Institute | Karakoram International University

Introductions

The Centre for Career Development & Counselling (CCDC) is a newly established initiative at Karakoram International University (KIU), Gilgit. The Centre is dedicated to providing comprehensive professional counselling services that address a wide range of educational, social, emotional, and psychological challenges which may affect personal growth or professional performance. Beyond counselling, the Centre also focuses on empowering students with the necessary tools to navigate their academic and career journeys effectively.

The scope of the Centre’s work extends to critical areas such as educational decision-making, career planning, work experience opportunities, internships, skill enhancement, and professional training. It also supports students in preparing for labor market entry, job searches, promotions, transfers, or career transitions. Special attention is given to modern challenges like entrepreneurial development, workplace identity changes, disability inclusion, stress management, and maintaining a healthy work–life balance.

To achieve these objectives, the Centre organizes a variety of engaging and impactful activities, including workshops, seminars, lectures, skill development trainings, industry linkages, and information-sharing sessions. These initiatives are designed to ensure that KIU students across Gilgit, Ghizer, Diamer, and Hunza campuses are well-prepared to meet the evolving demands of the professional world while also fostering resilience, adaptability, and confidence in their career development journey.

Mission

At the core of our mission is to provide opportunities for students to enhance their career development & exploratory learning through self-knowledge, understanding of the world of work, job search skill development, and decision-making.
Establish and organize good working relationship between KIU and employment industry through developing understanding and database of current labor market information

Goals

To educate students and alumni about the career development, planning, and implementation process.
To support students and alumni in the professional exploration, identification, pursuit, and integration of personal and professional career goals.
To refine research, writing and communication skills, Impart resume review techniques, interview techniques of the KIU Students.
To connect students and alumni directly to employment and continuing education opportunities, including internship opportunities for students.
To support students and alumni effective career navigation strategies, skills, and techniques.
To inform the students about career options, job market trends, and workplace paradigms.
To collaborate with colleagues, administrators, faculty, alumni, and employers on projects that enhance career opportunities for students and alumni.
To assist all KIU students to make and act on career decisions with increased awareness, by educating and encouraging responsible, as well as, timely involvement in career planning, internships, and job search processes.
To promote off-campus opportunities to students and provide a receptivity to and involvement with KIU, departments, and alumni.
To enhance services and continue to develop appropriate growth strategies per the increasing needs of the student body and alumni.
To identify a network of employer contacts for student internships and future employment opportunities by developing effective long-term relationships with employers.

Functions

The basic role of the CDC is to cover following three categories to facilitate the students/Alumni to address their issues during the studies as well as after completion of studies.

Counseling services
Career Development
Alumni Management

Counseling Services

Counseling services are further divided into two categories i.e. a) general counseling b) career counseling.

General Counselling:

The Centre seeks to strengthen individual learning by minimizing interruption to the learning process, caused by Emotional/ Mental health/Psychological/Social concerns. this would help students to overcome day to day psychological, social and emotional issues.

Activities:

Lecturers
Group Sessions
Guidance

Personality/psychological tests (Tests measuring Anxiety and Depression

Tests measuring Examination Stress, Anger, Psychological Well-being and Social Skills)

These activities shall remain to continue throughout the semester on the need basis.

Career Guidance

Career counselors would help individuals with the task of self-assessment and self-analysis. They then match the aptitude, skills, and interests of the individuals with various job types, job options available and provide clarity on different job roles.

Overall, they help individuals make informed career choices and help them define their career paths to maximize the success in their chosen careers.

Activities:

Lecturers
Information sharing

Testing Facilities

The following testing/ analysis facilities would be offered to the students for assessment of personality prospects, which are the basis for future career options. The counselors may suggest future path and career choices on the basis of personality traits.

Intelligence Quotient (IQ)
Personality Tests
Aptitude Tests
Tests measuring Career-related Issues
Evaluating Interests, Values, Opinions and Attitudes Tests

Above tests may be conducted through experts/firms/Universities like NUST. ManTech has shown its intent to conduct such tests on payment basis. A counselor may be appointed to conduct above tests.

Career Development:

At this stage following activities would be carried out to make students/employable.

Student Database Management System:

Systematic Students database would be developed to maintain records of students(CVs)
Alumni record would be maintained and information will be shared.

Resume writing and Interview Skills

Students would be trained how to make their CVs, Counsellor would educate new trends of CV writing skills
Trainers would impart interview skills to the students through lectures and seminars.
Faculty from Department of Business Management, (TOTs, IPD, Resource persons from the market would be engaged for the purpose.

Managerial/Communication/IT Skills

Students from different departments lack different skills, for instance, generally, Science students lack IT & Communication skills and IT students lack Managerial & Communication skills
Need to improve above skills of students to meet future needs.
Departments of Management Sciences, Modern Languages, and Computer Science will be engaged for the purpose.

Activity Based Learning

Need to promote activity based learning in all departments
It will improve managerial, experimental skills and give practical expertise to the students.

PLACEMENT

At this stage, activities would be carried out to find employment opportunities for students and alumni:

Information Sharing:

New advertisements would be shared through Facebook page, SMS service, KIU Website, notice Board
New job links would be provided

Job Market/Industry Linkage:

Connections would be developed with the job market like Banks, NGO, Corporation, Government Organizations, firms all over the country.
Internships, jobs, assignment would be requested for KIU Students and Alumni
Continuous communication with the job market.
MOUs would be signed with different organizations for internships, jobs, and training.
Visits to various departments to increase employment opportunities for the students /alumni

JobFest/ Fair

JobFest gives employers the opportunity to recruit qualified students and students the opportunity to explore avenues for internships and various career positions.
The activity would be carried out once in a year for outgoing students.
Different organizations across the country would be invited to the job fair for recruitment of KIU students.

Internships/ Temporary Jobs within University

Offering internships/temporary jobs to the high achievers within the university.
This will help students to make them employable
Internships would be offered for certain period,

Alumni Management:

Complete record of alumni will be maintained
They may be invited as mentors for career guidance to the currents students
Alumni already working in organizations would be engaged for career development of students, internships, and jobs.
Job Information will be communicated to the alumni who are unemployed.

Centre of Career Development and Counselling