Trained to thrive
Varshita's career path took a turn for the better thanks to the Tata STRIVE programme, an initiative that empowers aspiring entrepreneurs across six states, focusing on nurturing small businesses, and fostering a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem
When Varshita joined the Computer Science & Engineering course at IMS Engineering College, Ghaziabad, she was ecstatic about being the first engineer in her family. During her 7th semester, she attended a webinar on Cybershikshaa, a joint programme by Tata STRIVE and Microsoft. At the time, she was completely unaware of cybersecurity and the sea of change that awaited her.
A new frontier
The webinar by Tata Strive, the skill development initiative of Tata Trusts that was set up in 2014 to skill the nation’s youth for employment, entrepreneurship and community enterprise, sparked a curiosity in Varshita. Intrigued by the topic, she delved deeper into cybersecurity and fell in love with the field. “I started learning more about it and fell in love instantly. When I joined the course, I realised that this was the only arena where I want to spend the rest of my life. Our training was excellent as we learnt the practical aspects of the subject with lectures, tutorials, and videos. We had the best mentors to guide and motivate us. We were free to ask as many questions as we wanted and most importantly, the STRIVE personality development module was a big help in making us more confident, more prepared to deal with different situations in life,” she happily recounts.
Living the dream
Varshita thrives on the fact that cybersecurity is a constantly evolving domain. “No two days are the same here! It is such a surprising field with something new happening every day. I want to grapple with novelty, no monotonous jobs for me, and cybersecurity provides me with that in droves. There is so much scope for expansion in this field that my learning will never stop. I want to learn, apply, and move forward.” she mentions. Right after finishing the course, Varshita was placed in O9 Solutions at Bengaluru. Today, she is living her dream. She wishes to become a cybersecurity expert, get promoted, and move on to better positions, bigger salary packages and wake up every day excited to go to work for the rest of her life.
Bridging the gender gap
It is refreshing to talk to Varshita who has taken to the field of cybersecurity like a fish to water. But as she talks about being one of the only 2 girls in this department in her company, it is easy to remember how male dominated this industry is, “The main reason I feel is that most girls are unaware of this field and how to make a career here,” Varshita explains, “If I had not attended that webinar, I might have also spent my life thinking this is a boring or extremely difficult field. More girls need to be aware of opportunities in the digital world in general. They need to know where to go, what courses to pursue, how to make a career. I can see a shift happening, it is small, but it is definitely a start.”
Of course, small changes can lead to significant transformations. Until then, Varshita is content making it big in a wonderful job and making her family proud. Today, her younger brother sees her as a role model and wants to walk in her footsteps. One step at a time, Varshita is ready to make a positive impact on the world while living her life to the fullest.
