Payal, a commerce graduate from a city college, did not find a job even two years after graduation until she joined a crash course in fashion design. Within months of joining, she is being shortlisted by companies. Many college-goers enrol in short-term courses in private institutions these days. “Such skill-oriented courses are designed to make a person an entrepreneur and to widen employment opportunities,” says Thanga Rajeshwari, centre head at Dream Zone, an institution that offers diploma and certificate courses in fashion design, interior design and animation. “Design education has become important these days. Here, creativity and practical applicability are given more importance than theories. Extra skill set always fetches you better jobs,” she says.
Crash courses, apart from being time-efficient, seem to have many advantages over the full-time modules taught in colleges. Pooja, a fashion design student, says, “I find the teaching techniques more casual and friendly than in a college and we are provided with an environment that encourages individuality. I am happy that mugging up textbooks and written exams are not followed in crash courses. Short-term courses make you specialize in the particular area of your interest. I want to open up my own boutique once I finish the course.”
Apart from design and arts, software and engineering-supportive courses are also a popular among young graduates. Most of the courses are offered in packages that can be tailored to the student’s time and money. Dream Zone offers courses ranging from three months to one year. The fees for the packages range from Rs.3000 to Rs.70,000. “Each course is covered holistically,” says Thalambuselvi, a faculty member handling interior design. “What students learn in three years in a college is extensively covered within a year. Moreover, here we give one-to-one attendance. Field projects and viva is the only way of assessing. Students are also taken on site visits every month.”
Computer-Aided Drafting and Designing (CADD) Centre is the other such institute that offers short-term engineering software courses. The latest software and design techniques are taught to mechanical and civil engineering students. “Crash courses bridge the gap between classroom learning and industrial requirements,” says Vijay Srinivas, Franchise Head of the K.K. Nagar CADD Centre. “We equip the students to face the real situation and demands of the work field. Knowledge of exclusive engineering software is a boost for students’ resumes. Many of these are called accessory courses for the main course, yet a skilled hand on this software is much in demand among the employers.”
The crux of the entire four-year degree course at the college is given at these centres. Apart from hands-on sessions, the centres involve students in internship projects and concepts. Many students take crash courses even while they are in college or after graduation. Packages offered at CADD Centre range from Rs.5000 to Rs.50,000 and the duration ranges from 20 days to one year. Satish, a B.E. Civil Engineering student, says, “We learn software that is not yet known in the country. CA Land Survey is a software that is used in big projects like laying roads and building bridges. A sound knowledge of this can even fetch you a government job in the roadways department.”
For innovative career options like character design and animation, students find short courses highly beneficial. Ramthilak, an engineering graduate doing a diploma in animation at Dream Zone, says, “Character design these days has branched into an exclusive field. Even mythological characters like Krishna and Hanuman are designed in a modern-day look. There is much demand in industry for character designers.” Sudarshan, a teacher at CADD centre, says, “Knowledge of planning and analysis software is always sought after in construction companies. In architecture design, retail space management and effective usage of living spaces are current fads.” There are also many short-term language courses that promise exceptional speaking and writing skills within a few months’ time.
Crash courses don’t guarantee employment, they just offer an added set of skills. Many students, especially those who want to become entrepreneurs, consider them an investment. Payal says, “The best part about short courses is that you may tune the schedules as per your convenience. Even a number of homemakers and middle-aged men learn these job-oriented courses.” Kiran, another student, feels, “Big cities have exclusive colleges for these rare courses. Short courses are great hobbies and handy options for students in small towns.”
