RONO HILLS, 21 Sep: The zoology department of Rajiv Gandhi University (RGU) organised aninternational seminar on 'Alternative Career Options in Life Sciences' recently, drawing 170 registered participation of undergraduate, postgraduate, and PhD students of zoology, botany and chemistry, along with members from other institutions.
Conceived to widen students' understanding of career pathways beyond conventional academic and research routes, the seminar brought together resource persons working across conservation biology, industrial entomology, pharmaceutical research and development, and private university.
RGU Vice-Chancellor Prof Shivaraj served as the chief patron of the seminar, and Registrar Dr NT Rikam served as the patron.
Addressing the participants, RGU Zoology HoD Prof DN Das spoke on the need to expose science students early to career avenues beyond the conventional teaching-and-research trajectory. Prof Daniel Mize, the programme coordinator, set the tone for an interactive format that defined the rest of the seminar.
Dr Arnab Ghosh from RGU's zoology department said that the seminar was conceptualised in line with the vision of NEP 2020 to produce skilled manpower through skill-based education.
The workshop affirmed that internships are not mere curricular requirements, but rather the first step towards professional development. The workshop also highlighted the importance of soft skills and personality development.
The proceedings featured four technical sessions, each chaired by a senior academician and moderated throughout by Dr Arnab Ghosh.
In the first technical session, Dr Manas Sarkar from Vestacy Global Entomology spoke on 'Career Opportunities in Entomology R&D', followed by Dr Sandipto Sarkar from Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, USA, who spoke on 'Steps to Pursue a PhD in the USA'.
The second technical session featured Aaranyak executive director Dr Bibhab Kr Talukdar, who dwelt on 'Career Opportunities in Conservation Biology',drawing on more than three decades of experience in wildlife conservation, including his association with national and international bodies such as the National Board for Wildlife and the International Rhino Foundation.
The third session featured Pritam Banerjee, manager, formulation R&D, UniChem Laboratories Ltd, Goa, who spoke on 'Pharma R&D Opportunities after BSc', and Dr Banashree Bandopadhyay from the Institute of Biotechnology, Amity University, Noida, who spoke on 'Career Options in Private Universities in India'.
Dr Dipanjan Chatterjee, senior scientist, R&D, Sun Pharma Ltd, Gujarat, deliberated on 'Pharma R&D Opportunities after PhD', and Dr Arnab Ghosh explained 'How to Write a CV for Academia, Industry, and Beyond'.
Each talk was followed by an extended question-and-answer segment, in which students engaged with the speakers directly.
The seminar succeeded in giving the participating students direct, practical insight into career paths rarely covered in a conventional life science curriculum - spanning wildlife conservation, industrial entomology, pharmaceutical R&D, doctoral study abroad, and academic careers at private universities.
