Multi-disciplinary approach crucial for students to land jobs: academics at a webinar

Focus on acquiring social and life skills over CGPA for lucrative job opportunities, as discussed in a webinar.

Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) scores do not ensure lucrative job opportunities, rather students should focus on acquiring social and life skills, speakers at a webinar have said.

Organised jointly by the SRM Institute of Science and Technology (SRMIST) and The Hindu, the webinar was part of a series on ‘Future Career Conversations: Reimagining Futures through Humanities and Sciences’ and explored the topic ‘Beyond Marksheets: Building Real World Skills through Humanities and Sciences’.

Professor A. Vinay Kumar, Pro-Vice Chancellor, SRMIST, said that employers these days look for candidates capable of critical and emotional thinking, effective communication, and innovatively solving problems. A multi-disciplinary approach to academics, looking beyond the conventional framework of education, helps acquire the requisite skills, he said. To be able to solve societal issues with empathy, students need to have aptitude and curiosity that comes from studying subjects like literature, history, psychology, music, and philosophy.

While urging parents to drop their fixation with marks, ranks, and results, A. Joseph Dorairaj, Emeritus Professor, School of English and Foreign Languages, Gandhigram Rural Institute, said that increasingly, institutions are favouring competency-based frameworks and relaxing eligibility criteria for admission.

Both speakers underlined the importance of students developing cognitive skills and equipping themselves with technology, irrespective of the subjects they are studying.