93% Indian students aware of just seven career options: What are parents doing wrong?
A recent survey on career option awareness among Indian students has revealed that a staggering 93% of the students aged 14 to 21 were aware of just seven career options though there are more than 250 different types of job options available in India. Are parents doing something wrong?
The average age of India will be just 27 in 2020, which means that the majority of the country will comprise young students and youth. But even now with the clock ticking, the unemployment crisis is raging the country the main reason behind this problem is that there are a huge number of youth passing out from schools and colleges every year, and there are many new career options and job roles being added to various industries in well.
However, the youth do not have the kind of skills the new industries want there is a wide skill gap.
And a recent survey by Mindler, an online career-counselling platform, has proved that the majority of Indian students are aware of just seven career paths, even though there are 250 career options that can be pursued in India -- most new and in-demand.
Survey took responses from 10,000 students
The survey on the awareness of career options among Indian students was conducted among 10,000 participants.
The students were in the age group of 14 to 21 and hailed from all over India.
93% of students unaware of more than seven career options
The responses collected in the survey showed that a staggering 93% of the students who participated in the survey were aware of just seven career options -- law, engineering, medicine, accounts and finance, design, computer applications and IT, and management.
According to researchers, India has a variety of 250 career options available across 40 domains covering 5,000 job types.
"Our research on over 10,000 students across India suggests an alarming ignorance of the career options available to students today," said Prateek Bhargava, founder and CEO of Mindler, who has recently launched a platform for career counselling in tier II and tier III cities across India.
Need for career counsellors
This shocking lack of awareness among Indian students regarding their future career options can spell and death knell for the economic bonus that could have come to India due to its demographic dividend the time period where its population is young and earning.
Mindler CEO Bhargava said that India has only a limited number of trained career counsellors available who can assist and guide students to make the correct career decision among the plethora of choices available today.
Mindler aims to bring counsellors from underserved cities across India under one roof and wants to systemise the career counselling sector. To do this, the platform recently launched a 'Partner Platform' to reorganise the hitherto unorganized career counselling sector in tier II & tier III cities across India.
How can parents help students become aware?
School, teachers, parents, friends and mentors are all part of the decision-making process when it comes to a child deciding on his/her career, explains Bhargava.
Since children constantly interact with the environment around them, "effective career planning would thus need to take into account all the stakeholders in which parents and teachers are the most important, given the time they spend with the child and the impact they have," he says.
"The biggest focus area when working with parents and teachers is to enhance their awareness and also help them unlearn the misconceptions," says Bhargava, while explaining how Mindler works in a holistic manner to train teachers and parents regarding how to support their children in their career planning process.
"In India, students face parental pressure to opt for conventional careers such as engineering, medicine, law, civil services etc. Parents need to be aware of their child's strength areas which contribute to their career success," he says.
Thus, if parents and teachers can build their own awareness regarding new career options coming up, then they can be a very helpful part in their child's career decisions rather than being one of those parents who push their child into one of the most common careers simply because they are unable to understand which area would be the perfect fit for their child.
Parents need to remember that shaping a student's profile with the right set of activities in sync with their strength, capability and dreams is the way forward, Bhargava stresses.
"Children feel much more confident in choosing a particular career when they are supported by their parents. Thus, parents play a vital role in this entire process," he says.
How soon should career counselling be started off for young students?
Bhargava says there is no specific age to start off career counselling. Children need to first become aware of the many subjects and career options that exist and before they finalise one, they will also need to build their profile for the chosen career.
"The ideal age to start considering career counseling is 13-14 years where they start with subject exploration and selection and then work towards career selection. Giving enough time to plan will even out the stress and give them time to engage in critical thinking," says the Mindler CEO.
He reminds us that today, the career decision-making process isn't just about choosing subjects/ but also about making sure that kids can gradually build an all-rounded profile.
What can children do if their career decision goes against what their parents want for them?
Students often deal with parental pressure in cases where he/she is aware of the career options but faces demotivation from parents who are themselves not aware of new-age career options which can create more productive lives for their children.
"Such a situation is fairly common and this is where professional career counselling is needed. We always recommend that parents must be participative in their children's career choices," Bhargava says, adding that at Mindler, a lot of stress is put on the importance of parents collaborating with children in such cases.
He says that the major problem of the friction between parents and children takes place when the amount of information both parties have do not match up.
"Very often we come across students who have a broad idea of what they wish to do but don't have the resources to plan it end to end. In such a scenario parents are often found to vary of such plans and this leads to parents asserting their own choices," he says.
Thus, if parents utilise the available technology and tools available, they can become more aware of which careers will help their children grow the most, and career counselling can help both parties get the desired satisfaction.
Read: Two career counsellors explain how you can make a career by helping others find theirs
Read: Why career counselling cells are becoming crucial in schools
Read: India in dire need of 1.4 million career counsellors for students
Read: 10 things to do during your graduation for a great career later
