Teenagers on the threshold of writing their board examinations or other competitive examinations for choosing a career path should prepare themselves for multiple possibilities, experts at a webinar said.

The process of choosing a career path came with its own anxieties and uncertainties and students should have a multi-disciplinary approach to it, the experts said at a webinar on “Career Compass: Navigating Your Next Step”, organised jointly by SASTRA Deemed to be University and The Hindu Education Plus on Sunday (December 22, 2025).

AI, for example, has had a profound impact on every field but the students should look at multiple possibilities and their choice of subjects and “then incorporate AI to stay ahead of the curve”, the experts added.

Career options were getting defined by AI, and quantum computing opened up immense opportunities, said Sumanth Raman, healthcare professional and founder of Algorithm Health. Anirudh Krishnan, advocate and Founder-Partner, AK Law Chambers, said traditional career choices such as medicine, law, engineering, management, and accountancy were still relevant and students should pursue what they like and not give in to parental or peer pressure. Stating that he made a switch from engineering to law after a year and never regretted it, he asked students to be ready to fail and be bold enough to change paths.

“Don’t be a product of someone else’s decision,” said S. Vaidhyasubramaniam, Vice-Chancellor and TATA Sons Professor, SASTRA University. Sruthi Kannan, Head-Strategy and Innovation, NatWest Group India, told students that it was important to move beyond degrees and explore the capabilities that the they had.

While academic degrees were important, better communication skills, digital literacy, critical thinking, and problem solving should be at the core of every learning, the speakers highlighted.

Published – December 22, 2025 10:59 pm IST