Career Guidance 101

What this ultimately means is that more research and thought is required before deciding on what career path to take.

Too many students are rushed into choosing courses that are oversubscribed and subsequently not needed, further breeding unemployment in Namibia.

To avoid rushing into a career that is either too congested or has the potential of becoming irrelevant, it is important to understand which skills are short and are relevant in the labour market.

Starting with the most progressive field in today”;s world, computer science has a broad selection of careers. Evidently, all organisations and business are going digital and information technology specialists like software developers and cloud computing specialists have been, and are still, in demand over the past few years. Unlike other jobs, software developers and cloud computing specialists can be employed in many fields, including in corporate institutions. Cybersecurity is another fast-growing job in the world of technology to consider, as it is becoming more and more important to any organisation”;s infrastructure.

Speaking in the National Assembly recently, minister of agriculture, water and land reform Calle Schlettwein pointed out that agriculture is a key contributor to inclusive growth and an anchor for the prosperity of Namibia. Taking this into account, one can safely say that agriculture is a career path that has the potential to create employment and to sustain employment in the future. Agriculture includes various sectors such as crop science (farming), livestock farming, animal sciences and crop produce analysis.

Undoubtedly, engineers are highly sought-after in so many fields all over the world, especially in Namibia. However, as the world becomes more advanced, one should consider an engineering job that offers career stability. These include biomedical engineering, industrial engineering, agricultural engineering, environmental engineering and aerospace engineering. The five mentioned are professions that are associated with other fast-growing and relevant fields all over the world.

This is a field that is constantly changing and advancing, thus, so are the skills for it. In years to come, as seen already with the Covid-19 pandemic, the field of pharmacology is expected to rise with the increase in demand for fundamental research and provision of products and trials that guide clinical practice. Climate change, anti-microbial resistance, re-emergence of “eradicated” diseases, new disease and growing prevalence of chronic diseases all highlight the importance of pharmacology in today”;s world as well as in tomorrow”;s.

Namibia is still a developing country and new and advanced skills jobs are important and relevant to the future prosperity of the country. To maintain or ensure job security, choose a career that will be needed in the next 10 years and that has the potential to grow and change with the evolving world.

– Afterbreak Magazine, a Namibian digital youth magazine

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