the bud.

When children compete, they are less able to take the perspective of others — that is, to see the world from someone else’s point of view. 

What can we do? 

Competition is destructive to children’s self-esteem, it interferes with learning, sabotages relationships, and isn’t necessary to have a good time. 

But how do you raise a child in a culture that hasn’t yet caught on to all this? 

There are no easy answers here. But there is one clearly unsatisfactory answer: Make your son or daughter competitive in order to fit into the “real world.” That isn’t desirable for the child — for all the reasons given here — and it perpetuates the poison of competition in another generation. 

Children can be taught about competition, prepared for the destructive forces they’ll encounter, without being groomed to take part in it uncritically. They can be exposed to the case against competition just as they are taught the harms of drug abuse or reckless driving. 

You will have to decide how much compromise is appropriate so your child isn’t left out or ridiculed in a competitive society. But at least you can make your decision based on knowledge about competition’s destructiveness. You can work with other parents and with your child’s teachers and coaches to help change the structures that set children against one another. Or you may want to look into cooperative schools and summer camps. 

As for reducing rivalry and competitive attitudes in the home-Avoid comparing a child’s performance to that of a sibling, a classmate, or yourself as a child. Don’t use contests, “Who can dry the dishes fastest?” around the house. Watch your use of language “Who’s the best little girl in the whole wide world?” that reinforces competitive attitudes. Never make your love or acceptance conditional on a child’s performance. 

Be aware of your power as a model. If you need to beat others, your child will learn that from you regardless of what you say. The lesson will be even stronger if you use your child to provide you with vicarious victories. 

This is not to say that children shouldn’t learn discipline and tenacity, that they shouldn’t be encouraged to succeed or even have a nodding acquaintance with failure. But none of these requires winning and losing — that is, having to beat other children and worry about being beaten. When classrooms and playing fields are based on cooperation rather than competition, children feel better about themselves. They work with others instead of against them, and their self-esteem doesn’t depend on cracking the Board exam. 

So,teach your children to compete to excel, not  to let others down…

Building a Clean Future

Today the entire world is abuzz with one word- Clean Energy. This has set an upward spiral in the need for jobs in this sector.  With India having set a target of installing 175 GW of renewable power by 2022, that includes 100 GW from solar power, 60 GW from wind power, 10 GW from biomass power and 5 GW from small hydropower, this sector would get an additional push.

Who are Renewable Energy Engineers?

Renewable energy engineers are people who are a  part of the growing sector of green jobs that involve environmentally conscious production. Energy engineers apply their skills to increase efficiency and further develop renewable sources of energy. The main job of energy engineers is to find the most efficient and sustainable ways to operate buildings and manufacturing processes. Energy engineers audit the use of energy in those processes and suggest ways to improve the systems. This means suggesting advanced lighting, better insulation, more efficient heating and cooling properties of buildings. 

These individuals maximize the energy potential of clean energy sources including wind, solar, geothermal and hydropower. They also monitor and develop alternative energy outputs. Although an energy engineer is concerned about obtaining and using energy in the most environmentally friendly ways, their field is not limited to strictly renewable energy like hydro, solar, biomass, or geothermal. 

Difference between Energy Engineering and Renewable Energy Engineering:

At times used interchangeably, there is a significant difference between the two. Energy Engineering is a wide field of study which includes Renewable Energy. Energy engineering is a broad field of engineering dealing with energy efficiency, energy services, plant engineering, environmental compliance, and alternative energy technologies which combines knowledge from the fields of physics, math, and chemistry with economic and environmental engineering practices.

Some renewable energy programs may be found in engineering departments at colleges and universities. To get into Renewable Energy, you should get into it at a Masters level since you would be able to build upon the base you acquired in an  undergraduate course in Engineering. 

Institute scape:

• University of Petroleum and Energy Studies, Dehradun, offering M.Tech in Renewable Energy Engineering.
• University of Lucknow, Lucknow, offering M Sc Renewable Energy
• University of Kota, Kota offering M Sc Energy Studies.
• University of Pune, Pune offering M. Tech, Energy Studies.
• IIT, Delhi, offering interdisciplinary M. Tech, Energy Studies, and Interdisciplinary M Tech Energy & Environment Management. 
• Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay, offering M. Tech Energy Science and Engineering
•  VIT University, Vellore offering  M. Tech, Energy & Environmental Engineering
• National Institute of Technology, Tiruchirappalli offering M. Tech in Energy Engineering. 

Career Pathways:

Renewable energy engineers, much like energy engineers in general, can be responsible for a number of things. For example, a renewable energy engineer may serve as a researcher or consultant, examining ways to improve energy extraction projects to make them more efficient and environmentally friendly. Or he may work in the mechanical sector, designing machines and other devices to harness energy more efficiently. A good example of this kind of engineering can be found in the production of solar energy. Engineers with a background in mechanical engineering are in demand to design and build solar energy systems, which include parts such as solar panels. 

Some jobs that are core to the industry’s operations – such as wind turbine design or solar PV research require knowledge of the specific science and/or operations. However, there are a number of generic types of jobs that will require little or no additional training and people can transition smoothly to the green industry for these types of jobs. These jobs include those of accountants, stock clerks, security guards, electricians etc. Major sectors that would hire you are in wind energy, biofuels, solar PV, recycling, greenhouse gas pollution control, and water conservation. 

Energy engineers are not only utilized in the energy generation sphere but also within manufacturing environments where they are used to reduce overall energy consumption by analyzing and optimizing existing systems. There are many consulting firms in India like GIST advisory etc. which works in the field of environment and sustainability. 

You may work in the following roles:

Green building engineer

Today, infrastructure developers are constantly looking at building structures that make the most effective use of energy. This means that every single aspect of the construction and design needs to be analyzed from an energy efficiency perspective. This includes the procurement of energy efficient raw materials all the way to the design of the structure. Some buildings even produce and store their own energy. As a  green building engineer, you would analyze the energy usage of existing buildings and recommend ways to improve energy efficiency and design buildings that make use of passive methods to cool and heat themselves.

Energy Systems Engineer

An energy system engineer’s (ESE) focus is on the bigger picture in terms of energy use. An ESE is tasked with improving energy storage systems, managing energy distribution, analyzing the effect of energy practices on the local environment, and understating the effects of energy-related activities on the economy. You need to have a broad knowledge of basic engineering all the way to the economics of energy systems. You would be responsible for analyzing existing energy plants and systems to determine their efficiency and recommend ways to improve it and evaluate the economic and environmental impact of new energy installations.

Alternative  Energy Researcher

As an alternative energy researcher, you would be researching and designing renewable technologies and methods and also the design of renewable energy systems such as solar and wind plants besides optimization of existing energy systems. Innovation is key. This innovation is driven by fierce competition which has the dual effect of pushing the technology to its limit and decreasing the overall cost. This drive is not apparent in the coal and nuclear field as the barrier to entry is so high. The time taken to bring a solar farm or wind farm online is significantly shorter than building a new conventional power plant.

Solar Fabricator:

Solar isn’t the biggest or the cheapest form of renewable energy. It’s not quite up to utility-scale, but it’s on its way. With increasing success in making solar power a storable energy source, our lights could be sun-powered whether we have photovoltaic (PV) panels on our roofs or not. Solar installers are at the core of the industry; they’re the people putting solar panels on roofs which we’re sure to see more and more of in the coming future.

Data Scientist:

As with many industries,  data science, machine learning and big data analytics are also transforming the energy sector by providing insights to reduce costs and allowing oil producers to adjust to market demands in boom times. The solar industry is rapidly embracing ways to analyze and crunch data in order to lower the cost of solar energy and to open up new markets for their technology. As a data scientist, you would be able to contribute a lot to the renewable energy market. 

Wind Turbine Fabricator:

As the number of installed megawatts of wind power continues to grow , so does the army of workers required to supply, set up and service the huge turbines that generate the electricity. Those 30-to-60-meter blades don’t take care of themselves.

The technical aspect of wind power, including fabrication, installation and maintenance, is a tremendously growing field. As with solar, hands-on wind energy jobs have a wide range of pay scales depending on experience and specialty.

The Road Ahead:

Given the increasing use of sustainable energy solutions, the demand for renewable energy engineers will no doubt increase in the coming year. India’s renewable energy sector, including the solar and wind power generation segments, could create new job opportunities between 2 million and 4.5 million over the next 25 years.

Therefore, if you wish to be a part of building a clean future, hop on to the renewable energy bandwagon.

Today, Government jobs in Engineering are the most sought after. And the road to them is an arduous and fruitful one. If you wish to go that route, you will have to appear for the Indian Engineering Services Exam(IES).

Indian Engineering Services (IES) exam, also known as Engineering Services Examination (ESE), is a national level recruitment exam organized by the Union Public Services Commission (UPSC). The exam is conducted to recruit candidates for engineering posts under the Government of India. The Engineering Services Examination is conducted for four main branches of engineering namely;

• Civil Engineering
• Mechanical Engineering
• Electrical Engineering
• Electronics and Telecommunication Engineering

India Engineering Services exam is one of the exams that meet the technical requirement of the Government of India. Engineering officers for the Government of India are selected on the basis of the combined three-stage recruitment process – IES Preliminary, IES Main and Personality Test. On the basis of merit of candidates in the IES exam, they are recommended to the Union Government for the available posts. The nature of work for an engineering officer selected through the IES exam depends on the engineering branch and the cadre s/he is recruited for.

Important IES Exam Dates 2020

You can go through important IES exam dates 2020 below:

Are you interested in investing in foreign stocks?

If the answer is a see saw between yes and no, let me tell you something.

We live in a ‘flat’ and levelled world! 

Connected by internet, collaborated by virtual platforms and conjoined by digitized innovations.  

We all live Facebook, wear Ray Ban glasses, drink Nestle, wear Christian Dior and drive Toyota. We believe in all these brands, but are sceptical and wary about investing in these companies.

Singaporeans being no exception.

Many Singaporeans invest in domestic market but are quite leery about investing overseas.  Investing in companies such as Facebook, Alibaba, Cathay Pacific, Nestle or News Corp, seems like a far fetched idea.This is because of the fear of the unknown and also an uncanny comfort with the home market.

What does investing in overseas markets mean?

Simply put, investing in overseas markets means buying stocks and assets of companies outside Singapore. Now does it mean investing only in trophy companies like the Facebook and the Apple?

Well, yes and no.

It also means investing in emerging markets that  are fast becoming the drivers of global growth. Emerging economies are growing at a breakneck speed almost two or three times faster than developed nations like the US, according to International Monetary Fund estimates. 

For a prudent investor, it is recommended to also look for investments in emerging markets that show high potential. 

If you are wondering which are those- 

Morgan Stanley’s Emerging Markets Index consists of Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China, Colombia, Czech Republic, Egypt, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Israel, Jordan, Korea, Malaysia, Mexico, Morocco, Pakistan, Peru, Philippines, Poland, Russia, South Africa, Taiwan, Thailand, Turkey and Venezuela.

Today, more and more investors are investing in overseas markets.

Current scale of operations:

Singapore investments surpassed Chinese investments in U.S. commercial property by $1 billion in 2017, a clear sign of the nation’s steady rise in global investments.https://www.forbes.com/sites/daniellekeetonolsen/2018/01/31/singapore-overtakes-china-in-u-s-commercial-investments/#1de79413cde8

The market is on a meteoric rise, make the most of it. By missing out on the markets of the rest of the world you are missing out on the opportunity to ride on the crest of many corporations and countries. Singapore stock market is irrefutably one of the most mature, diversified and self-stoking in the world but investing abroad helps reduce correlation, which in turn reduces risk. Also, many foreign markets are more affordable.

Taking the first step:

While starting on your investment journey, keep in mind that you are doing the same thing that you were doing earlier, just that you have cast a wider net. You have a wide array of options to choose from. According to Dollars and Sense, compared to the market capitalisation of SGX, the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is close to 30 times larger with over 2,400 listed companies, the London Stock Exchange (LSE) is nearly six times larger with 2,500 listed companies and the Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) is five times larger with nearly 2,500 listed companies.

How to start

In case you are a beginner, this is how you go about it

There are many reputable brokerage houses in Singapore, and majority offer  the option to invest in overseas stock markets. Although you can also open an account in a foreign brokerage market, yet it is always recommended to use your local brokerage account. It is simpler and much more convenient. Plus, you can use the same account for investing in domestic as well as overseas stocks.

If you are intending to invest in overseas stocks, you want to choose a brokerage account that provides you access to multiple markets, not just one.

For example, Dollars and Sense tells you that OCBC Securities  enables you to trade on 15 global exchanges — including the NYSE and Nasdaq in the US, the HKEX in Hong Kong and the Bursa Malaysia – just as easily as they would for Singapore-listed stocks on its iOCBC online platform and mobile app. Customers can gain access to even more global exchanges by calling their OCBC Securities Trading Representative.

A word of caution:

However, once you have made up your mind to start investing, there are two questions you need to answer. One –  how much should your international exposure be? Second, what should you invest in?

Well, for the first. diversification is the key. 

You should not fall into the home bias. Of course, you would be more comfortable with investing in home stocks, but remember, at times the foreign stocks may give you better returns. You should have a globally diversified portfolio. The principle of diversification, according to Professor Lewis of Wharton, says that  a well diversified global stock portfolio, can potentially either cut your risk by a few percentage points a year, or improve returns for the same level of risk as just holding domestic  stocks by perhaps half a percentage a year. The exact numbers do depend on your assumptions and time periods, but this is about as close as you get in investing to a free lunch. Yet, most of the investors do not take advantage of the connected world and stuff themselves up with their home stocks. 

Second, what you zero in on depends on what your risk appetite is. Instead of investing in large trophy assets, invest in small and niche assets that are likely to be lucrative in the long run. 

With Singapore on the road to recovery, Singaporean investors will continue to see saw between domestic and overseas investments. And if you wish to piggy ride on this road to recovery, spread your portfolio with some cherry picks from the overseas investment market.

All you need to do is swish, swirl and saunter in the world that is FLAT.

The past decade has seen a new trend.

The opportunities in Engineering and Management have seen a dip and there has been an increasing trend of students going in for short term courses.

The reason is simple.

Everybody wants quick jobs within short period of time. In such cases,   ITI’s are the best option due to less turnaround time between learning and earning also due to the affordable fee structure. 

Industrial Training Institutes (ITI’s) and Industrial Training Centers (ITC’s) are pioneers in the field of technical education which provide support i.e basic skills to an individual to become self reliant in the trade they choose. ITI’s are government-run organisations whereas ITC’s are privately-run training organisations, both operating under the general guidance of the Directorate General of Employment and Training (DGET), Ministry of Labour & Employment, Union government of India. ITC’s are self financing and provide same courses as that of ITI’s. Courses in these institutes are designed to impart technical knowledge to the youngsters and offer training in engineering and non-engineering technical fields, such as in trades like electrician, machinist, fitter, plumber, turner, welder, refrigeration and air conditioning mechanic, computer hardware etc. Trade Test or qualifying test for both ITI and ITC trainees are also common i.e All India Trade Test (AITT) 

The Hiring side of the matter:

Today, even the industries  prefer students from ITI as compared to engineering students, they do not have to offer big salary packages to these students and also there is a great demand from industry for fitter, machinists, turners, and mechanics in diesel as well as in motor. The other reason is longevity and stickiness to the job. As compared to Engineering graduates, the turnover and the attrition rate of the diploma holders is low. Therefore, companies prefer to invest their energy and resources in training the ITI pass outs.

Area of Operations 

Government and private ITIs operating at district level, are spread all across India. ITIs offer training in various trades that can be categorised into Engineering Trades and Non-Engineering Trades. Engineering trades are related to the field of engineering studies. Courses available under this trade are technical in nature. Non-Engineering trades are mostly related to computers, languages and soft skills.There are more than 50 subjects in which the training is offered to the students in two year course and the syllabus is designed on the basis of industry requirement.

The duration of courses offered by ITI varies from one year to three year depending upon the trade one opts. To obtain NCVT (National Council of Vocational Training) certificate, the candidate has to undergo practical training in his trade in a industry for one year or two.

Some of the ITI Colleges in India.”

• Gauhati University, Department of Political Science
• Baba Kharak Singh Baba Darshan Singh ITI
• Government ITI Patiala
• Govt. ITI Gokhle Road (W) Delhi 
• Govt. ITI, Jahangirpuri, Delhi
• ITI Pusa 
•  Industrial Training Institute (w), Amritsar. 
• Dayanand Industrial Training Institute, Amritsar 
• Industrial Training Institute, Dera Baba road, Ajnala 
• Art & Craft Teacher Training Institute, Amritsar 

The Road Ahead for ITI pass outs

Apprenticeship Training Scheme

Candidates after completing ITI have both academic and job oriented prospects to continue with. Aspirants who have passed ITI can go for specialized short term courses in Advanced Training Institute (ATI) or for courses that are exclusively for the candidates who want a job at foreign location, aspirants can also apply for higher studies like Diploma in Engineering. As there is abundance of job opportunities in the private and public sectors for both engineering (Surveyor, Turner, Hardware fitter, Mechanics, etc.) and non-engineering trades (Craftsman, Fashion technology, Horticulture, Insurance Agent, etc.). Central/State Government organisations like Indian Army, Navy, and Air force provide opportunities for ITI passed candidates of different trades. Also candidates have ample opportunities in private sector as well. Also ITI qualified people can set their own business like can open winding shops, can start motor garage or repairing workshops, can operate generators etc. Skilled workers also have bright opportunities in foreign countries.

The HRD Ministry agreed to making two-year diploma courses at Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) equivalent to Class 12 to ensure greater participation, if a student completes an ITI course, she will be eligible for admission in a graduate degree programme at a college or university. Students may, however, have to do a bridge course in the degree opted for.After the completion of the course candidates are awarded with diploma in different disciplines. Those who have passed minimum 2 years ITI course with National Trade Certificate are given an opportunity to go for a lateral entry directly to the 2nd year of the Polytechnic diploma course.

Difference between ITI and Polytechnic:

Most students confuse between an iTI and a Polytechnic and ITI course. However, there are differences. An ITI course is based on a specific domain and enables the candidate to have good theoretical and practical knowledge where Polytechnic course is based on particular field as complete to provide good knowledge both theoretical and practical. ITI courses are just for the span of 1 year maximum so by the end you will be certified for the particular domain and Polytechnic is a separate course which goes for 3 years where you will receive as proper diploma completion certificate.

Summing up:

Thus, If you just want a quick job after completion of Grade X, ITI should come in handy as you will be trained with one field and you can start your job on your own.

Step up and  get going on a course that offers a career- fast track.

JEE – What Next?

JEE Main – comes every year with a lot of talk and furor. This year, it has been the same. This year it was conducted between Jan 8 and 12 in two shifts. A total of 11,09,250 candidates registered (9,29,198 for Paper-I & 1,80,052 for Paper II) for JEE Main 2019. This year, the national testing agency (NTA) has conducted JEE Main in fully computer-based test mode (CBT) for the very first time. Students will also get another chance to appear for JEE Main 2019 in the month of April.

The candidates who will qualify JEE Main will be eligible for appearing in JEE Advanced 2019, which is the next level for admissions to Indian Institute of Technology (IITs). Only candidates who will qualify JEE Advanced 2019 will be shortlisted for final admissions to IITs. However, the successful candidates of JEE Main 2019 can take admission in different NITs, GFTIs and IIITs.

The winning ratio

There are 24,000 seats in all in the National Institutes of Technology, Indian Institutes of Infomation Technology and other government-funded technical institutes 12,00,000 youngsters sit for the exam. For every 50 students, 1 will get a desirable seat. With these odds at stake, the pressure that can haunt a student before the second attempt can be unmanageable.

How to evaluate your  score:

In case you have appeared for JEE Main this year, and are confused about the score you need to be very clear about percentage and percentile.A percentage is simply a representation of a proportion out of 100. To say three out of every six is the same as to say fifty out of every hundred, in other words, fifty percent. On the other hand, a percentile is a statistical measure of distribution. For a given set of data, it is the level below which a certain percentage of the data falls. Percentile scores are based on the relative performance of all those candidates who appear for the examination. It is obtained after transforming the scores into a scale ranging from 100 to 0 for each session of examinees.

Percentile Score shows the percentage of candidates who have scored equal to or below a particular percentile in an exam. It is the normalized score and not the raw scores. After normalization, each topper of a session will get the same percentile of 100 which is the desirable one. Also, the marks between the lowest and highest scores are also converted to the respective percentiles. 

The formula used is – number of candidates appeared in the session with a raw sore equal to or less than the candidate divided by the total number of students appeared into 100.

The rank calculated is (100- NTA percentile score ) X no of students appeared /100

If NTA percentile score is 90.70, JEE Main rank will be (100-90.70 ) X 874469/100 = 81325. Now, this becomes a dampener owing to the increasing number of students taking the exam.

NTA has announced that normalization will be session wise so the percentile score you got would be relative to the others in your session. This score denotes the percentage of candidates who have scored equal to or below (same or lower raw scores) in that particular percentile in that examination. 

What to learn from your previous score:

National Testing Agency (NTA)  declared JEE Main 2019 result for January session on January 19. Now, the question arises, whether to go in for the April 2019 exam. The answer is ‘Yes’. If you appear in both the exams i.e. in January and April then the percentile score for both exam will be compared. The highest percentile will be considered. If you appear in one, the final result will be based on that attempt only.

Revise your strategy

You need to have a biforked strategy this time- one to revamp your preparation and two- the strategy on the day of the exam. It is certainly believed that when you prepare for the second attempt to take the exam, you can adopt better strategies needed for revamp of the preparation. This will help you to possess good chances of clearing the entrance exam in comparison to your first attempt. Besides this, in the second attempt, you can secure a better rank as well. 

It will be useful when you first analyze the chapters that you should concentrate on. This will assist you to move ahead as you will understand the do’s and don’ts faced during the first time preparing for the exam. You can tackle the problems in the most efficient way by the method of study adopted. You can also avail the guidance needed from expert faculties throughout your preparation time. It will help you to exercise additional effort required to revamp your preparation for the second attempt effortlessly. The other benefit that you can derive is that you can avail the help of online training programs conducted, and assistance through backup classes. Another strategy is to concentrate on Maths because if there is a tie, the following is kept in mind: 

(a) Candidates obtaining higher Percentile Score in Mathematics will get a higher rank.

(b) Candidates obtaining higher Percentile Score in Physics will get a higher rank.

(c) Candidates obtaining higher Percentile Score in Chemistry will get a higher rank.

(d) Candidates older in age will get a higher rank.

On the exam day, you must remember that you have done everything you could have. Try and relax by reading newspaper or magazines etc. Go for a walk in the evening before the exam but avoid eating outside. Stay healthy as this also contributes towards your performance. 

Another thought that worries every student on the exam day is about how stiff the competition is. It cannot be predicted whether you make it or not. What you should be thinking at that time is not whether you will make it or not but how to give your best with the preparation you have done. Last but not least, you should not worry about the topics that you could not do properly. There is no need to do anything now that you have not done in the last one or two years. It is best to do revise formulae and scientific names that you have done in the past.

Student Speak

“I think taking the January attempt has equipped me well to show up better for my final attempt in April. It also gave me a fair idea of how can I better manage my time during the exam without being flustered like how I was in my first attempt. The PCM percentile has helped me realize where I should focus my energy to improve my overall score.”

Saksham Verma

M.G.N. Public School, Jalandhar

While we have covered all the hows, we should not forget the importance of your ‘why’. The reason why you persevered for the last two years is not just to prove that you are better than your peers in physics, chemistry or mathematics; the why is much deeper. It might be going to your dream University or making your parents proud. I would recommend every student who has taken this exam to sit with their score from the first attempt in solitude and ponder over why they had started. Once you have your ‘why’ write it down and affirm it every single morning before you start your preparation.  

At the end of the day, the stress pertaining to your parents, competition or coaching institutes won’t fade away just like that; you will have to find a way through it. Find your ‘why’ and let it fuel the journey you are on. 

The startup journey

Breaking free of parentheses

Each one of us, if rightly probed, is sitting with an idea in his head. 

An idea that is grappling to come to life, to see the light of the day. At times, the idea comes to life, struggles a bit and moves on, fidgeting, wobbling and then moving on with steady steps before morphing into a startup that is cool and makes it to the headlines. A startup that means new guys coming in and ruling the roost. These new guys are volatile, non linear and disruptive. They contribute to the world’s GDP in an immense way.

We all wish to be there- amongst these high speed guys, these cool businesses and this new breed of entrepreneurs. It seems easy and cool. However, a closer look reveals that every stage is punctuated  with a new set of challenges. 

The common denominator in all these, however, is technology and digitization. 

For the sake of ease, let us divide the journey of a start up into 2  stages.

The Pre Minimum Viable Product(MVP) stage 

Well, in this stage, you just have a frizzy idea, nothing else. You have to create something out of it, breathe new life into it.

Metaphorically, since we talk of punctuations here- you are like a semicolon

(;)

There is something in you that feels it might be the end. Period. Well, you talk this with your family and friends and you feel that there is a comma. Yes, it can be turned into a product or  a service.

Everytime you think of it, your mind conjures up some eerie and romantic images- garages, hoodies, cans of coke and cups of coffee. There is no budget, no org chart, no fancy slide deck. You use funds from your savings, swipe your credit card, and borrow from family and friends. But you wish to make it happen. When you talk to Venture Capitalists, they seem to be interested but after a few meetings there is either a deafening  silence or a glaring darkness in their conversations with you. They do not wish to invest in you till you yourself have gone ahead with the idea to a certain extent. They would like to see something like an MVP- a Minimum Viable Product- a tech piece that conveys what you wish to convey. You have two bottlenecks here. One- a team that is able to pull it off, and two- the tech expertise.

Saguna gives you this twin benefit. 

Saguna becomes hyphenated partner between you and the VC.

(-)

Being a team of thought leaders that predates the company, we bring a quintessential outlook towards various industries and an unparalleled insight that cuts across sectors such as Healthcare, Fintech, Real Estate and the like.

We understand the bottlenecks of starting a new idea whether it is putting together a pitch, or making the venture capitalists overcome the hitch by actually presenting a tech piece before them- an MVP that leaves very little to imagination. 

This would help the venture capitalist believe that the idea is feasible and viable.

Our research team is nimble to work on any platform and flexible to switch gears between applications and platforms with minimum turnaround time. Having deep dived in startup markets and companies, we bring in ‘a blue hat strategy’ with us that gives you a global outlook and can weight lift your idea from any stage you are in and let it run smoothly within the venture capitalist funnel. 

 The post MVP stage

So, you made it to the knot hole. Welcome to another dizzying round where you would develop the product, recruit new people, raise  funds and market. This is the stage which would require a lot of churning. Since you have come this far, people start believing in you. You have to do a lot to sustain that trust. 

You are no more an idea, you are to build a real company- with a potent product, passionate people and proven processes. 

First, the MVP you had come up with needs to be a fully grown application that overcomes the challenges of various platforms, data security issues and performance conundrums. Second, the infrastructure (technical) and UI/UX/features (product) corners that were cut in the pre MVP phase  must be fixed to scale.

Here it becomes imperative to take  a look at some numbers.

Today, startups are a rage. As many as 1 billion startups are born every month but very few actually cross the mortality cusp. They cross the idea stage and dwindle afterwards.

The reason- this stage needs a complete change of mindset on the part of the entrepreneur. There would be a set of people who like the ideation stage. Ideation people may be just good at ideation.

(Period)

You might need a totally new team, build up new processes and build budgets. You cannot rest on your laurels, or choose to ignore what actually brought you to the idea- technology that makes the application, the website that works well. Now,you have got one round of funding, you would need the next sequential round of capital. At times, you may be able to raise some seed capital but fail to raise the next series. There are other times you may cross series A, come up with a beta launch and then fail to raise stage C funding. Remember, whatever stage you are in, you would need a k+1 round of funding. This primarily means, as you go from one stage to another and reach the G stage, it  makes sense to exit or be acquired rather than asking for more investment.

Remember, technology is dynamic and ever changing. With each passing stage, you may feel the need to migrate to a newer, leaner and lightweight technology, clear the technical debt piled up in the previous stage and make the system scalable and seamless.

We partner with you with regard to technology whether it is migration from one technology to another, stringing together stand alone systems and processes or cutting across hybrid platforms. We understand the stage you are in, deep dive into your start up, and help you get the investment you need- all in return for an equity share.

When you sit across the table and talk to a potential investor, your rating in his eyes improves when he knows there is another organization that believes in you. It is a cluster of beliefs, ideas and technology- all rolled in one.

This helps you multi pronged:

• Reduced time to market.
• Minimum cash holes
• Improves your Investor Cluster Score*
• Strategic Competitive Advantage

Well, are you quite there? Yes.

Have you overcome all the challenges of  a startup? 

You might have not, but you have galloped faster and farther from where you began. 

So, break free of the parentheses, put a comma and continue.

, …

2019 will see the pendulum shift to a focus on performing analytics at the edge. This would change our perspective to anything and everything…

In terms of how we view our careers, our education, our skills and most importantly, our degrees. The linear progression between a degree and a job is fast disappearing. College is now ridiculously expensive. Good jobs are tough to land. On an average, we spend almost 20 to 30 lakhs on getting a college degree only to land in the job market ill-equipped and ill-prepared. In order to survive the at times dystopian and fast-moving trend of automation, robotics, and artificial intelligence, you need to, for one, pick your degrees with care; and two, make them work for you. Even if you go to a university that’s at the top of the league tables, you’re not going to land a job just because you went there. Getting a good degree is important, but the degree is the key that opens the door — it doesn’t take you through it.

In these straitened economic times, the assumption is sometimes made that only vocational degrees, or those with a tight focus on a specific career sector, are worthwhile. But with so many vocational degrees on the block and fast-changing, the skills that you may pick up during your degree might not be relevant once you enter the job market. Therefore, the need to do a vocational degree to get a job is an overly simplistic maxim.

Here are a few ideas on which degrees to choose and how to make them work for you.

Choose a degree with a wider surface area:

In other words, avoid majoring in a job description of the most significant mistakes that you can make is choosing an overly specialized major — in other words, one that sounds like a job description. Several colleges, for instance, offer degrees in turfgrass management or science. While this concentration may successfully position you for a career managing a golf course grounds crew, it may also close more doors than it opens. Also, these careers are found in very niche areas. A broader degree, like business management, will ultimately benefit you if your goals change later in life. 

Couple your STEM degree with a liberal arts

brain: Research says that STEM degrees would fetch more employment opportunities. So, everyone will have a STEM degree. How will you stand out in 2019? Well, by coupling it up with liberal arts brain. In the same way that your eyes glaze over when business folks bandy about buzzwords like synergy and low-hanging fruit. The science-and-numbers types should be baffled by your vocabulary. They know that more clients and consumers identify with your humanistic thinking than with their formulaic perspective. And a little bit of fancy rhetoric can go a long way during an outside-your-field interview. Confidence is a killer professional advantage. So go ahead and talk up your interests with lofty je ne sais quoi.

Blend your Liberal Arts degree with a technical skill:

While artificial intelligence and the internet of things (IoT) get all the attention, 5G could be the technology of the year in 2019. 5G, which could improve processing speeds by more than 10 times and could enable remote surgeries and Uber’s announced food delivery drones. In such a landscape, technical skills are a given. You may have to suck it up, and force yourself to study something semi-boring – er, practical – whether it’s a web design program, a project management certificate, or an introduction to marketing class. Some outlets, like MediaBistro, offer professional courses for artists and writers looking to bridge the gap between creative pursuits and real-world money-making. And truth be told, online courses are quick, direct, and usually pretty interesting. 

Intern with companies that are broad-based:

Whatever degree you choose, there is one thing on which employers and careers advisers are unanimous: what you do outside your course is as important as your academic work.

When everyone has a degree that sits on his resume, what sets him apart is his internships. Choose them with care as the next decade employers are trying to find a match there. Some of them would be ready to extend a Pre Placement offer if they see you have the right attitude. Chances are you will only have time for one or two internships before you graduate, so be sure to conduct research before committing to one.

While choosing internships, follow the trend. A Cisco study suggests 74% of application workloads will be SaaS-based by 2020. What it implies is, rather than focussing on businesses that deal in sector-specific products like the CRM, go in for companies that provide a broader overview of project management, email marketing, and survey technology.

Be relevant:

Your degree might not be as relevant to your employer as YOU. Anticipate the type of help a future employer will need, and make yourself the solution. The World Economic Forum’s Future of Jobs 2018 Report estimates that by 2022, everyone will need an extra 101 days of learning, and two-thirds of employers expect workers to take on the responsibility of reskilling now. Relevancy depends on acquiring “Industry 4.0” skills around new technologies. Industry 4.0 combines automation and digitalization with human creativity and innovation to increase production. For example, according to Upwork, the first quarter of 2018 saw an explosion in jobs connected to the blockchain, with 6,000% growth in the sector.

Build a portfolio

What would matter in the long term is the accolades you have earned and the projects you have completed then they will about your complete course list or college minor. Jobs in fields like computer science and fine arts almost always require a portfolio, for example. If you are interested in software development, consider registering for a GitHub account, and keep it updated with your projects. If you are an artist or writer, create a website for your material, and include a brief statement of your vision and goals. Even for fields in the sciences or in business, it is always wise to keep a record of your accomplishments. These can be class assignments, freelance commissions, or undergraduate research projects. The point is to demonstrate how you have applied what you have learned to “real world” endeavors.

Find a non-profit venue:

Unless you have lots of time in which to pursue a whole new degree, along with internships and a capstone project, your technical skills will need some real-world practice. And who knows? Maybe a whole new degree will come later on when you have an employer who’s willing to pay for it. For now, look for volunteer opportunities that will allow you to combine your old specialties with your latest ones. Build a website for your local shelter. The work might involve spreadsheets, management skills, or HTML, but it will also benefit from your background in art, psychology, writing, or sociology. You might discover that you love non-profit work. Either way, you can cite this concrete example of your unique competencies.

Learn to Learn:

With truncating product life cycles and shrinking services cycles, the skills that you pick up today will be obsolete tomorrow. There would be a constant need to reskill and upskill, whichever degree you may get into. The ability to pick up a skill fast would hold you in good stead in the near future.

That would require a complete dismantling of mental blocks. For instance, the mental block that it took 10,000 hours to learn a skill has to be shelved. It does take 10,000 hours to master a skill, but simply learning it? It can take less than 20 hours of “smart” practice. The idea is that you learn the 20% of the material that will yield 80% of the result. To learn anything in life, you have to work with your brain. You have to make your brain work for you. We have limited time on this planet before we’re gone. The faster and better you learn, the more you’ll thrive.

Preparing for the future:

So, while you prepare for 2019 and the future ahead, don’t think you have a degree and the world would take care of itself. Go back to the basics. To make your degree work for you, learn more fundamental skills. Figuring out root causes and why something needs to be done, discovering the real problem, not just the stated one: these skills will serve you in 2019, and next year and every year after that.