Ms. Neha Sharma enlightens the students by saying that programming is not about learning theory but practising it

Interview by Bhawna Rawat

Ms. Neha Sharma is currently working as the Assistant Professor in School of Computer Science and Information Technology department at SUAS, Indore. She holds a B.Tech and M.Tech degree in Computer Science. Her teaching interests lie in Core Java, Hadoop (Big Data), C++ and C.

Ms. Neha Sharma completely believes that the education sector is the best place to work in

When it comes to pursuing a career in the education field, no doubt you will see less inclination of youngsters towards it. Being just a post-graduate, I started teaching as a guest-faculty for the Computer Science School, at Symbiosis University of Applied Sciences, Indore. Now I am teaching on a regular basis. My confidence and good public speaking skills made it easier for me to teach.

As programming is not about “bluffing”, I had to prepare for hours for just 1 lecture or lab class. However, there is a saying if your work is your passion, then it’s never a burden. I am learning a lot by teaching students.

The education sector is one of the best sectors to work in especially if you are a researcher or you love to study. It enhances your knowledge.

Teaching is a peaceful job where you have to study to teach and do not have to sit back for long hours in front of machines like IT Industries.

The best philosophy of leadership for today’s teachers

Being an Assistant Professor at SUAS, I have learnt and am still learning the leadership qualities. I have also been appointed as Assistant Dean of Student’s Welfare (additional charge). A leader is someone who makes the crowd follow him/ her. You cannot be a dictator or a strict teacher to make the students do things according to you.

You need to do things pragmatically. Students of this era are difficult to handle if you are being a traditional kind of teacher. Be smart, be their friend and be open. This is how you will be able to teach better.

Challenges are a part of life and are present in every sector

No job comes without challenges. In fact, every day is a challenge for an unemployed person too. At times I faced issues, but working with the biggest brand of education – Symbiosis, was worth everything.

The curriculum of SUAS has been inspired by the German universities

Well, Symbiosis University of Applied Sciences, Indore has designed its syllabus similar to German universities. We focus more on practical and less on theory. The subjects in engineering are inculcated by taking industry expert’s advice. Like big data, Machine learning, artificial intelligence etc.

The skill set required by the industries from an engineering student

I have noticed that many engineering graduates are just graduates but not an engineer. They lack technological skills. They are lagging behind in technology and are not even good at coding.

Being technologically advanced is a significant factor when it comes to the skill set required for corporates.

There are so many technologies out there in the market. Students need to pick up one of them and gain an expertise on the same. Do not rush into all the courses altogether. The basic skill set required for all the software engineers is the knowledge of basic languages like C, c++ and java for a better career.

An ideal school environment should support students’ choice of subjects

According to me, school education should focus on individual’s interest after higher secondary. Students should not be forced to study core subjects like Maths, Physics, etc. if they want to go for programming. However, the above mentioned is not practically possible, so we can spend extra time during school hours for individual’s interest and goals.

Goals for the Institute for the next few years

Our team has already worked a lot on the plans for the coming years and we are still working. The team is focusing on helping the junior students in making their basics strong so that they can do an internship in big firms in the final year. I, as an individual, am giving projects and collaborating with the industrialists to help students to do some innovative work with their help.

Suggestions for the current youth and aspiring students

Being a teacher or you can say mentor, I want to spread this message that please don’t mug up things. Programming has nothing to do with learning theory or stories. Try it out like maths. Practice and focus on one particular subject/field which you like the most.