Starting with a very basic question that most of the students have in their minds during their study period: “How can we use our knowledge in our professional career?” This is the most basic point every student thinks of in last year of his/her study. Despite spending three to four years in getting bookish knowledge, they don’t have an idea about how things happen professionally. They do have groomed their personalities physically in the university environment, but professionalism is not just dressing nice or having an advanced degree. It is about being an expert in the field which one is practicing, excellent practical and literary skills in relation to the profession, high quality in work, high standard of ethics, reasonable work morale and motivation, appropriate treatment of relationships with colleagues, and commitment to the field.

Unfortunately, our education system focuses only on high grades and CGPAs. These grades do help us in getting admissions in our desired field, but we develop the habit of cramming. We just waste time to cram books for getting high grades and maintain our so-called high position in the institute. But what benefit do we get if we are not implementing this bookish knowledge practically?

In my view, it must be a compulsory requirement of every degree program to have at least six months of internship in related field with proper supervision. Educational institutions must conduct a session of last year students with different companies to make them learn about how, actually, they are going to face professional work challenges.

Last but not the least, I want to ask you can you control your emotions if something frustrates you? Do you storm out of a meeting if something is decided on that you do not agree with? How do you behave if you are feeling stressed? Are you rude to others? These are the common practices of unprofessional person.

Avoid a grungy appearance, inappropriate language/volume of voice, missed deadlines, lack of motivation or care, blaming others, not respecting privacy, not holding up your end of the work, demonstrating your pride in the company and your work, your ability to be non-judgmental, your self-control and your maturity will show the world that you are a real-life professional.

YUSRA ZAKIR,

Lahore, December 27.