Your Counsellor Replies

I’m in class XII (science) and want to qualify as a commercial pilot. Please advise if there is scope for women pilots.
Deepali Rane, Pune

Discrimination against women pilots is officially prohibited. Indeed the Indian Air Force has a Women Pilot Entry Scheme (short service commission) specially designed for female candidates. After your tenure with the IAF is over you could apply for a commercial pilot’s job. Eligibility for this scheme is graduation in any discipline with maths and physics at the Plus Two level or an engineering degree. Moreover there are physical requirements you need to satisfy. You must not be colour blind or suffer from night blindness or be a habitual wearer of spectacles (or other forms of corrective lenses), and you must not have failed the Pilot Aptitude Battery Test (PABT) in an earlier attempt. You need to be at least 162.5 cm in height and leg length must be in the range of 99 cm (minimum) to 120 cm (maximum). Visit www.careerairforce.nic.in for further details.

Another option is to complete the B.Sc degree and enroll for the commercial pilot licence course. With so many new airlines taking to the skies, there’s a shortage of qualified pilots and employment prospects are good.

I’m in class XI (arts) and would like to pursue a career in advertising. Please advise.
Nalini Chandrashekhar, Bangalore

If you are interested in a career in the design/ creative side of advertising, then choose a bachelor of fine arts programme or a diploma in commercial art after completion of Plus Two. On the other hand a bachelor of mass media (BMM) degree will give you grounding in the non-creative aspects of advertising. After BMM, you could work as a client service executive or copywriter. However, if you wish to explore a broader range of opportunities in corporate advertising, choose a bachelor’s degree in any discipline and follow it up with a postgraduate programme in communication management or MBA (marketing). Job opportunities are good, but you must examine your aptitude for this profession before taking a final decision.

Please provide information about the IATA exam.
Ashish Puri, New Delhi

The IATA/ UFTAA certified diplomas are recognised worldwide. The IATA course is a four-level programme — foundation, consultant, management and senior management. Courses are available as self-teach, home study, IATA computer-based training (CBT) and classroom sessions in over 240 authorised training centres around the world. Visit (www.iata.org/ps/training/atc_list_uftaa.htm) for more details.

I’m an M.Sc in environmental science and want to know if any institution offers courses in disaster/ safety management through distance learning.
Siddharth Sen, Kolkata

The Indira Gandhi National Open University (IGNOU) and Sikkim Manipal University of Health, Medical and Technological Sciences, Tadong in association with the Indian Institute of Ecology and Environment offer correspondence courses in disaster management. Moreover the Disaster Management Centre, 432 North Lake Street, Madison, Wisconsin, 53706, USA offers a self-study curriculum in international disaster/ emergency management. In the field of safety management, there are courses in construction safety management through distance learning offered by NICMAR (www.nicmar.org).

Please provide information about the Engineering Services Examination.
Surinder Bhatia, New Delhi

The Engineering Services Examination is usually held annually in June by the Union Public Services Commission. To apply, you need a degree in engineering or equivalent and should have attained 21 years of age and be below 30 years as on August 1 of the year of the examination (relaxed for SC/ ST/ OBC and certain other categories). An M.Sc degree or its equivalent in wireless communication, electronics, radio physics or radio engineering is also acceptable for certain posts.

Doing well in ESE is the prerequisite of employment in the Indian Railway Service of Engineers, Central Engineering Service; Indian Railway Service of Electrical Engineers; Central Power Engineering Service; Indian Railway Service of Signal Engineers and Indian Telecommunication Service. Visit www.upsc.gov.in for further details.

I would like to enroll for an M.Sc in biotechnology in the UK or the US. Is it necessary to complete 16 years of education in India before applying to British or American universities?
Dina Damania, Mumbai

For a Master’s degree programme at a US university, you need 16 years of education. Some universities may even require you to complete a two-year M.Sc course before you apply for admission. You can, however, apply for a Master’s degree in British universities with 15 years of education.

I’m a science student. I draw well and am conversant with computer applications including animation and web design. Could you please suggest further education options?
Protima Desai, Ahmedabad

You could apply for admission into the four-year bachelor of design programme of the Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati (www.iitg.ernet.in or www.iitg.ac.in). Shortlisting of applicants for this programme follows performance in the IIT Joint Entrance Examination. Since you are a science student with the talent and aptitude for design, you should apply for this programme.

You could also apply for admission into the four-year graduate diploma programme in design of the National Institute of Design, Ahmedabad (www. nid.edu). Another option is the fashion design and related programmes offered by the National Institute of Fashion Technology (www.niftindia.com).

Other options would be bachelor of fine arts/ applied arts/ graphic design/ allied programmes of numerous art colleges across the country. In Mumbai, you could apply to the Sir J.J. School of Art or the prestigious Sir J.J. Institute of Applied Arts. Both these schools require you to clear the intermediate grade drawing exam.