Air University Vice-Chancellor Air Marshal (retd) Javaid Ahmed has stressed the need of promoting career-focused education.
Addressing the concluding session in connection with a career counseling week organised by the AU on here in Islamabad, he said that “Air University focuses on enhancing the employability skills in order to facilitate students for choosing a perfect career path.”
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He emphasized that a career-oriented education is the need of time that empowers students, through academic programs and co-curricular activities, to identify their professional goals and let them move forward in the right direction to achieve successes. “Air University is taking various initiatives facilitating students to earn their valuable degree, develop bright destiny, and ensure a solid foundation for their future achievements,” he further said.
Answering a question about the importance of CGPA in job hirings, the AU vice-chancellor acknowledged that the CGPA is usually considered the most important factor when being shortlisted for a job position.
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“You might get a job offer based on your academic performance, but in order to secure the seat and compete in the job market, you need to demonstrate extraordinary competencies related to creative thinking, interpersonal skills, team spirit, decision-making, and a strong grip on technology,” he stated.
“It is a universal fact that students who are more self-aware and clearer on their career strengths feel more confident to explore professional opportunities,” DSA Fazaila Ali expressed while expressing her views with students.
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“The key objectives for organizing the Career Counseling Week include too brief newly-enrolled students of 1st semester about the significance of choosing the right career path, to test and evaluate job readiness skills, and to devise a concrete plan of action in support of career planning and development,” she emphasized.
“The data obtained could also be beneficial for research purpose and decision-making process to find out more about students’ career readiness, their strengths and needs for grooming,” Sabahuddin Qazi, who heads Career Support Office, stated, informing that “it will also provide a comprehensive framework for addressing career-related goals and outcomes of curricular and co-curricular activities in terms of student’s field of study and interest areas.”
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According to him, a total nine sessions were held throughout the week starting from October 10, during which the AU Career Counseling core team, composed of Gulnaz Batool, Misbah Shahid and Mobeen Jamshed, evaluated the employability skills and career readiness competencies that employers value most in the recruitment process. “The participating students were thoroughly tested on the basis of job readiness competencies, as per international best practices,” he stated.
