Best Body Language for a Job Interview

Body language can speak more about a candidate than his or her professional references or resume. How a person uses the space they fill will show an employer how that candidate feels about themselves, the job they are interviewing for, and their intercommunication abilities. By being conscious of what they’re doing while they’re talking, job applicants can improve their presence in an interview setting and make a truly lasting impression on their prospective employer.

In general, candidates don’t want to come off as bored or unprofessional during the interview. Crossing one’s legs exudes a sense of being bored or uncomfortable. Scratching any part of the body gives the message that the applicant is unclean or has their attention elsewhere. Leaning towards the door, in essence, show the interviewer that the candidate has a deep desire to be anywhere but in that office—this will do nothing but hurt the individual’s chances of obtaining the job. Slouching in one’s seat gives the message that the applicant is a little too relaxed and will not preform up to task. Finally, candidates should never stare blankly at the interviewer; besides giving the impression of not knowing anything, a blank stare is the natural expression that most adopt when trying to distance themselves from a situation. This will, in essence, show the interview that the candidate wants to distance themselves from the interview.

However, showing the right body language is just as easy as having a situational awareness about oneself. Sitting up straight and leaning forward helps the candidate in two ways—it shows their interest in whatever the interviewer is saying while showing that applicant is in complete agreement in whatever is being said. Keeping an interested expression and nodding during the interview will further show the applicant’s interest in both the position and the content of what the interviewer is speaking about. Finally, candidates should smile whenever they speak. Besides exuding a sense of self confidence, smiling during an interview will show that the applicant truly enjoys and is generally interested in the work that he or she is interviewing for.

If one wants to make the best impression that they can, mastering the art of perfect interview body language is crucial. In short, individuals should not close themselves off or give off an impression of being disinterested, while good body language comes in the form of showing that the candidate enjoys the interview process and is genuinely interested in the job that he or she may be doing.

Kerala Uty B.Tech: Inter-College transfer

Kerala University has invited applications on plain paper from regular students (showing the complete address and phone number of the student) of Engineering Colleges within the State of Kerala for transfer to the 3rd Semester in the Engineering Colleges affiliated to Kerala University, during the year 2011-12.

Applicant should have completed 1st and 2nd Semester B.Tech Degree Course of their University and should be eligible for promotion to the Third Semester class. Transfers will be given only between the institutions of identical category and fee structure. The category of seat and tuition fees should be clearly specified in the application form.

Those getting transferred have to clear the 1st and 2nd Semester Examination in the parent University itself. However, they have to pass the additional papers/subjects as may be fixed by Kerala University, with reference to the Scheme and Syllabus of Kerala University.

Applicants should download the Poforma relating to the transfer, fromhttp://www.keralauniversity.ac.in/images/Downloads1/transfer_proforma.pdf  and send it duly filled in and attested by the Principal, along with the request for transfer.  The application should be accompanied by (i) Proforma duly filled and attested by the Principal (ii) attested copy of the Rank Certificate at the Entrance Examination 2010 (iii) attested copy of Hall ticket for the S1 & S2 B.Tech Degree Examination (iv) Pay-in-slip of Rs.100/- remitted at the Kerala University cash counter or a Demand Draft of Rs.110/- drawn in favour of the Finance Officer, University of Kerala from SBI/SBT/District Co-operative Bank and payable at Service Branch, Thiruvananthapuram towards processing fee. SC/ST applicants should attach a Certificate to prove that he/she belongs to the SC/ST Community.

Applications not recommended and forwarded by the Principal of the College in which the candidate is studying will not be entertained. Filled Proforma, application for transfer and the necessary documents should reach ‘The Registrar, University of Kerala, Thiruvananthapuram-695 034’, on or before 15.06.2011.

Best Skills to Put on a Resume

With employment becoming increasingly more difficult to attain, many individuals are lost as to what are the best skills for a resume. In essence, it should be noted that a resume is the prospective employer’s first glance at a candidate. It’s extremely objective, and should only showcase the best abilities and experiences that the candidate has to offer. Applicants should be able to look into their past experiences and find the best skills and abilities that they have gained from previous jobs, internships, and academic pursuits.

An applicant’s hard skills are the most important to display on a resume. These include calculation abilities, the capacity to use a computer, analytical skills, and any other industry-specific traits. Hard skills are usually gained through previous work experiences, though they can also be obtained through classes and internships. Hard skills are necessary to determine how qualified a candidate is for the job that he or she is applying for. Capitalizing on hard skills shows that the job applicant is capable and qualified to thrive in that specific work environment, as well as being specialized in a certain type of task. An applicant’s hard skills helps the employer determine what work would suit the applicant best, as well as whether or not they’re a good fit for the company at all.

Soft skills, while equally important, are slightly more difficult to ascertain from looking at a resume alone. These include the transferable skills, such as being able to work in a team, having the capacity to adapt to a new work environment, or having strong interpersonal communication skills. If the hard skills show how qualified the candidate is, the soft skills are a measure of how good of an overall worker the applicant is. Though it is important to put these skills on a resume, it’s important to supplement this information with professional references and recommendation letters from past working and internship experiences.

Determining what skills to put on a resume is no easy task, especially with the way that the job market currently is. Employers are looking for a variety of qualifications, and it’s easy to get lost in the ambiguity of what a candidate must really have. However, the best thing that interested parties can do is to capitalize on both their hard and soft skills to show that they can be a qualified, diligent, and talented addition to any work force.

Engg admission to begin by May-end

The consortium of 11 Catholic engineering colleges in Kerala will take only the score of the students in the engineering entrance examination (KEAM-2011),  along with Plus Two/Class XII marks  to prepare the ranklist for admission to their engineering seats. They will ignore the ranks released by the CEE by June 25.

The Commissioner of Entrance Examination (CEE) is expected to release the score of candidates in the engineering entrance along with medical entrance ranks before May 25.  The engineering rank will be decided by the CEE by giving 50 percent weightage to entrance score and 50 percent weightage to the qualifying examination mark, using statistical methods of mean and standard deviation.

It is reliably learnt that Catholic engineering colleges will go it alone in the admission to their BTech courses this time also without signing any agreement with either the present or the new government.  Moreover they wouldn't effect any hike in their fees. A fee of Rs 75, 000 per year and a refundable deposit of Rs 1 lakh was charged by the Catholic engineering colleges for each BTech seat last year and the same will be applicable this year too for 85 percent seats. However 10 seats in each college will be given to Below Poverty Line (BPL) students as 100 per cent scholarship (free). The rest 15 percent will be NRI quota.  There is a one time development fee of $6000 and and normal fee for NRI candidates. Bishop Jerome Institutions, Kollam is the new addition to the Catholic engineering colleges.

The other existing colleges are:
1 Amal Jyothi College of Engineering, Kanjirappally.
2.Jyothi College of Engineering, Cheruthuruthy
3.Marian College of Engineering, Kazhakkoottam
4.Lourde Matha College of Science and Technology, Trivandrum
5.Mar Baselios College of Engineering, Nalanchira, Trivandrum
6.Rajagiri School of Engineering  and Technology, Kakkanad, Ernakulam
7.Viswajyothi College of Engineering and Technology, Muvattupuzha
8.St Joseph College of Engineering and Technology, Pala
9. Sahrudaya College of Engineering, Kodakara, Thrissur
10.Vimal Jyothi College of Engineering, Chemperi, Kannur

The Catholic engineering colleges do not expect any hurdles from the side of admission supervisory committee, the Justice P A Muhammed Committee, in its admission process. They have submitted their prospectus for the approval of the committee and are yet to hear anything from the committee. Last year the committee did not interfere with Catholic engineering college admission and with no change in the admission conditions, the consortium does not expect any hurdles from the committee. In the case of medical admission, the committee had issued directions to the Christian managements and hence they went to court and secured a favourable verdict. Since no such situation is existing related to engineering admission, the Catholic colleges have not gone to court so far.

Meanwhile it is understood that the Kerala Self Fiancing Engineering College Managements Association (KSFECMA) established by GPC Nayar representing 73 engineering colleges, is moving towards signing an agreement with the next government for seat-sharing, as was done last year. There will not be any fee hike and there is expected to be no change in the conditions either, an association leader said.

However they are considering making admission to the management seats on the basis of the entrance score and qualifying examination marks as is done by the Christian managements, to avoid delay, since the ranklist prepared by the CEE would be out only by June 25. However no final decision has been taken on this.

Last year there was a tuition fee of Rs 35,000 and a caution deposit of Rs 10,000 in merit seats in the SF engineering colleges coming under KSFECMA. This was effected in their 50 percent seats after the organisation entered into an agreement with the State Government.

Accordingly Rs 99,000 was fixed as annual tuition fee for each management seat and Rs 25,000 to be paid annually as workshop charges apart from a refundable interest-free deposit of Rs 1,50,000. The management seat quota was fixed as 35 percent.

The fee for 15 percent NRI quota was put at Rs 1.5 lakh plus 25,000 workshop charges and Rs 1.5 lakh refundable interest-free deposit. This year too this is expected to continue since the association has not asked for any hike.

The member colleges of KSFECMA can be visited at http://ksfecma.com/Default.aspx