In the neighbourhood of Shastri Park in old Delhi, the streets are narrow, crowded and lined with shops. Noor lives in one of the houses there with her parents and grandparents. Find out how a career club in Delhi boosted her confidence in building a career!
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Noor is an alumna of the Government Industrial Training Institute (ITI) in Malviya Nagar, and she proudly wears her career club president badge. When asked about her experience, Noor reflects that being part of the career club was one of the highlights of her time at ITI, contributing greatly to her personal growth as a student and individual.
After finishing the Young Entrepreneurs Program at ITI, Noor now works as an entrepreneur from the comfort of her home. She teaches science, English, and social studies while nurturing her ambition of being a librarian. With financial independence, Noor feels more confident about her career journey.
Several students, like Noor, have gained confidence from participating in career clubs. In a study conducted by Quest Alliance titled “A Change Map for Industrial Training Institutes,” Student Hubs were identified as a key area for reform based on insights from leaders in the education ecosystem.
These hubs are an important part of the student’s learning journey and experience, providing peer-based support systems for ITI students. Through these hubs, students can access key information and support to improve their learning outcomes and achieve their career goals.
What is a Career Club?
A career club is a group of students who are elected through a democratic process to bring about positive change at their institution. The main objective of this club is to inspire students to take on leadership roles and create a thriving community that can help bring about change in the way things are done. These clubs are established at the start of the academic year and remain active throughout the year.
“During my tenure as the President of the career club, we organised events like the Career Day, which gave me clarity about my own aspirations,” shares Noor.
As part of the career club Inauguration Event, students form groups for the election process. The election is fair and transparent, and the students elect a President, Secretary, Facilitator, and Treasurer from amongst themselves. After the election is completed, the group comes together to create a plan for the next year with the activities they want to conduct and any one innovation they would like to do during the year. The newly elected club also sets SMART goals for the year, Specific-Measurable-Achievable-Relevant-Timebound.
The career clubs are operational in institutions nationwide, with 13 career clubs in Delhi, 6 in Gujarat, and 1 in Shimla, amongst others. As part of these clubs, students conduct activities such as Resume-Building, Mock Interviews, and Career Day Celebrations. These activities are conducted with the aim of equipping students with leadership, communication and entrepreneurial skills.
Over and above these activities, students also conducted unique activities, such as installing locks in the women’s bathroom at the ITI to ensure safety.
Student hubs like these career clubs have a great positive impact on learners. These student-led bodies help build leadership skills and problem-solving attitudes among learners. Students not only build career readiness skills but also work towards addressing common grievances at the institute. For instance, a career club in Delhi rallied for clean toilets for women.
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“We were able to bring change in our ITIs because we had a platform like the Career Club to address issues and take the initiative to resolve them”
– Shubham Tiwari, Alumni and Secretary of Career Club, Delhi.
