Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Pervin MalhotraCAREER HOTLINE
Pursuing personnel management
Pervin Malhotra

Q I am working as an aircraft technician with the Indian Air Force. I have completed graduation in Economics. Now I am interested in doing postgraduation in Personnel Management. What is the scope?

— Anil Bhalla

 

A With a degree in Personnel Management, you can work as a personnel officer, labour officer, employee relations officer, labour and welfare officer or industrial relations and training officer in large industrial and business organisations, government undertakings, factories, mines, plantations, hospitals, hotels, banks and other financial institutions, professional institutions or organisations that have a large workforce.

You could even start your own recruitment consultancy after you have gained some work experience.

Briefly, the work includes payroll processing, recruitment, disciplinary action, evaluation, motivation and training, maintaining contracts, timesheets, holiday, sickness, maternity leave etc of the staff.

Cyber law

Q I am a first year LL.B student. In view of the Internet and e-commerce boom, I am very keen on specialising in cyber law. Do you see any scope for this branch in India?

— Harkishan Singh

A The Internet's ability to span borders, demolish distances, and unite the world's computer networks into a seamless whole may look wonderfully elegant to IT pros, but awfully messy to lawyers.

Of late, disputes on cyber properties such as domain names, copyrights and patents have become more common than property disputes in the real brick and mortar world.

Cyber contracts are the fundamental building blocks of e-commerce. Cyber laws, the traffic rules for the information highway, are governed by the general principles of civil or criminal law, depending on the case. High powered delegates from 50 countries have attempted to untangle this legal Gordian knot in a treaty called the Hague Convention on Jurisdiction & Foreign Judgements to harmonise cross-border litigation between parties.

India is the second country in Asia and the twelfth in the world to have a separate Information Technology Act.

As more and more transactions go electronic, as video, audio, and text become easier to transmit over the web, obviously disputes will arise. Naturally, lawyers specialising in Intellectual Property Rights (including patents, trademarks, copyrights and designs) will be needed to sort out the tricky copyright and patent issues.

Cracking down on cyber crime calls for cyber-savvy legal eagles specialising in techno-legal aspects such as digital signatures to safeguard business transactions on the Net, encryption codes, hacking, electronic records and some of the grey areas pertaining to Internet law for which there are no international benchmarks or models to rely on.

Quite a few law schools and universities now offer courses in cyber law at the postgraduate level.

You could start off as an assistant or a junior practitioner or opt for a corporate career in the legal department of a large company or law firm. Else, you could join a reputed law firm and assist in research.

Salary: In a solicitor's firm the salaries would be in the range of Rs. 15,000 to 20,000.In a corporate or law firm, it can range from Rs. 20,000 to 40,000 pm.

Technical track

Q I am in Class XII (PCB). However, I am keen to take up a job in any technical line at the earliest. What jobs can I get so that I can start earning immediately?

— Gurcharan Kukreja

 

A Today, a Bachelor's degree(often even a Master's degree, leave aside plus two) can't guarantee you a job. Hence, specialisation is an absolute must.

If possible, try to enrol for a technical course at an ITI or recognised polytechnic, computer institute or even a vocational undergraduate degree-level course. Alternatively, you can arm yourself with a professional qualification or training while doing your bachelor's through correspondence. Several short-term courses are available in computers, electronics, hardware maintenance, desktop publishing, medical transcription, etc. To earn while you learn, you could take up a part-time job or tuition in your spare time. This will equip you with the necessary qualifications and confidence to take on a decent job by the time you graduate or acquire a diploma. In fact, graduation has become the minimum mandatory qualification for most jobs and specialised courses today.

If your spoken English is up to the mark, you could also join a good call centre so that you can start earning right away. Although the work is not technical, it will develop your confidence, while fetching you a decent income. Besides, you can pursue your studies alongside, if you manage your time well.

Physiotherapy courses

Q I have passed Class XII (commerce). I am very keen to do BPT (Bachelor of Physiotherapy)and immigrate to the USA. A little known institute in Punjab claiming to be affiliated with Allahabad University (approved by the UGC and MHRD, GoI) is offering BPT. It does not have a hospital affiliated with it. Does Allahabad University have a distance learning centre in Punjab and is its degree valid for taking the US licensing exams for physiotherapists? What is the central regulatory body for BPT in India? Can you please tell me about the BPT institutes in India where 10+2 (PCM) is not an admission criterion?

 

— Hersh Kohli

 

A As far as I know, you require PCB to enrol for the Diploma or as is now more popular, the degree (41/2 -yr) course. If the institute claims affiliation with the Allahabad University, why not check with them directly?

Another place you could check with is the Association of Indian Universities, New Delhi (23230059, 23232429). They should be able to throw some light on the institute.

Although there is an Indian Association of Physiotherapists, which is a body of professionals in the field, and Indian physiotherapists are recognised by the World Council of Physiotherapy, to the best of my knowledge, there is no council for physiotherapy as such in India to recognise or regulate the numerous degree, diploma and certificate courses and ensuring quality control and accountability. With hundreds of colleges offering courses in this field, it is high time a regulatory council on the lines of those for veterinary science, homeopathy, ayurveda etc. is established.

 

The writer is a noted career consultant

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-160030, or at careers@tribunemail.com