Shreshth, one of my students, has decided to chuck DMS@IIT-D in favour of a job at C-DOT, to take another shot at some of the better institutes.
He, Pranay Gupta, Manish Vidhani, Pawan and Akash Aggarwal take the crown of the most-counseled-students of this year. Last year this title was for Pawan, Rashi Goyal and Nitika Nagpal. I really enjoy talking to all students equally, so this list is not of any favourite students. Just that these souls have had more doubts than others :)
Counseling a student is a really tough job. A person's expectations are very difficult to manage, since sometimes he may have the incorrect notion that a counselor is a panacea for his troubles. On the other hand, the reality is that one can only listen to the problems and hope to guide the person on the right path. Finding the solution is the person's job, my job ends with showing the probable paths to the solution. It is his responsibility to ensure that he walks on those paths.
A counselor is in a dificult position, since many-a-times, he has the difficult responsibility to shoulder, that of being the student's only hope for a solution. It is not an enviable position to be in!
What I hate about counseling is the shopping-mentality some students have these days; with an I-paid-for-it-so-I-need-to-have-it attitude towards counseling. They will come with a strong chip in their shoulders, of being a know-all, of challenging one to find answers to their questions, giving the impression that they are in a great tearing hurry and they want to fill up their grocery bags before they leave the shop. They come with an almost bargaining attitude that really puts me off. I tend to feel irritated with these chaps. Earlier when I was faced with someone like these, I would try to soften the person; however with passage of time, I have become more brusque and tend to brush them off, instead of letting my irritation get the better of me.
Such are the joys of counseling!
He, Pranay Gupta, Manish Vidhani, Pawan and Akash Aggarwal take the crown of the most-counseled-students of this year. Last year this title was for Pawan, Rashi Goyal and Nitika Nagpal. I really enjoy talking to all students equally, so this list is not of any favourite students. Just that these souls have had more doubts than others :)
Counseling a student is a really tough job. A person's expectations are very difficult to manage, since sometimes he may have the incorrect notion that a counselor is a panacea for his troubles. On the other hand, the reality is that one can only listen to the problems and hope to guide the person on the right path. Finding the solution is the person's job, my job ends with showing the probable paths to the solution. It is his responsibility to ensure that he walks on those paths.
A counselor is in a dificult position, since many-a-times, he has the difficult responsibility to shoulder, that of being the student's only hope for a solution. It is not an enviable position to be in!
What I hate about counseling is the shopping-mentality some students have these days; with an I-paid-for-it-so-I-need-to-have-it attitude towards counseling. They will come with a strong chip in their shoulders, of being a know-all, of challenging one to find answers to their questions, giving the impression that they are in a great tearing hurry and they want to fill up their grocery bags before they leave the shop. They come with an almost bargaining attitude that really puts me off. I tend to feel irritated with these chaps. Earlier when I was faced with someone like these, I would try to soften the person; however with passage of time, I have become more brusque and tend to brush them off, instead of letting my irritation get the better of me.
Such are the joys of counseling!
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hmmm...i know its a really tough job, have done some of them myself for DCE vs NSIT thing :-D
ReplyDeletei hope i wasnt one of those "I-paid-for-it-so-I-need-to-have-it" guys, coz i seriously believed that all this that is being done is not part of the package, else something like "we counsel only in office timings, contact center for appointment" can be said! i always tried to have a bank of questions ready and call as less as possible! funny it may seem but i was very apprehensive calling u :-) concious of disturbing u!
i can assure u that u r a great counselor, if not solution i suppose ur way of tackling the issue provides a lot of comfort to mind (it did to me) n also brings clearity to thoughts, guiding rays i always called them!!!
now that i ahve got hold of u...i think il keep troubling u all ur life ;-) and take my wor il take this crown each n every year that too by a long margin :-D
THANX for all the counseling!!!