When colleges prepare students for the job market, there are certain traits that students are instructed to have.
Placement doesn’t mean only domain knowledge or communication skills. Students must know how to present themselves. The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) has released a 50-page handbook on the subject. Crafting Your Success Story, a guide to mastering the interview, is aimed at newly qualified CAs. The book is a detailed document. If a person goes through it meticulously, he/she cannot go wrong in an interview.
A rare statement
Rarely does a student hear that an interview is a fascinating journey. The book begins with that statement, and coming from practising CAs, aspiring chartered accountants don’t need another endorsement.
A recently qualified 24-year-old chartered accountant said he was participating in the orientation programme offered by the institute, which also offers campus placement. Most of the interviews happen virtually though, but candidates are instructed to behave as they would at a personal interview.
“We are taught how to comb our hair. At the orientation, a person told us that we should not oil our hair. If we did, we should wash our hair on the interview day. We must be clean shaven, and we must trim our nails, keep our fingers clean,” he said.
The CAs are expected to wear a blazer for the interview. “A coat is fine for cold climates, but how can one living in hot regions wear such an attire,” the candidate said in dismay.
Demands of the job
Vidhya Srikanth, founder of Srinivasa Academy that coaches CA aspirants in Chennai, however, felt it was a prerequisite. With top-ranked companies looking for qualified professionals, it goes without saying that the interviewee should anticipate the demands of his job.
“Generally, CAs don’t prefer campus placement as they get jobs immediately on qualifying. This is especially true of rank-holders. The institute offers an orientation programme, training students in soft skills and the use of information technology. There are only 3 lakh CAs and Certified Management Accountants (CMAs) in the country, whereas there are over 20 lakh companies which are looking for qualified chartered accountants. The competition is tough, and students must be prepared,” she insisted.
Acceptable dress code
T. Kalaichelvan, Director of Manikam Ramaswami College of Arts and Science, Madurai, who had earlier been the placement director at Anna University, said students were advised to be present in an acceptable dress code. “We tell them about proper grooming, good attire, and a pleasing personality. They are taught grooming and advised to be pleasingly attired and presentable at interviews. Some private companies may require a student to wear a jacket. But we do not make it a norm,” he said.
“Companies look for how knowledgeable you are, how far you can deliver when you are put on a project, your skills and if recruited, your attitude,” he said.
