Wednesday, June 8, 2005

CAREER HOTLINE
Map out a place in Geography
Pervin Malhotra

Q. Geography is my favourite subject in school. Can you please tell me something about the job prospects if I pursue my studies in this field or is it merely an academic field?

— Purnima Jain

A. With the incorporation of a whole lot of new topics, the geography syllabus has now become livelier, more topical and has a fresh and exciting feel about it. From a fact-based study of physical geography, it has become a subject full of human interest — driven by a growing recognition that physical and human or economic geography are inextricably linked and make greater sense when taught alongside each other.

And contrary to belief, geography is not merely an academic subject but one with numerous practical applications. Given the wide spectrum of its sweep (from economics and conservation to physics and international trade), there are several career options open to geography students.

Depending on the area of specialisation at the postgraduate-level, avenues for geographers exist in cartography where they collect, combine and display cartographic information in the form of maps. They are also employed by public and private organisations engaged in urban planning and design, and by NGOs involved in population control, environment and rural development projects. After your Masters in geography you can also enrol for a specialised course in Town and Regional Planning, which is offered at some colleges of architecture.

Alternatively, you could also opt for a career in surveying, land valuation, environmental protection or conservation, landscape architecture, transport and tourism, travel writing, aerial photography and market research, besides teaching at a school (there is a shortage of school teachers specialising in this subject) and at the university-level.

While a large number of universities (including Delhi University) offer BA in geography, 50 others offer a B. Sc in geography, which allows you to move into geology and meteorology and quantitative research, which essentially involves number crunching (for market research and demographic surveys).

The Geographical Information System (GIS) and Remote Sensing (BIT Mesra and Indian Institute of Remote Sensing offer M. Tech in the subject) are opening up new avenues for geographers as the requirement for data in a computerised format for marketing and related fields is increasing. There are special short-term courses offered in this area. Geomatics involves processing of raw data from remote sensing satellites for commercial applications.

Since geographers are directly concerned with analysing variable data on the earth’s surface, this is likely to open up vast areas in analysis and research. An all-India database is on the anvil and geographers will be much in demand to interpret the large volumes of data generated.

Geographers are also employed as forest managers, demographers in government and research organisations or as researchers in agricultural or economic institutes.

Besides, geography is also considered as a popular and scoring subject for the Civil Services (Prelims & Mains) and other competitive exams.

Sarkari options

Q. I am very keen to get a government job. How should I go about it?

— Suresh Rohatgi

A. You must decide, first of all, whether you want to work for the Central, State, Municipal or other agencies of a semi-governmental nature (development councils, district-level bodies, etc).

You name the qualification or specialisation (from programmer to administrative assistant to HR specialist) and you can bet there’s a slot for it in one or the other department!

Although the diversity of jobs in the government (or public service) is truly immense, all government budgets today are suffering from tight constraints. To the extent that recruitment in many government departments has been frozen for the last several years and there is a move to shed existing staff by way of offering a golden handshake in the form of Voluntary Retirement Scheme VRS) etc.

So, if you go through the traditional route to government positions (Civil Services Exam, etc), you must be prepared to face very stiff competition. For instance, nearly 3 lakh candidates who enrol for the CS exams each year compete for the 350-odd seats. And the intake is likely to shrink further in the coming years.

To get an idea of the various positions and exams log on to: www.upsc.gov.in and your state government website.

Q. I am a student of Class XII. I love plants at home and am a keen member of the environment club in school. I want to pursue my higher studies in a related field. What is the scope of horticulture in our country?

— Bimal Yadav

A. Horticulture is a specialised discipline within the broad field of agriculture that deals with the cultivation and care of fruits, vegetables, flowers, ornamental nursery crops and turf grass and the management of horticultural enterprises.

Horticulture spans several areas such as floriculture (green-house cultivation, flower retailing), olericulture (rearing vegetable crops), ornamental horticulture, nursery management, pomology or fruit culture and turf grass management.

Horticulturists combine scientific knowledge and technical skills to grow and develop plants for better nutrition and to improve the aesthetic quality of the environment. They also conduct research, develop technology and assist public and private organisations. Like other areas of agriculture, horticulture too offers opportunities in the public sector.


With a degree in horticulture and 2-3 years of work experience, you could apply for the post of Horticulture Assistant in the Archaeological Survey of India and other such bodies, for instance (recruitment is done by the Staff Selection Commission).

In addition, a horticulturist could specialise in fields like zoo horticulture, or the cultivation of medicinal plants.

Some other less traditional areas of employment include recreational clubs (maintaining and developing golf courses or racecourse tracks) and gardening therapy (in spas and alternative health resorts).

Education and research are yet other options.

Biotechnology has created many cross-disciplinary opportunities for research and horticulturists have an important role to play in the search for new drugs using plants.

Opportunities in commercial horticulture could be looked at in terms of jobs in the production, retail and marketing sectors of this field. Those engaged in production could be working in enterprises that produce fruit, vegetable, indoor or landscape plants for retail, wholesale or processing industries.

Retail horticulture offers employment in companies that sell fruit, vegetables, flowers and landscape plants and related supplies to nurseries, gardening centres, green houses, roadside markets and flower shops. Large companies engaged in the production and distribution of seed, fertilizer and chemicals, research in plant breeding, biotechnology and tissue culture also employ horticulture graduates.

Horticulture offers a practical opportunity for the nature lovers to combine their skill and knowledge with interest. India’s varied environment provides the horticulturist with many challenges as well as opportunities.

India is the world’s second largest producer of fruits and vegetables, and there is a growing need to make our methods of production more efficient so as to meet the food and health demands. Horticulturists therefore have a key role to play in country’s economy.

Prospects of physics

Q. I am a final year student of BSc (Physics). Due to certain family constraints I won’t be able to pursue long-term higher studies. Can you give me an overview of the jobs available to physics graduates?

— Anubhav Bisht

A. Teaching: B.Sc. graduates can teach at the school level after a B. Ed, which is a teacher’s training course of 1-year duration. To teach at the high school level, an M. Sc in the subject plus B. Ed is the stipulated qualification.

Laboratory Assistant: This job, which, may have alternate names like ‘Lab-technicians, demonstrators etc., essentially revolves around taking care of the laboratory and its equipment. The lab-assistant arranges instruments and apparatus for the various experiments to be conducted in the lab. He also cleans and stores scientific apparatus, equipment, examine slides, etc. A PG Diploma in Medical Lab Technology would be a better option though.

Scientific Assistant: A scientific assistant works under a scientist and may have responsibilities like recording routine readings of instruments, scanning books, internet and journals for reference material, compiling working notes, etc.

Depending on the nature of his duties, he may be known by different names like programme assistant, shift assistant, professional assistant, etc.

Forestry: Science graduates are eligible for the posts of Forester and Forest Ranger.

(a) Forester: Candidates qualifying in the written test and fulfilling prescribed physical requirements are sent to the Indian Forest Research Institute and College at Dehradun or Coimbatore for a 2-year training course in Forestry. On completion of the course they are appointed as foresters, ultimately rising to senior posts like Forest Officer, Assistant Conservator of Forests, etc.

(b) Forest Ranger: While the method of selection varies from state to state, the physical requirements are the same as for the Forestry course. Selected candidates are sent to the forest ranger’s College at Dehradun or Coimbatore for a 2-year training programme.

Defence Services: Science graduates and postgraduates who meet the prescribed physical and medical requirements and clear the entrance tests are eligible for appointment in the Indian army, Indian Navy and Air Force, and in the Defence Science Service.

Other Entry Occupations: Physics graduates can always try for other options open to graduates of all streams. These include various competitive exams, government jobs, subordinate executive and clerical posts, etc.

Sales: Science graduates are specially suited for sales of commercial products like pharmaceuticals, scientific instruments, biotechnology products etc. Medical representatives are hired by all pharmaceutical and medical equipment manufacturers for promoting and marketing their products to doctors and hospitals.

Apprenticeship: Many industrial undertakings recruit science graduates for paid apprenticeship in the chemical, mechanical or other relevant engineering department. They are paid a stipend during training and may afterwards be absorbed in the factories and laboratories.

Management Trainees: On the basis of a selection test and interview, many business houses employ promising science graduates as management trainees. On successful completion of training, they are employed as executives.

— 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