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Pervin Malhotra

Learning to teach

Q I am a woman working in an MNC. Kindly advise me which universities offer B.Ed courses through correspondence.

— A. Mehta

A Under the guidelines issued by the National Council for Teacher Education ( www.ncte-in.org ), the apex statutory body for coordinating and monitoring teacher education in the country, only working teachers with minimum two years of experience in a recognised school (primary, secondary or higher secondary) can enrol for B.Ed (Distance Education) courses.

All others must enrol in regular full-time B.Ed programmes. This rule has been formulated with a view to achieving planned and co-ordinated development and also maintenance of norms and standards in teacher-education system throughout the country.

However, for those who have the mandatory teaching experience, here are some institutions in your region that offer B.Ed through correspondence. All these courses are of two-year duration.

• Indira Gandhi National Open University, Maidan Garhi, New Delhi--110068 (contact your nearest IGNOU Regional Centre for details).

• Guru Nanak Dev University, Amritsar

• Maharshi Dayanand University, Deptt of Distance Education, Rohtak 124001 (Haryana).

• Panjab University, Directorate of Correspondence Courses, Chandigarh

• Punjabi University, Directorate of Correspondence Courses, Patiala 147002 (Punjab).

Caution: Please don't fall prey to private institutions offering B.Ed courses in the name of various universities. It is always best to enrol directly with the university concerned.

Q I am doing my graduation from GNDU. I want to become a Railway TTE. Please guide me.

A In order to become a Travelling Ticket Examiner (TTE) you will have to become a Ticket Collector (TC) first.

Due to the large number of applicants, recruitment for the post is done through a first stage comprising a written test followed by a second stage test, for which approximately 10 times as many candidates as the number of actual vacancies are shortlisted. The selection is done by the Railway Recruitment Board concerned (there are 19 RRBs).

On completing the stipulated years of service as a TC, you will be promoted to the post of TTE.

While you have to be always on the lookout for defaulting passengers, the job is also a very sensitive one as it entails maximum interaction with passengers. And since you are the visible face of the Railways, you must always come across as helpful and courteous while discharging your professional duties.

Future in food & nutrition

Q I am planning to take B.Sc Home Science. I would like to specialise in food and nutrition. Does this field have good prospects?

A Employment avenues for Home Science graduates who go on to specialise in Food & Nutrition or Food Services Management at the postgraduate level are truly varied.

There are essentially three sub-specialities in nutrition:

Therapeutic Nutrition deals with disease and health. These specialists work in hospitals, health clubs, hotels, airlines, NGOs and international organisations.

Food Science focuses on the chemical and physical properties of various edible ingredients. They essentially work in the food manufacturing industry, and with companies involved in manufacturing food and nutritional supplements.

Food Administration is involved with handling and management of food in an institutional setting i.e. hospitals, hotels and restaurants, airlines, railways, etc.

The jobs can be further classified as follows:

Production jobs: food preservation and specialised work in production units in the food processing industry.

Technical jobs: Food processing companies, food research labs and hotels employ research assistants, food analysts, demonstrators, food scientists, etc. The work mainly involves testing products and recipes prepared according to the directions enlisted on product labels. They also conduct various experiments to help improve the nutritive value, flavour and general acceptability.

Teaching jobs: in senior secondary schools, polytechnics and Home Science colleges.

Sales jobs: Sales promotion and live demonstration of nutritive ready-to-cook foods and beverages, health snacks.

Service & Supervisory jobs: in hotels, tourist resorts, hostels, large factories, hospitals and nursing homes, catering establishments, fast food joints, large canteens, etc.

Extension work: Research extension workers are involved in educating specific segments of the population e.g. young mothers or villagers in the special food and dietary value of certain food stuffs.

All said, India's rapidly developing food processing industry, spurred by the popularity of pre-packaged foods, export potential and the entry of international giants, offers ample job opportunities for these specialists.

Options with Hindi

Q I am a BA (Hindi) student. Please tell me about job prospects in this field.

A After graduation or postgraduation in Hindi (H), you can either teach in a school (after doing B.Ed) or join the print or electronic media as a journalist, web content creator, compere, announcer, newsreader, anchorperson, scriptwriter, copywriter in an advertising agency, technical writer, public relations executive, etc. Creative writing is yet another option. An additional course in PR, journalism, advertising or mass communication will give you the necessary professional edge.

Knowledge of another language may well open up avenues in translation amongst other things. Several universities offer one-year diploma courses in translation for graduates.

There is also a large requirement for people who can do desktop publishing in Hindi, so some computer knowledge and typing skills will be very helpful in this area.

Hindi being our national language, there are several jobs at the clerical level and for typists and stenographers in banks and government offices.

MBA from a distance

Q I have completed my graduation (BA) & PG Diploma in Sales & Marketing (six-month). Currently, I am working in an MNC and want to do MBA. Kindly suggest some management courses through correspondence. Are they beneficial?

A While it is no substitute for a full-time programme, an MBA through correspondence is fine for someone who needs to supplement his work experience with formal qualifications.

Numerous universities offer MBA programmes through distance learning:

• IMT, Ghaziabad (www.imtonline.org) Course: MBA e-learning (2-yr).

• Indira Gandhi National Open University, School of Management Studies, Maidan Garhi, New Delhi 110068. Eligibility: Bachelor's degree with 3-yr supervisory/managerial/professional experience.

• Madurai Kamaraj University, Deptt. of Management Studies, Distance Learning Programme, Palkalai Nagar, Madurai 625021 (3-yrs)

• Punjabi University, Deptt of Business Management, Patiala 147002 (3-yrs)

Eligibility for almost all the courses is graduation with minimum 50 per cent marks and the selection is through an entrance exam. IGNOU however also requires 2 years supervisory experience or a professional/master's degree.

Besides these, there are several AICTE-recognised institutions in the private sector that offer PGDBM through correspondence. Since they also have contact programmes, make sure you enrol with those that have centres in or around your city.

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