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Staring Down The Barrel of A Social Science Major: Career

The article discusses career opportunities and prospects for graduates with social science backgrounds such as economics, anthropology, political science, psychology and sociology. It provides examples of successful people like Dr. Muhammad Yunus who founded Grameen Bank and won the Nobel Peace Prize. While NGO work has traditionally been seen as the main career path, the article notes there are increasing opportunities in fields like child psychology, international organizations, corporate jobs, and communications. Effective organizational communication is important for business success and human resources departments can help facilitate information sharing and relationships to boost productivity.

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27 views1 page

Staring Down The Barrel of A Social Science Major: Career

The article discusses career opportunities and prospects for graduates with social science backgrounds such as economics, anthropology, political science, psychology and sociology. It provides examples of successful people like Dr. Muhammad Yunus who founded Grameen Bank and won the Nobel Peace Prize. While NGO work has traditionally been seen as the main career path, the article notes there are increasing opportunities in fields like child psychology, international organizations, corporate jobs, and communications. Effective organizational communication is important for business success and human resources departments can help facilitate information sharing and relationships to boost productivity.

Uploaded by

Dhaka Tribune
Copyright
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DHAKA TRIBUNE

Career

Sunday, March 16, 2014

Staring down the barrel of a social science major


Job prospects and career insights for graduates of social science backgrounds
Anita Zeba Bakhtiar and n Naiian Yazdani
Social sciences are comprised of a variety of subjects, many of which often do not appeal to those who are opting for a safe and secure option. Some perceive that the more conventional routes, such banking, are the only way ahead. However, once the surface is scratched opportunities emerge in social sciences, and as the name suggest there is scope to make a wider impact. Social science subjects include economics, anthropology, political science, psychology, journalism and sociology. Bangladeshi students that choose the road not taken do so from these disciplines. Often in such scenarios, students are misrepresented as naive and unable to make wise career choices for themselves. Furthermore, there is a belief that social science graduates find it more difficult to attain jobs that are satisfying and of a high stature. These beliefs may have been legitimate concerns in the past but are less so today, when everything around us is evolving and opportunities are springing up in areas like never before. Drawing inspiration from what is happening globally, it is clear that graduates with majors in social sciences are leaving a mark in todays world. A good place to start is right at the top with Dr Mohammad Yunus, who majored in Economics from Dhaka University, and went on to found the organisation called the Grameen Bank, later bringing in Bangladeshs first Nobel Peace Prize (jointly his and the Grameen Banks) through microcredit schemes and social businesses. While Dr Yunus represents the pinnacle, what are the options available to students who have commenced down this path? Although a rewarding career at an NGO may appear to be the only

The common thread through all these occupations is they all deal with the current issues affecting people
On the other hand, one can choose to continue academics, for example obtain a PhD in political science and be a full-time professor or faculty member in any one of the leading public or private universities offering the subject currently. There is scope to be a political analyst and provide commentary to the media and foreign embassies. A prime example is Professor Dr Piash Karim, who majored in anthropology, and is currently a full-time faculty member at BRAC University. His wide knowledge of current affairs and his interest in Bangladeshi politics means that he is often called to analyse politically motivated scenarios both locally and globally. The common thread through all these occupations is they all deal with the current issues affecting people. In truth, the science subjects with its job security and technical requirements may not be able to offer the dynamism which the social sciences do. While they may be riskier industries, the chance to shine and engage with the world makes them attractive. Therefore, although one cannot predict ones own fate, if you are ready to be high performer and have a social bent, then with the right attitude, spirit, determination, and perhaps luck anything is possible - even a Nobel Prize. l Anita Zeba Bakhtiar recently completed her research internship at GradConnect, an international career information and advisory firm. Naiian Yazdani is the Director of Strategy at GradConnect. You can email him at naiian@grad-connect.com and find more career information at www.grad-insights. com and www.grad-connect.com.

available career option for social science graduates, it is not the case. For example, a graduate of psychology who chooses to do a masters in child education could work as a child psychologist, helping children afflicted by mental ailments, supporting them as they recover from hardships and deal with trauma. Today as the awareness of the importance of mental health rises, as will roles such as these. This is an

example of the changing landscape of Bangladesh and creating opportunities in social sciences which were unavailable previously. An alternative career choice for majors in political science, anthropology or sociology could be to work for organisations such as the World Bank, the ADB or the UN, in which case, a proficiency in English, along with another language (preferably French, German,

or Spanish) is a must. A career in such institutions is a privilege and the work can not only be ever changing, fascinating and intense but also provide the opportunity to travel and to serve on a global platform. Students of international relations can join corporate jobs after completing their bachelors and secure an MBA majoring in human resources management. Roles include acting as liaisons

between offices of MNCs such as British American Tobacco in Bangladesh and overseas. They could also work as assistants of high-ranking officials in these MNCs who have come from abroad, and need an organised person to manage their itinerary. This should be an interesting and fulfilling choice for the adventurous as it might involve travelling to foreign countries every now and then.

Organisational communication: Makes it or breaks it?


Farah Iqbal n
In todays global business environment, effective organisational communication has significant impact on the organisations success. CAREER To provide a thorough ASCENT definition, organisational change, or the systematic change effort may be defined as the usage of behavioral science knowledge and skill to change or transform the organisation to a more advanced and efficient state. Ideally, the department of human resources facilitates organisational communication by sharing of information, project coordination, and social interaction within the organisationbut roles importance is often questioned. Many assume human resources only deals with employee management but that is not entirely true. One could argue that internal communications build on the relationships that influence employees to double the efficiency of each department and cater to increasing the business size. The necessity to hire individuals who are particularly trained to handle this side of the business did not seem to be of utmost importance until very recently. Corporate offices in Bangladesh have finally entered the global trend to prioritise the importance of ensuring that their human resources and communications are catering towards the companys overall growth. It could therefore be assumed that the public representation of the company is in essence the reflection of the internal communications, effective resource management between functions, and the necessity to build and develop employee relationships. The demand for public relations and communications officers had not been a trend, or mainstream per se, until multinational companies started publicising their efforts to bring their human resources team to the forefront of the company. Public relations research is not only a fundamental part of identifying and resolving important issues in the organisation in a strategic manner, but also significant to enhance the worker productivity level. It provides a multidimensional platform for the organisation to scan the environment to identify key issues early, and resolve them via strategic ity. Change can be very difficult, yet healthy relationships within the organisation can help build a platform to provide opportunities to strengthen teamwork, increase employee productivity, and construct resourceful third party business rapports. It is extremely important that while an organisational change is taking place, the media keeps the positive aspects of the change in the limelight with the least amount of criticism. Dealing with the media presents unique challenges, since the news media cannot be controlled they have ultimate control over whether stories pitched to them are of interest to their audiences. where participants share their experiences and learn from their interactions. It focuses the attention on the dynamics of group or team interaction, provides a basis for team building through individual attention, and in turn inspires workers. As a result, they are more positive about adapting to the idea of a different work setting, a diversified corporate culture, and even reporting to a different set of top level management. This article is not suggesting that local corporate houses do not give any importance to communications, but rather, there is always room for improvement. There is no one particular

Sales idioms: Sell like a silver-tongue


Career Desk n
Buyers market a situation where there are more sellers than buyers of a product or service and the buyers have an advantage

Come down in price to lower the price of ones product, to become cheaper Come in high to charge too much for your services, to ask for a price that is too high Come in low to offer a low amount of money for a product or service Corner the market to dominate a particular market with your product A hard sell a way of selling something that is very aggressive and uses much pressure Have good contacts to know people who can help you get a job or do some kind of business Knock down the price to lower the price of something Land an account to acquire an account Line of products a group or category of products that are similar to each other Make a cold call to visit or telephone a potential but unknown customer from a list of people Make an offer to make a financial proposal for a product or service Move a product to sell a product Preferred customer a customer who does much business with you and who you give special discounts to Sell like hotcakes to sell very quickly Sellers market a situation where there are more buyers of a product/ service than sellers so the sellers have an advantage

BIZ Vocab

Top authorities of every organisation are ensuring that employees are kept happy in an effort to increase the level of productivity and the concept of organisational hierarchy has become extinct
Because of this, an ongoing relationship between an organisation and the news media is vital. One way to possibly ensure a positive working relationship with media personnel is to become deeply familiar with their areas of interests a good enough reason as to why the necessity of organisational communication personnel should be prioritised. Googles theory that the most productive workers are happy workers has reached the corporate houses in Bangladesh today. Top authorities of every organisation are now ensuring that employees are kept happy in an effort to increase the level of productivity; furthermore, the concept of organisational hierarchy has more or less become extinct and teamwork has become the new trend of corporate houses. When a company is lean and ensures a good relationship between their management staff and their non-management staff, the achievements such as increased worker productivity and satisfaction, smooth structural changes are highlighted with little or no emphasis on the negative impacts. Training and worker development is one of the most important pillars of organisational communication that is used to facilitate change and development. It comes in many forms including unstructured, small-group sessions department of an organisation that is more prestigious, or more important than the other just as the spine of a human body is incomplete with only 25 ribsconsider the least important department to be the 26th rib. Each organisation may be particularly well known for a department, but it is the other supporting functions that have brought the strength into limelight. With Googles proven theory of the correlation of happiness and high productivity, Bangladeshi corporate houses should be commended for their effort in taking a leaf out of the multinational giants book to enhance their corporate settings and double their business sizes. Poor communication in a nonfunctional organisational change leads to confusion, lowered morale and loss of productivity. Therefore, it is important that qualified leaders are guiding the employees to remain strong during the structural changes, since their opportunity costs are higher than the rest. If not already, it is recommended that to experience a smooth organisation transition, the department of human resources should partner with each function/department to enhance the growth of business, and eliminate weak links. l Farah Iqbal is a freelance contributor.

planning and strenuous teamwork. Research uncovers potential areas of concern so that the organisation can build relationships, develop programmes and take corrective action to prevent small problems from becoming major issues both internally and externally. One area where public relations can play an important role in organisational communication is by recognising areas of not only actual agreement and disagreement, but also of perceived agreement and disagreement. Debatably, organisational communication will become the next big thing to indicate a companys growth and forecast. Human resource manage-

ment has mainstreamed over the past couple of years to primarily recognise essential aspects of maintaining efficient standard of structural changes that are actually a major reason behind the companys road to perfection. Public relations, media relations, and various kinds of practical training can be identified as structured organisational communication; not only does this ensure a positive stride towards improving a companys infrastructure, but also helps move towards a more developed direction. In the process, organisational communication can aid in enhancing team building and worker productiv-

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