What’s your next move?

Getty Images/iStockphoto | Photo Credit: Getty Images/iStockphoto I finished B. Tech CSE but could not get a job because of low salaries. I want to prepare for SSC-CGL, IBPS PO and so on. I am good at Advanced Maths, Reasoning and English, but not at Arithmetic and General Awareness. How should I prepare? Puneeth Dear Puneeth, SSC CGL relies heavily on speed in Arithmetic and Data Interpretation (DI) so focus on high-yield topics such as percentages, ratios and proportions, time and work, mixtures and alligation, and averages. Use your logical background to convert word problems into simple equations and solve them quickly. For General Awareness, start with Static GK, Science and Current Affairs. Revise NCERT Science, Polity and History textbooks (Class 9 and 10) or Lucent’s GK. Prioritise the Constitution — Articles, Amendments and Fundamental Rights — and Modern Indian History (1857–1947). For Current Affairs, cover national news, sports, awards and government schemes from the past six to eight months. For IBPS PO, strengthen financial and banking awareness. Spend 30 minutes daily reading financial news, including RBI notifications, monetary policy, GDP projections and banking developments. Learn key terms such as Repo Rate, Reverse Repo, CRR, SLR, NPA and Inflation. I finished B.Sc. Maths in 2018 and have been trying to clear the banking exams. Currently, I am working as a mentor at an online coaching institute. What are my job opportunities? How can I support my career growth, especially in the banking sector? Priyanka Dear Priyanka, Have you considered private banking or the NBFC or the FinTech sectors? Roles such as Credit/Risk Analyst involve evaluating borrower creditworthiness, analysing risk profiles and financial ratios. Private Bank Probationary Officer (PO)/Relationship Manager roles combine operations and client interaction, while Operations and Settlement Officers handle back-end operations, reconciliation and transaction audits. Banking/FinTech also offers Junior Data Analyst and Business Analyst roles, while ed-tech companies hire Subject Matter Experts (SMEs) and Content Developers to create tests, solutions and curricula for banking exams. To strengthen your resume, build practical technical skills such as Advanced Excel, Financial Modelling, SQL, Power BI/Tableau and, optionally, Python/R for statistics. Short-term certifications such as NISM Series V-A (Mutual Fund Distributors) and Series XV (Research Analyst), or in credit risk assessment and financial statement analysis can add value. The Indian Institute of Banking and Finance (IIBF) offers courses such as the Diploma in Banking and Finance (DB&F), which can demonstrate domain knowledge to private banks. I completed B.Tech. IT and cracked GATE. I now work as a contractual Assistant E-Governance Manager at MPSEDC, but my role is largely administrative. I want to return to technology and am considering GATE DA for a PSU role or an M. Tech. However, the difficult preparation phases make me overthink and consider alternatives like SSC CGL. How can I stay focused, build discipline, and avoid burnout? Dear Yash, Transitioning from administrative e-governance into a core technical field via GATE Data Science and Artificial Intelligence (DA) is a strategic move. Top institutions such as IISc Bangalore and IITs accept GATE DA scores for M.Tech programmes in Data Science, AI, Computational and Data Sciences and interdisciplinary AI branches. Traditional PSUs lean heavily on GATE CS, while government tech, defence research and specialised agencies have begun recruiting through GATE DA. If a PSU job is your sole priority, GATE CS offers broader vacancies; for AI/ML roles, DA is ideal. Work on breaking your avoidance loop. When you hit a rough patch, do not pivot to another exam. Commit to one sub-concept or equation for 10 minutes. If a textbook causes fatigue, switch to a visual explanation, not another exam. Recall why you want to leave administrative e-governance: non-technical exams can lead to the same administrative roles. While working, use mornings for high-cognitive tasks and evenings for practice, revision and mocks. Decide the next day’s topics and questions the night before. Keep Sunday free. I have completed Bachelor’s in Dialysis Technology and Library and Information Science and a one-year diploma in AI & ML. But I have low vision disability (50%) and getting a job is hard. What else can I do? Alagu Dear Alagu, Since your visual impairment is 50%, you meet the ≥40% threshold for Person with Benchmark Disability status under India’s RPwD Act, 2016. This makes you eligible for reserved public sector quotas. Get the Unique Disability ID (UDID) card for exam relaxations and government job reservations. Register on disability-focused employment portals such as Atypical Advantage and Enable India. The tech industry hires professionals to test website and software accessibility for screen readers and magnification tools. Target roles include Accessibility Tester and QA Accessibility Analyst. Generative AI and Healthcare AI models require clean, tagged datasets. Target Medical Data Annotator and Health Data Curation Specialist roles. Consider Assistant Librarian/Information Officer roles in government libraries and medical colleges. Banking exams such as IBPS/SBI also provide eligible candidates with a scribe, extra time, and magnified interfaces, subject to applicable eligibility and relevant guidelines. Disclaimer: This column is merely a guiding voice and provides advice and suggestions on education and careers.The writer is a practising counsellor and a trainer. Send your questions to eduplus.thehindu@gmail.com with the subject line Off the Edge Published - October 10, 2026 08:00 pm IST