Except for medical courses, students can get seats in whichever branch of study they want in Karnataka as the State is full of educational opportunities, said Higher Education Minister C.N. Ashwath Narayan, participating in the 20th edition of The Hindu Education Plus Career Counselling 2022 on Saturday at Chowdaiah Memorial Hall here.
The event saw huge turnout with close to 1,000 students and parents at the event that offered guidance from experts in fields ranging from medicine to engineering to general education and even UPSC and CET.
“The gross enrolment in higher education in the State has increased by 6% in three years - to 34% in the higher education sector,’’ said the Minister. Listing out the measures taken by the government to improve the sector, he said, “We are competing with the entire world, not with the neighbouring States.’’
With around 17 higher education institutions, including medical and engineering colleges, available under a single roof, students and parents were seen getting information about the colleges, various courses, fee structure, infrastructure, and placement.
S. Kumar, executive secretary of COMEDK, who spoke on medicine, said in all, for Karnataka, they are 8,895 medical seats available this year. “On the basis of NEET rank, students will be given seats,” he said, adding that Karnataka has the best of industries and establishments that provide a “wonderful ecosystem” for internships too.
K.R. Venugopal, former Vice-Chancellor of Bangalore University, spoke about how Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) are subjects of the future. “AI, ML, Computer Science, engineering, information science, and engineering will provide millions of jobs,’’ he said.
Ameen E-Mudassar, career counsellor and CEO of CIGMA, talked about general education and said students must learn multiple skills, upgrade themselves, and try to acquire online knowledge. “Don’t choose your career influenced by others. Don’t get tempted by current trends and don’t finalise before you clarify. At the end your graduation, have at least five internships,’’ he said.
Students wishing to pursue professional courses got first hand guidance on the CET admission process from S. Ravi, principal at Government Girls PU College and former PRO of KEA. “Once CET rank is announced by the Karnataka Examination Authority, the schedule for the verification of documents will be announced. Students can arrange documents well before this,” he explained.
Those wishing to be in the civil services got the lowdown on the whys and hows from M.N. Anucheth, SP, CID. He said: “Civil service is not a job, it is a service. Before taking the CSE, you must ask yourself why you want to become a civil servant. Don’t do it out parental pressure, power, or prestige. Youngsters today are intellectually far superior than us. Your IQ is really good, but EQ is a little low. You need to be able to handle those pressures. Find your talent and be humane and service oriented,’’ he advised the students.
