College fair: ‘Discover yourself before choosing a career’

Froebel’s alumni advise students on career, college choices.

ISLAMABAD:

University life entails a lot more than just academics, it is an opportunity to learn new things and meet people from diverse cultures, according to Nida Sattar, a graduate of the University of Cambridge and alumnus of Froebel’s International School (FIS). “Many people tend to get intimidated by the application process but they should give it a shot as they might just get in,” she said.

Sattar was representing her varsity at the college fair at the concluding session of a ‘career counseling week’ at FIS on Friday. At the event, students of GCSE and A-Levels got a chance to interact with the alumni, who have graduated from leading international universities. They discussed admission criterion among other key concerns about applying to universities, both foreign and domestic. The alumni were representing a number of educational institutes, including the University of Cambridge, the University of Sussex, the University of Texas at Austin, McGill University, the Illinois Institute of Technology and the University of Virginia. The local universities participating at the fair were Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute, National University of Sciences and Technology and Lahore University of Management Sciences.



Izza Farrukh, an alumnus and graduate of University of Virginia, said students should explore their personal interests and passions and discover themselves before entering a specialised field. Farrukh has worked in the development sector with non-profit organisations as well as the government. As part of her work, she has also travelled to Washington, Kabul and Islamabad and is currently based in Peshawar.

Umair Kamil, a student of A-2 at FIS, plans to apply to universities in the United Kingdom, the United States and Canada. He aspires to pursue Business Studies at the University of Pennsylvania. “My backup plan is to get into Lahore University of Management Sciences as it is the best option for business courses in the country,” he said.

Mariam Ali, another student of A-2, wants to major in science but is also interested in arts and humanities. She wants to pursue a degree that will ensure a lucrative career. Ali plans to apply to American and Canadian universities but has her eyes set on the University of Toronto.

Sana’a Zuberi, alumnus and graduate of University of California, has worked as a corporate communications specialist at the United Nations and boasts of a career in the advertising industry spanning six years. She also writes a food blog, “Ghee Shakar” and plans to put her expertise into a catering and event planning business.



Sohaib Ahmed, another alumnus and graduate of the University of Vienna, said, “It is better to be a big fish in a small sea than being a small fish in a big sea,” referring to his collegiate experience. Ahmed has majored in Political Science. He said even though the university is not highly ranked globally, it affords students the opportunity to study European culture and easy travel to other countries in the continent.

Nabeel Vehra, of Queen Mary University, said students should put a lot of thought into their area of interests before going on a particular career path. “It is the most important decision of your life and involves a lot of time and money so prospective students need to think their way through before pursuing a career path,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 14^th, 2013.