A Job Seeker still....

     Let me introduce myself first. I am Mr Fredrick Abdul Kailash coming from middle-class family. When I was about to complete my  +2, the family was reeling under a financial problem. Many of our friends and relatives suggested me to go for typing classes as it would give job opportunities soon after schooling. Still I could not figure out why the alphabets are placed on the keyboard this way and not in the order A, B, C,.... While my teacher kept telling about fingerings, many a times what happened was my fingers got caught between the typewriter buttons. I thought how the hell my mates in the institute could just see the paper and without seeing the keyboard, they typed. My instructor kept yelling at the top of his voice, "Don't look at the keyboard." Probably he must have had a quarrel with his wife that morning, I thought. At last, I mastered typing without seeing the keyboard, but now the instructor complained that I was slow. Those 40 words per minute made me qualify for the Lower. Higher, Higher and Higher I went to pass the higher level in typewriting. Around the same time, my +2 in mathematics, physics, chemistry and biology came to an end.

 

My job hunt for a typist began then. My inner engineer asked me whether I would be happy as a typist. It is one thing that individuals have their liking and another to get drifted like a tiny log in the river. Due to family circumstances, I had to take up a job. In a small accounts company, I did get my first job. Carrying my first salary of a few hundreds, I reached home that evening. When I was just handing over my salary to my dad, my uncle who had not visited us in years entered. It was no time that he sensed what was happening. He told about a property that was in part in my father's name in the village, called Sunderkudi in Northern Karnataka. He suggested they both could sell it and one half will go for the family development and the other half that belongs to my uncle, Tom would be given as loan for my higher studies. Suddenly my desert had turned to oasis.

 

Since I had high marks, I was admitted in B.E. Mechanical Engineering in Maruthi University. While the gears geared  me up, thermodynamics did produce much heat but I concentrated well and cleared all papers. In anyone's life there is a devil that threatens one time or other I suppose, it was in my second year Engineering Mathematics II gave much trouble. While single differential itself was too much for me, this double differential blown off my lid. Yes, the word that was never in my history, namely arrears peeped into my career. It was not very kindly taken by professors or even my parents and leave alone my Uncle Tom. Those mathematical signs kept coming in my dream and the double dagger sign ( ‡) seemed to piercing my heart and my sleep would go. My good friend A. P. K. P Dharma helped me in understanding these notations and simplified them for me. In the coming semester, I did clear this paper along with the regular six.

 

I successfully completed my B.E. with 8.3 CGPA. My parents were told by some neighbors who are experts in CGPA rankings having passed their +2 that anything above 8.5 only is worth in job market. In the campus interview, companies from Dreamland, Zapitup, etc. appeared as was usual for them every year. To my surprise, no core company in mechanical engineering field ever visited the campus. Since it was compulsory to attend some classes in basic English (then what they were teaching in school all these years?), reasonable reasoning, logical (only to the company people) reasoning, aptitude and altitude (I am not sure about the latter one though) and basic mathematics for the purpose of campus interview, the college outsourced some experts. I always thought colleges and universities had experts. I passed all these tasks when conducted by the company Dreamland. I never understood why a thought of Alice always came to my mind throughout my exam time. Dreamland unfolded the top 5 list. I was topping the list. Then came the 2nd round and the 3rd and of course the 4th round. Only during the HR round, I found out that the company is selling antiques especially potteries to the western countries. My position was in the "Voice". I became voiceless as I could not understand what my mechanical engineering could help me in selling potteries. After getting selected, many congratulations were flowing and I was walking like a King in the campus. Yet my heart was troubled and I planned to go to my village, Sunderkudi to meet my uncle. On meeting my Uncle Tom, without any control I broke down. I explained that I did not want to sell potteries using my half-baked American accent but my parents thought 1.8 LPA was a good start. I love Uncle Tom who is the only one who understands me. He suggested  higher studies that could give me much better opportunities. I hesitated saying already we owed much loan to him. He said that this time it was his sponsorship.

 

M.Tech. was really interesting and Dr Ajay Kumar was an inspiration for innovative approaches in otherwise, mechanical subject. My project on hybrid engine used solar energy along with diesel which was probably the most fuel efficient cars invented I thought. Dr. Ajay Kumar suggested I can apply for a patent. College too showed interest and we displayed our vehicle in the National level competition in Denywer. I won the first prize and a gift hamper of Rs.5000/- which made me feel like an inventor. Dr. Ajay Kumar went on to inspire me in many ways and kept telling me stories of great inventions and how many of his past students became successful and some went abroad. 

 

Then happened a moment in the history of Engineering Colleges that was popularly called the 'Publish or Perish syndrome.' This made almost all of us a Research Writer and an Author. The only problem was high rate of rejections. "Keep trying, keep trying" our professors used to profess profusely. These words were never forgotten in my life.

 

Everything is cyclic in life, they say and therefore a campus interview was also to be. Only this time, I had become wiser. Swarms of companies came to our campus. They were lodged in different rooms, their name banners hanging in front of every room. I undertook a voyage around to find companies of my interest. To my surprise, the companies such as Dreamland, Zapitup, etc. were still there. Maybe this one might suit me. Yes, the company is called Xapatack Marine engineering components. With nicely compiled resume kept in a nice looking folder, wearing my formal dress and shoes, wearing my pre-knotted tie, (Kabil was always useful in making such ties for us) I entered into the den. They said at the end of the interview they would offer 1.9 LPA for my posting as Sales Executive. I thought I should finally break my silence. I asked them why they cannot offer me the post of Production Engineer or Service Engineer and also I deserve much more CTC. The interview panel were not moved but at the same time had a wonderful patience and grace on their face and a little halo around their heads. The tall and stout gentleman wearing a olive green coat with red tie whispered into my ears that their company was a multinational one but all productions only happen in Germany and here the company had only a sales division. The only company which proclaimed itself to be an engineering company too could offer only a sales job. I can give you a few examples of recruitment drives by companies say, ZATA or Cool mint had given, the qualification for data entry job as M.Tech. (any stream), M.Sc. in physics, chemistry or biology or any similar, M.A. in any subjects, M.Com, B.Tech., B.Sc. and B.A. (any stream), B.Com. or +2 (any stream) and an experience of 0-3 years. Then they went on to give job requirements, shifts, screening stages and methods. What shocked me the most was qualification of PG equated with just +2 and they never disclosed the salary anywhere.

 

When I was sitting alone and feeling desperate, a friend of mine suggested he was being told that doing a PhD could give a better opportunity. If it was not my friend, I would have pushed him into the river Boorvi. Then began my hunts for off-campus job search. Precisely this morning around 6'O clock, I submitted my application to the thousandth company. If you know of a company, you can let me know.

 

 

 

 

Mr Fredrick Abdul Kailash

e-mail id: fredabkai_jobseekerstill@tahoo.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

Disclaimer

The above is not a biography or true story of any person dead or alive and the entire blog is fictitious and no characters, places and incidents are real. Any incidental coincidences could be just accidental and this is not to hurt anyone or any entity or any institution or any government.