Counselling for Career-4

Q. My daughter, a housewife, recently finished her MA in history from IGNOU. She has a flair for copywriting in English. What does she need to do to become a freelance copywriter? -Roy A. A flair for writing advertising copy is indeed a singular skill and worth developing. However, most advertising agencies prefer full-time copywriters to work with them, as much of the ideation for advertisements, both visuals and copy, is handled by a creative team and worked out after a great deal of collective inputs, pencil-chewing and gallons of coffee. It is only those copywriters who have already worked as part of the team and wish to take time off, or work from home that agencies would take on as freelancers. I would, therefore, advise your daughter to work with an ad agency as a full-time copywriter for a couple of years. She should build credibility and experience before looking at freelance work. Alternatively, she can find other writing assignments available in plenty on websites or with the numerous publications that are always hunting for good writers. There are hundreds of job sites devoted to writers or journalists where she could pick up assignments according to her type and style of writing. Another option for creative writers is to be a web content provider. Websites today require material to be interesting, fun and informative/ educational, and often require creative inputs. Your daughter may start by setting up her personal website, which is an excellent marketing tool, or build her reputation by offering fresh content for websites of your friends, family or business contacts. With the recent boom in the print media and mass communication, there are increasing opportunities for all kinds of writers — a journalist, a short story writer, a novelist, a playwright, a copywriter or a scriptwriter. Your daughter may find exciting career opportunities in any of these avenues.

Q. I am going to graduate as a dentist in June 2011, after which I wish to work in hospital administration/ management. Which are the best universities/colleges for this discipline in India and abroad? Please guide me. -Aditi A. Hospital administration is concerned with planning, organising, staffing, coordinating, controlling and evaluating health services for the community to provide maximum care to patients. Today, most hospitals and nursing homes recruit professionals to handle human resources, marketing and medical billing among a host of other related duties. With the healthcare sector growing at 13%, there will be an increased requirement for trained professionals for efficient administration of state-of-the-art hospitals and clinics being set up across the country by large companies such as Apollo, Max, Fortis, Wockhardt, Tata and several others. Hospital/health care management is taught in two-year, postgraduate diploma programmes, available to graduates in all disciplines, as well as to doctors, nurses, and paramedics. The programme combines training in management skills, management principles, accounting and business communication, along with specialised knowledge on the working of a hospital, marketing of hospital services, and logistics management. Students also get to know about basic healthcare and nutrition, prevention of communicable diseases, community health and other medical-related services. The master’s/ PG diploma in hospital management programme is designed to train students to become responsible managers who can take charge of the efficient running of hospitals. There are many universities and institutes offering this programme including: . Punjab University, Chandigarh www.puchd.ac.in . Madurai Kamaraj University, Madurai www.mkuniversity.org . Devi Ahilya Vishwavidyalaya, Indore www.dauniv.ac.in . Tata Institute of Social Services, Mumbai www.tiss.edu . Apollo Institute of Hospital Administration, Hyderabad www.apolloiha.ac.in . Indian Institute of Health Management Research,Jaipur www.iihmt.org . Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal www.manipal.edu . Symbiosis Centre of Health Care, Pune www.schcpune.org . International Institute of Health Management Research, New Delhi www.iihmrdelhi.org Some institutes specifically admit those with a medical background. These include the All India Medical Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, and Delhi University’s Faculty of Management Studies. Just as for other MBA programmes, selection is through an entrance test, a group discussion and an interview. There are also distance-mode courses run by the National Institute of Health and Family Welfare, New Delhi, (for MBBS candidates with two years’ experience), and the Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) which offers a PG diploma in health administration for graduates with some related experience. There are any number of good courses in healthcare management in practically all countries, so it may be difficult to provide this information here. However, you may like to consider the cost of study and stay in a foreign country, given the fact that there is limited possibility of finding a job after training there.

Q. What are the requisite qualification and age limit etc for joining the Territorial Army (TA). How do I apply for it and when? -Lalit A. The Territorial Army (TA) is a voluntary, part-time citizen’s army set up to supplement and augment the resources of the regular one, particularly during war time. While its infantry battalions have participated in all wars alongside the regular army, they have also been deployed for counter-insurgency operations in Jammu and Kashmir and the North-East and have been utilised to maintain essential services such as the railways, oil supply and medical help (departmental units) in emergencies. Those who join the TA undergo a short period of rigorous training, which makes them reasonably competent soldiers. This involves one month’s basic training in the first year of commission. Subsequently, they join their units for two months every year for refresher training, to keep in touch with the art of soldiering. Officers commissioned in the TA can be called out for military service for longer durations depending on the requirement, but are normally not full-time defence personnel and can also be employed elsewhere. Any male graduate, aged 18 to 42, can join as an officer and apply to the group commander of the TA headquarters, in his state by September. For more details, check Employment News, or contact Additional Directorate General, TA, Army Headquarters, L Block, New Delhi 110001.