Most of the companies want to give job to those who have some experience that may vary from a minimum one year to three or more year in a suitable position. Now when a person gets a degree or a diploma from any college or university that person has no experience, and to get a job you need experience and to get some experience you need a job. This is also known as catch-22. After getting the degree in Electronic Engineering from a private college known as Dawood College of Engineering & Technology (DCET) in Karachi in 1973 (we started the college in 1968, and hence were supposed to complete the 4 year degree in 1972, but due to political unrest that became a movement to change the government, all educational institutions were closed for about five months, a topic for another blog at a later time), I faced the same catch-22.
I needed a job badly to support my parents and siblings in some financial form, so I used my uncle’s influence to get a “job” of Medical Trainee created for me in a local branch of a Germany based company–Siemens, known as Siemens Pakistan Engineering Company. My monthly stipend was Rupees five hundred. I was assigned with an “Medical Engineer” who had no engineering degree either in Electronics or Medical Technology, but just a basic or Bachelors in Science (2 year degree). He may have also joined as a Trainee and after getting some experience on the job was promoted and became a Medical Engineer. After a few weeks, I started working independently or getting the experience on the job, and completed a few projects of doing some kind of checking or maintenance or delivery of medical equipment used in hospitals. After watching a few such maintenance or installation jobs on small X-Ray machines, once I was assigned to do this installation, and I was proud to complete the installation and checking of the machine and handing it over to the Doctor.
I don’t feel any embarrassment in say now that as the labs for such degree courses were not designed during the 70’s to prepare the students for real jobs, but just simple experiments, even those were sometime not completed by the Instructors for various reasons, so I made mistakes and needed some actual training or guidance. My boss did neither, and the result was that after completing one year trainee contract, he did not offered me a regular job. So I became job-less. The experience that I gained in this company was of no use in any other company. So catch-22 was again in my way.
So, I started applying for a job. In those days there was no computers, and I used to use typewriter to type applications for job. Typing a new application for more than 20 jobs would take the whole day, so I used to insert a black carbon paper between papers so that I could make copies of my applications. When I inserted four carbon paper I could get five copies. The first or the top sheet would be the original, while the rest would be carbon-copy. I used to leave the top three/four lines for the address and the line with the text “subject” as blank. Then I would either type or write by hand the company’s details and the job that I was applying for. Some companies would ignore the applications that were not sent as originals, while some did not pay any attention, as long as the candidate some experience and the relevant qualifications.
After sending more than a dozen applications every week, I had to wait for the knock of the postman. After more than three months, I received a letter in response to my application, and this happened to be the carbon copy applications. The next day I went to the address given in the letter for interview. After a brief interview and details about the job, the secretary gave me a three-four page document that had some objective questions to test my engineering knowledge. I asked the person, what happens if I don’t pass this test. He told me that I was already selected by the employers and the test was only a formality. He asked me to bring my passport and an International Driving Permit, as the job was in Ethiopia, a country in Africa that requires driving a small truck to do the job.
My passport was ready which I provided the next day and the International Driving Permit took a few days. He had explained to me the job requires taking reading of the gravity using a small device called Gravity Meter, at certain intervals for some kind of survey that seismic companies used to determine the possibility of the crude oil. This survey was done for big oil companies like Shell, Chevron and others. I will be living in camps with other staff. I was asked to come back in a few days to pick the tickets and other information to go to Malta to get the visa from the Embassy of Ethiopia, as there was no such embassy in Pakistan.
After about a week or ten days, I got on the plane operated by Pakistan International Airlines to fly to Malta, where I stayed for a few days in the hotel and took the next flight to go to Addis Ababa, the capital of Ethopia. Thus I started my first overseas job. Details in my next blog.
Rambler's Corner 