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CAREER HOTLINE Biotech boom Q My brother is interested to take B.Sc (Bioinformatics). Please let me know the scope of this course in India. — Naiyani
Representing a marriage of IT and biotechnology, bioinformatics is emerging as one of the prodigious high growth areas in the coming decades. It is expected to yield extraordinary dividends not only in designing new drugs and therapies, but also in the basic understanding of life itself. Companies will need people at all levels -biologists and biostatisticians with IT skills, or IT professionals with a serious interest in biology. In fact, according to an estimate, there is a global shortage of one million bioinformaticians. Global IT majors like IBM, Motorola, Hewlett Packard followed by our own Wipro, Satyam Computers and Infosys, and several others are teaming up with biotech and pharma majors like Monsanto, Ranbaxy, Dr Reddy's Labs. They are investing billions of dollars in biotech software and supercomputing solutions like deletion mapping technology etc. Q My family owns a couple of farms. I am very keen to learn about modern organic farming methods. Please give me the names of institutes that offer this course. — Tarunjeet Singh A In organic farming chemical fertilisers and pesticides are replaced with bio-fertilisers, bio-pesticides, and natural soil enhancers. It is a viable win-win alternative that offers food safe for human consumption, clean environment and better returns to farmers. The organic food sector is a booming industry with EU, US and Japan being the major markets. By 2005, India is projected to become the largest food factory in the world. India's advantage lies in the fact that 70 per cent of our total cultivated land easily qualifies for being certified as organic according to international standards, since Indian farmers mostly practise traditional organic methods, passed down from generations. The Morarka Foundation, Rajasthan is a major organisation offering technical know-how, documentation and certification services for organic agriculture in India. It offers a one-year PG Diploma in Organic Agriculture Management in collaboration with Maharana Pratap University, Udaipur (ICAR-recognised). The first batch of 29 students graduated this month with a 100 per cent job guarantee and entry-level packages ranging from Rs 1.2 lakh to Rs 1.8 lakh. The second batch commences in August. For details, contact www.pgdoam.com The course, which includes six months of intensive field training in all aspects of organic food production, certification, processing, packaging and marketing, equips students to take up responsibilities both at the field level (working with farmers) as well as at the administrative level. Similarly, Janardan Rai Nagar Rajasthan Vidyapeeth (Deemed) University, Udaipur, has come forward to train unemployed rural and urban school passouts in organic farming. It is launching a six-month full-time certificate course (with internship) in organic agri-management in August (30 seats). The Morarka Foundation will provide jobs to those who successfully complete the course. Forms can be obtained from the university. Selection will be on the basis of an entrance test, GD and interview on July 24. GATE entry Q I have completed BCA. Now I wish to appear for the GATE exam. Could you please let me know the eligibility criteria? — Sehaj A GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering) is an all-India exam conducted by the IITs and the Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore, on behalf of the National Coordinating Board for GATE, Deprtment of Education, HRD Ministry. The following categories of students are eligibile to take the GATE: * lBachelor's degree-holders in engineering/technology/architecture/pharmacy and those who are in the final or pre-final year of such programmes. * Master's degree-holders in any branch of science/maths/stats/comp. appln or equivalent and those who are in the final or pre-final of such programmes. * Students of second or higher year of four-year integrated Master's programmes (Post-B.Sc.) in engg/tech or in the third or higher year of the 5-year integrated Master's programmes and dual degree programmes in engg/tech. * Candidates with qualifications obtained through exams conducted by professional societies recognised by the UPSC/AICTE as equivalent to BE/B.Tech such as AMIE, IETE, ASI, etc. Those who have completed Section 'A' or equivalent of such professional courses are also eligible. As a 3-year BCA is not equivalent to a 4-year BE/Tech, you will need to complete your MCA/MSc (IT) in order to give GATE. For the syllabus and online application process, please log on to: www.iitk.ac.in/gate. Clearing CAT Q I am final a year student of B.Com (Hons) at Punjabi University. I took CAT '03 and was successful in the written exam (99.07 per cent), got calls from three IIMs, XLRI and MDI, but didn't succeed at any of the five B-schools. I am determined to pursue MBA and have started preparing for CAT '04. People advise me to pursue CA/CS/ICWA/LLB as a back-up but I'm not keen on these. Marketing interests me much more than finance. Is the probability of selection in IIMs very low for mere graduates like me with no work experience? — Rajdeep Singh A That you got five great MBA calls should scotch your self-doubts. Clearly, you need to review your GD and interview performance and work on improving it. With that, and your determination to ace CAT '04, it should be a cakewalk the next time round. There are hundreds of cases each year of people cracking CAT in their second or third attempts. Since you have your heart set on a top B-school and given your terrific score in CAT '03, you must certainly give it another shot. As regards options besides an MBA, while there are several for a person with your background. You could undergo an aptitude or career selection test to arrive at the right educational and career choices. Prospects of chemical engg Q What kind of work does a chemical engineer do? Does this field have a good scope? — Anita Sood A Chemical engineering is a highly complex and specialised field that investigates how chemicals can be used for research and manufacturing. Employment opportunities for chemical engineers are mostly in the refining, plastics, chemical and petroleum industries and in the field of environment, although most other industries also employ chemical engineers. Even those like textiles, cosmetics and footwear require chemical engineers. Given the diverse fields in which chemical engineering finds application, employment is definitely set to increase in the coming years. Please send in your query, preferably on a postcard, along with your full name, complete address and academic qualifications to: Editor, Jobs and Careers, The Tribune, Sector 29, Chandigarh-160020, or at careers@tribunemail.com
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A The
biotech industry is expected to grow exponentially over the next 10
years, in turn creating a boom in job opportunities.