Bhatkalli IT expert sets up education institute

Bhatkal – One man’s dream can change the aspirations and fate of many young minds. While many people aspire to change the world with the power of their dreams, few have the courage and determination to make their dream a reality. Meet Mohammed Aeraf Abuhuseina, an accomplished IT professional from Bhatkal, who left his job with a top-notch multinational company to come back to Bhatkal and set-up a technical education centre. Having worked with companies like IBM and Capgemini, he now spends most of his time teaching students at the Keonics Computer Institute in Bhatkal. Bhatkallys.com spoke with Aeraf Abuhuseina to know more about the education institute he set-up in Bhatkal and his views on the aspirations of young Bhatkalli students. Here are the excerpts: What motivated you to set-up an education institute in Bhatkal? Training and Education has fascinated me from the very beginning of my career. International Certifications like MCTS, MCP, SCP, ICDL, and IBM, and 12 years of experience working with MNCs like IBM, Capgemini, Logica and Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA) in Dubai have given me good amount of knowledge and experience. I strongly believe this knowledge and experience, when imparted to the community, will benefit them Insha Allaah. Tell us more about the Keonics Institute which you have set-up in Bhatkal? Currently our institute imparts education in IT/Computer, English Language, Soft-Skills and Personality Development courses. We offer courses from beginner level like MS Office, Computer Basics to advanced topics like Web Development using .Net, Tally, and Web/Graphic Design. We also offer Personality Development courses like Interview Skills, Leadership Skills, and Communication Skills. My aim is to provide students with high-quality IT Education in Bhatkal at a reasonable cost and also develop their leadership, communication and inter-personal skills. We also offer courses free-of-cost and at subsidised rates to handicapped as well as poor aspirants. How many students receive education at your institute? Currently there are around 30-35 students studying in our Institute. Mostly, all students are in the age group of 15 to 25 years. There are also some senior working professionals as well as some school students. When did you start your professional career and how long did you work overseas? I started my professional career in 1999.  I worked for a Software Training and Development organisation called Gates Computing Pvt Ltd as Training Lead and Software Developer for four years. I worked in UAE with Knowledge and Human Development Authority for two years as Senior Developer. Was it a difficult decision to leave your fixed-income job and come to Bhatkal? Yes, it was a difficult decision and it required lot of thought, self-confidence, and consultations from family members and close friends. Trust in the almighty was very crucial in going ahead with this decision. I also appreciate my father, Mohammed Jafar Abuhuseina, who has supported me and kept trust in me and my decisions. Tell us about your journey from an employee to the owner of an education institute? This journey has involved lot of hard-work and perseverance. It required abundant knowledge gathering and skill up gradation on broad spectrum of technical topics, leadership skills, behavioural skill and understandings on how to efficient run and manage a business as well as to sustain it. I have closely observed traits of effective Senior Managers and CEOs on what steps they take, the way they work, the way they communicate, and the way they organise and have incorporated them in my professional life. Do you have expansion plans for the institute? Currently we have two permanent and two part-time faculty teaching at the institute. We certainly plan to expand our set-up to attract students from outside Bhatkal and include various other courses as well. Are there any challenges faced when setting-up and running a business in Bhatkal? I have got good support from Mr. Shariyar Kola, (owner of the building) and from Mr. Ishwar Naik (manager at KEONICS). This has helped me to set-up to the institute quickly. I also appreciate and thank my father who has supported me in my endeavours. What trends do you see among Bhatkalli youth? There are some students who are goal-oriented and have high aims and ambitions in life but unfortunately many students do not have high-aspirations and prefer to remain with small jobs like salesman, admin, accountants, etc. While deciding the career they generally see which career or courses their friends pursue and which course can provide them with a job rather than looking at their inborn talents and capabilities using which they can excel in life. Do you receive any feedback from students about the quality of education in Bhatkal? What are their immediate requirements (if any)? Yes, I do ask them about the quality of Education, both of our trainings at KEONICS as well as in schools and colleges. My perception is that some schools and colleges need to improve much on the discipline and quality of education so that the students that graduate from such schools and colleges are highly-capable, qualified and motivated individuals who can lead an independent life and exhibit leadership traits. Do you see any particular trends in students coming to your institute? Would you describe students as under-resourced yet ambitious and goal-oriented? Many students come to our institute for short-term courses that can help them quickly get a good job. There are many students who also come for academic subjects like Tally, C, C++, Excel, and final year project work. Yes, there are some students who are ambitious but under-resourced. We do help them with concessions in course fees. In future, we do plan to provide scholarships for deserving and ambitious students. How are the English language skills of students and how can it be improved? English language skills of many students are poor. They aren’t able to speak even simple sentences. Most of the students prefer learning by rote than by understanding the concepts and memorizing the points. Since many educational institutions have not been very successful in preparing a correct foundation for English Language, it is essential that students do a professional English language course. These English courses must prepare the correct foundation and not just teach them some sentences that are said on various times, places and occasions. Such trainings I believe, never helps them improve. At the very minimum what is expected from such courses is that students should be able to speak English fluently, understand the text-books when they read them and be able to put them in their own words. At KEONICS, we are providing an English Language course which prepares them from ground-up so that they are well-versed in English Language from all aspects. What kind of support do you seek from overseas working professionals and how can they help in this unique endeavour? I believe they can sponsor education for poor and deprived people of our community to get quality computer education after which they will be in a position to get good jobs in India and abroad. This will also help me in providing education to needy and deprived people of the community as well as in maintaining good stability of the institute. How can the NRI Bhatkalli community contribute to the social development of Bhatkal? I believe our community overseas is already doing very good work for the social development of Bhatkal. Some of the things which are necessary are career guidance cells and technical courses like ITI. These career guidance cells should also assist deserving students to obtain scholarships from various entities that provide it. Many students do not understand the necessity of completing their graduation. They have an impression that just doing some diploma courses will land them with a good job. However, in today’s competitive world, graduation is a must. Also, we should have centres that provide technical courses like Interior Design, HVAC, Electrician, etc. Also, we should try and improve more the quality of education in schools and colleges.