Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
Earn while you learn
|
A growing new trend of part-time jobs is catching up among local college students, discovers VIJAY GEORGE.
|
THEY ARE true-blue professionals, despite their part-time jobs. These regular students, who eke out an income, along with their studies and are fast becoming a new lifestyle trend.
With head on their shoulders, business written firmly on their faces and choices well made, these young adults come across as far mature beyond their years.
"Such a routine is common everywhere else in the world and finally we too have accepted it, quite rightly," says K. Krishnaprasad, a second year B. A. (Copy Editor) student from Sacred Heart College, Thevara. He is working with the Indiavision Channel, preparing stories for the English news bulletin at 10 p.m. Once the classes are over , he rushes to the studio for his 5 to 11 p.m., "working hours."
"With internal marks for attendance, assignments and tests, the students should be careful in selecting a part-time job, that will not affect their regular classes," reminds he.
But not everyone is as lucky as him. "In our kind of job, regular attendance in classes cannot be ensured always," confides Jaison, a B. A. (English) student of Maharaja's College. He is assigned jobs, mainly of the "sales promotion sort" by some of the event management companies in the city. "I have a list of students who are interested in doing such part-time jobs. We deploy students before the big shopping malls and sometimes to the various offices. We have done such promotional campaigns for various big companies including a popular news magazine and for a chocolate company," says Jaison.
His friend, Antony M.D. of Maharaja's College, who has been "earning money of his own since he was in his seventh standard," now finds time after college hours for home delivery at the "Flowery's Kitchen Café" at Kadavanthra. "I started off distributing newspapers and then, milk packets. During my pre-degree days I was with a vegetable vendor and then, in an ice cream shop. I have never really given the burden of paying my fees or for money for buying my clothes to my parents. In fact, the greatest happiness of my life was when I could cough up the money to pay the bills, when my father had to undergo an operation," he smiles.
"I am happy to have got a part time job which is related to what I study," says Joji K. Joy, a BSc (I.T) student, who is working in Satyam i-Way's Internet cafe at the Landmark Enclave in Valanjambalam as an administrator.
Krishnaprasad too feels that, "in my kind of job, I have a chance to apply what is taught in the classes."
"Besides the extra income, part time jobs can also be helpful in adding on to your experience, when one chooses a profession," believes Tessa, the well known anchor of `live' TV shows, who made her film debut in Lal Jose's `Pattalom'. A first year postgraduate student of Sociology in St.Teresa's College, Tessa has all along insisted, "studies come first." She feels fortunate that the shooting of the film had begun during the vacation, after her degree exams.
"The involvement in serious vocations even during the college days gives that feeling of responsibility and more maturity," believes almost everyone of that tribe.
The teachers often show a certain amount of consideration towards such students. "We often feel that such students have a definite outlook about life and that needs to be appreciated," says Dr. N. Ajithkumar, head of the Economics department at Cochin College.
Shyama Sasidhar, student of B.A (Communicative English) in St.Teresa's and a popular television and stage show anchor, thinks that "those students who do part time jobs can be as good or even better than the rest if they put in a bit more effort for the hours lost, during the exam time."
"Since we prepare for our exams mainly during the study leave, finding time daily for our part time assignments is not a big problem," says Jaison, who had good marks in his first year exams.
Antony is grateful to his classmates, "especially the girls," who give copies of lecture notes, whenever he misses his classes.
Shyama agrees to Tessa's theory that "the routine process of searching for a job once you finish your studies can be made easier if you are careful in selecting a part time job."
Does the "glamour factor" give them a special status in the campus? "Not much, at least in our college, where there are such large number of known faces thanks to the number of channels," laughs Shyama.
"It's not that the parents have problems in giving you money for your fees, clothes or even cosmetics. But it's a different feeling altogether when we find it ourselves," states Tessa.
"I just can't stand young men and women spending the money given to them by their parents. Once they know, how tough it is to earn money, they will understand its value," says Antony.
Even when such relatively new jobs like those in call centres, modelling, product promotions and anchoring shows are turning out to be good money spinners, the age old part time job of giving tuition to younger students is considered quite good, still.
"Besides the earnings, we can refresh our knowledge of the topics which we tend to forget after some time," says Anna T. Malayil, a degree student of S.H, Thevara. She has now given a break for her tuition classes "to give more attention to her studies."
"Tuition has become a full time job for many and it's quite rewarding too," says one who is seriously into the "business."
Then, what about those films, where the students of the current generation are often shown as tender hearted love machines, who always dream about their dream guy or gal, as the case may be?
"Whatever others might say, we prefer to live in the real world and not in the reel version," is the general rhetoric. Do they need to say more?
Printer friendly
page
Send this article to Friends by
E-Mail
Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
|
