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Delhi University to Conduct Weekly Seminars for Its Students

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The Central Placement Cell of Delhi University will be conducting a series of weekly webinars for its students from 5 to 6 pm starting from 4th May. 

For undergraduate and postgraduate students, the Central Placement Cell of the University of Delhi (DU) has planned a series of webinars on various topics that ought to help students in their professional lives. Apart from these webinars, the varsity has also decided upon conducting a webinar on COVID-19 and the challenges of the visually impaired.

The five webinars will be free of cost and will be organized weekly starting from the 4th May. The students will be required to register online prior to the webinar. The link to the webinar can be found on the official website of Delhi University http://www.du.ac.in/du/. These webinars will take place on Mondays from 5 to 6 pm. Experts from various fields will apprise the attendees on various topics that will help them in improving their resumes and giving better interviews. The list of the webinars is given below-

  • Gen Z and Jobs of the Future- 4th May 2020
  • Business Ethics- 11th May 2020
  • Introduction of Data Analytics- 18th May 2020
  • Case Studies- 25th May 2020
  • Resume and Interview tips and tricks- 1st June 2020

The webinar on COVID-19 will most likely be addressed by Shakuntala D Gamlin, Secretary, Department of Empowerment of Person with Disabilities. The Vice-Chancellor (VC) Yogesh Tyagi will be among eleven people who will be attending the webinar.

“These weekly webinars will prove to be useful for students looking to improve their resumes and to gain knowledge about business ethics and data analytics,” said Tejasvi, a student at Lady Shri Ram College.

The varsity has also issued a notice for students stating that the Academic Calendar has been modified by extending the date of dispersal of classes from 28th April 2020 to 15th May 2020. This notice has officially shifted the plausible date of semester examinations that are still being discussed.

The varsity is also taking forward the admission process for the session of 2020-21. The last date to submit applications for foreign students seeking admission in UG is 12th June. Applications for Indian citizens are yet to be released.

 

Feature Image Credits: Niharika Dabral for DU Beat

Suhani Malhotra

[email protected]

 

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Arts & Culture

2020: Not The Year of Students

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As the war on the wretched virus wages on, every single person is also dealing with the consequences of the same. With their whole future in front of them, students are staring a mammoth obstacle in front of them.

The year 2020, as many says, has turned the world upside down. Numerous concerns surround the apprehensive students. The Economic pandemic that will follow this outbreak topping the list. With the markets crashing down, major industries will suffer a huge loss leading to unemployment and layoffs. Travel and Tourism industry which employs around 4 crore people expecting 12 lakh layoffs while the retail industry expects 1 crore layoffs. The stress of having unemployment is already circling every student’s head.

Getting a placement only seems like a handful of a challenge for them. And with DU signalling more delay in third-year examinations, the challenges only seem to increase. While DU authorities are confident that they can conduct the examinations online, many doubt their ambitious plans.

As many students aim for higher students in India as well as abroad, the sudden change in the schedule and work environment of the whole world has left students on pins and needles regarding the upcoming entrances and selections. As many universities from around the world start their entrance examinations and other formalities for admissions from April to June. Students who plan on studying abroad, are becoming sceptical of their future aspects leading them to rethink their priorities and choices.

This botch to the whole semester has left students perturbed. Manav Gupta, a third-year B.Com (Hons) student, said, “The uncertainty which is surrounding the virus as well as our examinations has left me confused and frustrated as to what I should study and what I shouldn’t. It is also truly disheartening that my batch will be missing our last days of college and might even our farewells”.

Not only is this wretched virus affecting the students with dreams of studying  abroad, but also the ones who have been preparing for various entrance examinations in the country. Be it NEET, JEE or SSB, all these exams have been postponed and uncertainty hangs over them.

Akshat Singh Rathore, an Army aspirant who was preparing for SSB this year, said, “Last year I took a drop to prepare for SSB examinations, but not only have the exams been postponed but also the stress over the preparations for the same is growing”.

Similarly, Mrinalika Chauhan, who had recently cleared her Tata Institute of Social Sciences entrance exam, said, “I just cleared my TISS entrance process which includes an exam and a series of interviews. But the result of the same is not being declared due to the coronavirus and this has put me in dilemma, should I wait for the result or should I apply elsewhere also”.

In addition to this, the first and second-year students are also suffering with many teachers facing difficulties in finishing the course in time. Even though many colleges were quick to take classes online but recent incidents have derailed this effort as well. Many teachers have reported incidents of harassment by students in online classes via obscene messages and language.

Speaking on the issue, Shitakshi Thakur, a student of Maharaja Agrasen College, said, “Just recently we had a class on Skype and it was an utter disaster as well as an embarrassing for us students. One of the students disrupted and disturbed the class again and again. It feels like we aren’t ‘educated’ enough to take online classes.”

The Coronavirus and Economic Pandemic along with the social distancing has taken a toll over the students’ mental and emotional health. However, the pandemic is also a stark reminder of how powerless humans are even though we tend to think otherwise.

 

Feature Image Credits: Paintvalley

Aniket Singh Chauhan

[email protected]

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Campus Central

The Precarious Road to College Placements

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In the midst of the unclear selection criteria, the inability of colleges to prepare students for corporate interviews, and the inclination of prosperous packages to only prime colleges,  placements have become a tricky territory to navigate. 

When you see a third-year student with a formidable countenance, sitting in formals, tapping their feet in nervous anxiety, it is a nobrainer that the student is awaiting the result for the last round of the recruitment drive. A little hope, a little fear, and plenty of drama are what could potentially sum up the tormenting interview rounds. If the fear turns out real then there are high chances of feeling wornout and developing loathsome feelings for the company. Being a student who’s already faced rejection from multiple companies, it is disheartening to tell your loved ones that you didn’t crack it. What is even more saddening is that you feel worthless, and the weariness of the day translates to a lack of efficiency in the remaining recruitment drives. Since these jobs are exclusive to many University of Delhi (DU) graduates, it needs to be asked: are these jobs worth the hassle?
From what can be noticed through simple observation, the compensation offered to graduates does not seem enough to sustain a metropolitan lifestyle. The packages offered by most companies fall in the bracket of three to four lakh per year and that means barely enough salary to make the ends meet, let alone keep aside some savings. The job profiles are often not what students aspire to do right out of college, and securing placement in the popular profiles is a tough nut to crack. The precursor for most students is exposure and the fear of sitting idle, which is why factors like job profile and compensation take a backseat.
Top colleges of DU, like Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies and Shri Ram College of Commerce are adrift from this concept to a certain degree, as many companies come to these colleges with reasonably good profiles and higher than average packages. Meanwhile, other colleges, especially the newer and off-campus ones, are yet to have an active, functioning placement cell to remove the aforementioned barriers.
If all companies do visit these campuses, students from courses other than Commerce and Economics are not eligible to sit for these drives. In many colleges, students who do secure placements are debarred from sitting in the forthcoming ones. DU’s Central Placement Cell is a right step in this direction, but the odds of securing a job are lesser with more number of applicants.
The latent, fundamental problem behind placements in DU is the lack of knowledge of the job profile. Colleges give little insight into what the corporate world expects out of students. The subject structures of many courses fail to equip students with the necessary knowledge they need to decide which field they’d like to start their career in. With surface-level knowledge and ambiguity on a lot of topics, the course structure is still bent towards academic learning over joboriented learning. The Choice Based Credit System, which proclaims of being studentoriented, that offers choice and mobility to students remains ineffective. Due to lack of infrastructure or lack of enthusiasm for college administration, the “choice” remains nonexistent.
Another recurring issue amongst college graduates is the seemingly dubious methods employed by recruiters to judge candidates. Interviewers give higher weightage to a candidate’s ability to speak English fluently over their knowledge in the field. The Human Resources round continues to be hit-or-miss in many cases, and the candidate is left in the lurch, wondering what went wrong. Thus, there is a scope of countless permutations out of it and no fixed answer.
Given a fresher’s limited knowledge of everything corporate, it’s understandable why companies employ conventional wisdom to assess candidates. What could, however be added, is a proper feedback mechanism, and above all, a move to conduct more offcampus recruitment drives that assess a candidate on meritorious grounds and not on the basis of which college he/she belongs to.
To all my fellow third-year students who’ve faced rejection, it’s imperative to realise how inconsequential these placement drives are in the larger scheme of things. There’s probably a better job offer waiting for you in the coming months!

 

Vijeata Balani

[email protected]

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Campus Central

CV: An Accurate Criterion for Assessment?

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A résumé or CV is used as a prerequisite for evaluating a person while applying for a job. Given the amount of information it provides about the person, it is highly significant while making selection decisions. But is it really that appropriate as an assessment of all the niches of an individual?

The Curriculum Vitae (CV) or résumé is a document which is a brief description of one’s qualifications, experiences, interests, achievements, and so on. It would be safe to say that it is mandatory to have a CV for a college student in today’s day and age. After all, one needs the descriptive ‘paper’ while applying for internships, jobs, and now, even societies. But is it really an accurate defining medium? Once we get into the college, we are advised to get into extra-curricular activities and seek experiences by joining initiatives and projects. It is absolutely fantastic to have such kind of exposure because it helps us learn and develop skills.

But today, the nature of these documents has changed from being a depiction of the source of an individual’s development to a mere incentive or goal of having a longer CV Regardless of where we go, the professional world requires us to submit that piece of paper. The corporate realm can sometimes be so cruel as to reject an individual just on the basis of their CV, without any speck of a personal interaction or interview. However, the concept of looking into CVs is understandable.

A candidate who has been actively involved in ECA naturally might have more experience to develop better skills in comparison to the ones who are not involved in such activities. But by what means does it prove that the student who doesn’t have such experience isn’t competent enough? Someone with a comparatively “less interesting” CV might be interesting to talk to or be as good at communication as a student whose CV conveys so. Sandeep Samal, a DU student opined, “CV is the index to an individual. But it cannot define 2025 years of life and the experience one has.” Mason Cooley, an American aphorist once said “If you call failures experiments, you can put them in your résumé and call them achievements.”

Having your CV bombarded with experiences does not necessarily mean that you are good at what you did. Moreover, how can it guarantee that one will be good at the job they are applying for just because they did something in the past? That also raises a question of one’s competency to perform well simply on the basis of lack of experience? We have been taught that everyone is unique in their own different ways.

We are all capable of something. Then just because one does not have a piece of paper that seems relevant to the one making the decision, should one be deprived of the platform to demonstrate their capabilities? One may say that it is a standard measure to filter candidates from a big pool of applicants.

Yes, it certainly is, but if someone is simply being rejected or selected on the basis of a paper which may be far from accurate when it comes to describing how an individual is, will organisations not miss out on great talents too? Placement season frantically beckons third-year students to reduce their persona into a CV, and reflect their personality through a mere paper.

A CV is essentially a summation of what you have achieved in the past 18-20 years of your life, and you do not even realise the importance of it till you get into college are frenetically thrown into the world of ECA and exposure, owing to the sole and heavy focus on the academic culture in schools. Although this practice is needed in today’s fast-paced day and age, it is highly impersonal. To conclude how skilled an individual really is, there should be more elaborative skill-oriented measures.

 

Feature Image Credits: iamWire.

Karan Singhania

[email protected]

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Campus Central

SSCBS: Placement Report 2017-18, Highest Package of INR 17 LPA Offered

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Shaheed Sukhdev College of Business Studies (CBS) is a premier undergraduate management college under the aegis of the University of Delhi (DU) offering Bachelor of Management Studies (BMS), BBA (Financial Investment Analysis) and B. Sc. (H) Computer Science. The admission in BMS and BBA (FIA) is through a highly competitive Joint Admission Test (DU JAT) followed by rounds of Group Discussion and Personal Interview with an intake ratio of 1:140.

The Placement Season 2017-18 saw the participation of 68 companies making 155 offers and counting. KPMG and Bain Capability Centre were the largest recruiters with 20 and 11 offers respectively. The average package amounted to INR 6.4 LPA while the highest package offered was INR 17 LPA. The season saw 3 companies from the league of the Big 4 namely EY, KPMG and Deloitte. Other reputed names such as The Boston Consulting Group, AT Kearney, DE Shaw, McKinsey Knowledge Centre, Verity, Duff & Phelps, United Airlines and Knight Frank also became a part of the season.

CBS has yet again seen a multitude of prestigious companies expressing their faith in the students this year, that helped us in achieving a placement ratio of more than 83%, which is amongst the highest in the Delhi University. Companies from more than 15 different sectors offered a diverse mix of profiles that included business analyst, strategic consulting associate, marketing executive, equity and other research-oriented positions.

In addition to this, the Placement Cell also conducted an internship season to help students acquire internships and gain the necessary experience and skills. The college saw participation of companies such as SBI, Knight Frank, CBRE, Jasper Collins and Willis Towers Watson for recruitment of interns. Industry Training workshops were conducted in association with various organizations as part of Training & Development activities of the Placement Cell.

We, at CBS, aim to strengthen corporate relations of the college with the companies. We successfully organized the zonal round of KPMG International Case Competition 2017 in the college premises which saw participation from various colleges. The team from CBS won the north zone regional championship and was the only undergraduate team to participate in the Nationals.

Here is what recruiters had to say about the placement process:

DE Shaw: “We conducted an off campus hiring event and the placement team CBS was very professional and I expect the new team to maintain the high standards!” “I have interacted extensively with the students during the interviews and I have a high opinion of them. They were knowledgeable about the firm and the role and their demeanor was commendable. I believe this has a lot to do with the stringent admissions process along with the faculty and the senior students passing on their experience with the new batches.”

Bain Capability Centre: “The placement process was very smooth. It was easy to coordinate with the college as they accommodated our calendar and were flexible regarding the dates. Further, they were very hospitable during the PPT and Case Study Workshop.”

If you wish to hire from CBS and be a part of our Placement Season 2018-19, write to us at [email protected] or https://www.facebook.com/cdcsscbs/

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Placements

CV essentials for the Fresher and Sophomore

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As first or second year students, we seldom refer to our resume, barring the rare occasions of applying to college societies or for summer internships. But as the third year comes calling, the significance of the ‘Curriculum Vitae’ (CV), a document that can make or break your career, glares menacingly back.

Many a times, a CV can become the sole impediment that stands between you and your dream job. Most companies begin their recruitment process with ‘CV shortlisting’. A poorly conceptualised CV can altogether disqualify your job application, while a well-planned, coherent and smartly presented CV can catapult you through the subsequent rounds of selection.

Although you are exposed to campus placements only on entering the fifth semester, you cannot enjoy an oblivious and inert existence through the preceding four semesters. Agreed, the act of formally laying down content of a CV is done in the final year of college. But, development of that content is an on-going process that must span all three years of college. After all, the parameters on the basis of which you will market yourself to a prospective employer can’t be acquired overnight. Your net worth is the value that you acquire over a period of time, requiring consistent effort to hone and sharpen your skill set of employability.

Therefore, as a first or second year student who hopes to grab a meaty campus placement in the future, you must start working now.  Essentially, a good CV format requires that you address the following heads: Educational Details, Internships, Research Project, Position of Responsibility and Achievements and Awards.

Following below is an attempt to guide you, so that when the time comes, you have ample content to fill the above heads:

1.Educational Details
Here, you must mention your class X,XII and college percentage. Thus, start working on your college marks. Aim for an aggregate of at least 80%, where anything above will certainly fall to your favour. The best of the best companies eliminate you on the basis of your marks, so doing academically well in college can put you in a comfortable position.

2. Internships
It’s important to productively employ your skills in a professional field of your choice during the long summer and winter vacations allowed by DU. Internships not only give you an opportunity to explore yourself and your talents, but also equip you with professional etiquettes that employers rank high on their checklist.

3. Research Project
Although not necessary, spending one summer or winter break on a research project can give you an academic edge over other contenders. However, to gain credibility, make sure that you conduct this project under a mentor.
4. Position of Responsibility
All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. And needless to say, no one wants to hire a dull employee! Ensuring a good academic record must not come at the cost of being a college nerd. You have to present yourself as an all-rounded personality and therefore, invest yourself in extra-curricular activities. For this, make sure you’re in at least one college society. Further, be proactive in assuming responsibility. For example, take charge of organising your college/society/departmental fest; stand for a society post; volunteer and perform social work etc.

5. Achievements and Awards
Nailing this aspect is consequential to how well you utilise your inherent talents. If you do well academically, you’ll become the recipient of academic awards given by your college. When you are actively involved with a society, you will compete at fests and other outstation competitions, coming away with participation certificates and experience, if nothing else. So if you tactfully tap your potential, this part of your CV will pretty much fill itself.

So come on, young ‘uns! Get to work now! Sow your seeds of ability today, nurture them with hard work and you shall reap the fruit of a great placement tomorrow!

I’m here to answer your queries. Feel free to drop in an e-mail.

Good luck!

 

Feature Image credits: chipright.com

 

Kriti Sharma
[email protected]

 

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Top Picks

5 tips to becoming a real-life employed adult

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I still remember my teachers in school detailing some horrifying instances of happens when you step out into the “real-world” where you’re no longer sheltered and where you’d need to fend for yourself. Despite our worries, our lives in college turned out just fine. While there was freedom to pursue our interests there also existed a security net for us if we failed.

However, as graduation approaches, the thought of stepping out into the ‘actual real-world’ seems daunting. There will be no teachers looking out for our interests or professors grading us on our answer sheets. We’d all have to, eventually, wear our adult pants and begin the terrifying process of becoming a self-sufficient adult. No matter how efficient you are at procrastinating, life post-graduation is nearing.

Yes, it’s time to become a real-life employed adult. Here our tips to help you ease into this frightening process!

1. Craft a Resume

 

craft resume

 

 

 

 

 

 

The first step to the long and tiresome process of securing a job is to build a resume of your accomplishments, talents and internships you might have pursued in college You can start by skimming through some formats, and then continue listing your most recent achievements.You can refer to our guide to slaying your resume, here.

  1. Stalk your college’s Placement cell

stalk placement cell

 

 

 

 

 

 

Always stay updated with information about the upcoming placement sessions in your college. Don’t be afraid to ask your advisors to skim through your resume. They might not be experts in finding jobs for you, but they might just guide you towards your path to a successful employment.

  1. Look for job postings online

job postings

 

 

 

 

 

 

Don’t just rely on your placement cells for availing job opportunities. You can also look for job postings online on portals like monsterindia.com and Naukri.com. Go to the websites of companies you’re interested in and search for anything that says “hiring,” “jobs” or “careers” (or it might just be surrounded by a mystical glow and flashing money signs). If you do come across something you’re interested in, all you would have to do is fill an online form and attach a resume and submit it.

  1. Create a LinkedIn profile

linkedin

 

 

 

 

 

 

When you’re looking for jobs online, LinkedIn is a good place to start. The platform helps you connect with people who have the same interests as you and it enables you in growing your network. Once you have an actual profile, you can highlight your key achievements and start branching out to build connections with people. You can read more about navigating LinkedIn to jumpstart your career, here.

  1. Call and follow up

call and follow up

 

 

 

 

 

 

Whether it’s your career guidance cell or a mentor from LinkedIn, always make sure to follow up with them. If you asked someone on LinkedIn to go through your resume and they reverted with their recommendations, compile them and get back to them with a revised version of your resume. Connect with hiring managers and keep in touch with them for future job postings. Try to make an unforgettable impression so you can be remembered and you could be one step closer to employment.

To avoid being known as “that annoying kid that keeps calling,” it’s important to know when you should call. When everything fails use your own judgement.

 

While following these tips might prepare you for the roller-coaster ride mentally, nothing can truly prepare us for what lies ahead. Inevitably, for better or for worse, we will prioritize our lives differently. But no matter what happens or what we end up doing, may we always remember that it will be totally legit to still hate Mondays!

Image Credits: giphy.com

Feature Image Credits: quotesgram.com

 

Surbhi Arora

[email protected]

 

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Campus Central

Do Cool Things That Matter: Google at LSR

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On 18th September, Google organized its pre-placement talk in LSR. Being one of the most sought after and innovative companies, Google had ‘do cool things that matter’ as its theme this year to attract prospective applicants in their pre- placement talk. The talk was led by Ms. Shwetambari, a senior executive at Google, India, and the talk began with a little quiz on Google and its products, to see how ‘Googly’ the LSR girls were. The ones who gave the correct answers received goodies from Google, and with a brilliant start, Google managed to capture the attention of all the girls from the various departments of LSR, sitting in that small room, dreaming about working for a company like Google in the future. Apart from departments like Economics and B.com, which are standard departments sitting for placements, the Google pre-placement talk saw students ranging from departments like English to Political science. The job profile offered was the business analyst program, which entailed tasks like reviewing Google advertisements, servicing global small and medium business customers, etc. Apart from these, the program also trained the employee in selling skills and business management. The employee would also learn how to use the Google Adwords product. The pay package offered was good, considering the fact that a company like Google was employing fresh graduates. The employees would have to work and learn with Google for two years, before they could move on to other job profiles. One thing extremely special about Google was- its emphasis on employee satisfaction, and Ms. Shwetambari kept stating throughout the presentation that Google did not believe in binding unhappy employees to the company, and if an employee wished to leave, they could do so, without facing any penalty. In fact, they could also keep the ‘gift’ stocks that they are given at the beginning of their tenure in office (considering the fact that Google stocks currently value at around 270$!). Google also seemed like a really ‘cool’ place to work in, with parties being thrown at the end of every week, and guest speakers like Lady Gaga coming to sing and speak to the employees. The office would be located in Hyderabad and Gurgaon, and Google also offered free accommodation for two weeks in a guesthouse, to give time to the employee to settle in the new city. The facilities and bonuses offered by Google were also very lucrative, and after the talk, the first round of the placement process was held. It was a written round, in which all the candidates had to complete a quantitative and verbal analysis test in 40 minutes, and a writing test in 30 minutes. The test by and large tested the aptitude of the students, and there was a round of positive feedback after the entire session got over. The results are now eagerly awaited for the girls who managed to crack the test and move towards the next round of placement in the ‘cool’ place to be: Google. Do cool things that matter.  ]]>

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