When I was denied from M Phil Applied Linguistics

Denial is not new for me. I’ve been denied lots of times in my life. But this I was not expecting. Ok, let me make it clear. I have a MSc Applied Linguistics degree with a CGPA of 3.72, earned from Government College University Faisalabad in 2010. I have 1st division throughout my academic career. I was actually number one in my class. And now in 2011, I had applied for M Phil Applied Linguistics in same department, same university. But everything was not same. The head Dr. Shehbaz Arif has been appointed newly. So when new administration comes, new ways and methods also come. Another reason for the changes (I’ll explain in next sentence) was the new VC. Well, the changes were made in merit calculation criteria. It was decided as Academic (80) + Interview(15) + Publications (5). I was very much hopeful that I would secure the position in 1st merit list. I got my interview quite fine, it was not very good not very bad in my opinion. I spend 1 month hanging and waiting for the merit lists. When they showed up finally on 31 October, 2011, I was shocked to see that my name wasn’t there. I was panicked, tensed. I ran to university and there I’d been told that my interview was not good enough to earn me a place at merit list. You see the criteria above mentioned? It says interview is a very small part 15 marks only, rest is the academic record (MA and BA). This policy is followed by all 21 debarments of the university. You can go to gcuf.edu.pk, and under Admissions > M Phil 1st Merit List you can see merit lists of each and every department, and how they have calculated merit score. But this is not the case with Applied Linguistics and English departments. Both are under Mr. Shehbaz Arif and he preferred to “devise” his own policy. He decided to include 20 marks of interview (10 qualifying) and marks obtained in GAT (Graduate Assessment Test, a GRE type proficiency test used in Pakistan) and minimal qualifying for GAT were 50. The note under the says that “MERIT LIST IS BASED ON RESEARCH INTERVIEW AND GAT QUALIFING MARKS.”. But the truth is that only interview marks are considered. Because the maximum marks given are 16. I had got 74 marks in GAT and I could secure position in 1st merit list but as GAT is not considered even after writing an explicit note under the merit list notice, I could not secure it. So I am out here. People ask me in the university what’s going on and I feel myself ashamed. I tried to give an application to VC yesterday, today I came to know it “vanished”. I provided them another handwritten copy of it. I went to Registrar he told me to come on Friday. I am not very hopeful, because they’ll create a rule which will disqualify me. But I am not going to make it easy for them. I am going to court if need be. Let me summarize the points I mentioned above.

The Department of Applied Linguistics didn’t follow the Admission policy and thus being unjust according to following points.

• The admission criterion states that merit be calculated this way Academic (80) + Interview(15) + Publications (5). But Applied Linguistics only considered interviews. This is total favouritism, it is done to deny deserving students like me.
• There are at least three students on merit list which have 2nd division Ghulam Dastgir, Zia-ur-Rehman and Bahadur Ali, and who knows how many more. While deserving like me sitting outside these inferior candidates have secured their seats.
• The “criterion” followed by Applied Linguistics states that “Research Interview Plus GAT” marks are included. If this was the way, I could get admission easily. Because GAT is not considered at all.
• The interview marks are unjustly allotted totally basing on favouritism. One who could speak well was given good marks, and others were denied. The candidate who has maximum marks on this merit list even she does not cross me in CGPA. (All list can be seen at gcuf.edu.pk, and under Admissions > M Phil 1st Merit List).
• The “qualifying” marks for interview 10 are put unjustly. There is no rule in university policy for “minimum” marks in interview. But it is done here. The limit was placed, so I could be allotted minimum marks in interview and thus to disqualify me.

It is frustrating for me being denied after all this time. But I’ll fight. If they do not yield I’ll go to high court. If I am to be defeated so be it, but I am not going to make it easy for them. I am not going to give up just yet.

Edit: I've added screen shots of merit lists of various departments including English and Applied Linguistics. The difference is obvious.

M Phil Applied Linguistics

M Phil Bio Technology

M Phil Business Administration

M Phil Chemistry

M Phil English

M Phil PakStudies

Planning Your Career

As I've seen in short period of my life, there are two types of people in the world: the lucky and the not-so-lucky. The lucky ones are those who get an early breakthrough in their career. This boosts their career and they can fly on new horizons. The not-so-lucky ones are those who do not get an early breakthrough, or any breakthrough. So either they can become pessimist and stay where they are, or they can become hard workers and start to build up their career bit by bit and step by step.

I've seen the live examples during my MSc Applied Linguistics. Two lucky people were among my teachers. Sir Hafiz Fazl-e-Haq always fascinated me, so does Madam Rabia Yasmeen. Both were just MSc Applied Linguistics at the time when they got University job. So I considered them best examples as people who get breakthrough, and specially an early breakthrough in their career. Another example from the same university, GCUF, is my friend Sir Noor-ul-Qamar. He is a lecturer in English Department. He got his job when he just was completing his M Phil. And now he is a well settled person. I am also fascinated by him when I see my own career. Well, when I talk about my career, perhaps I was not able to get a breakthrough. For me, the maximum one can get as a MSc Applied Linguistics degree holder, is to get university job, specially public sector university. The teachers were required actually, but I couldn't apply for the job because of my incomplete thesis.

So we get that sometimes we are not so lucky, or we miss some chances to get something. How to rectify any such error? Well, in my limited experience and knowledge I've seen that you've to build your career step by step. It is a 10 years plan actually which starts after you get your graduation/ masters degree. This plan, as I see it, can be build considering following points.

• As a first step you look for a job. At this time your priority is not to get a handsome salary, but you look for 'a job', which can give you the right to be called a professional. In language teaching field, you will get the kinds of jobs as I mentioned earlier. As a trainee teacher, a school teacher, a private college teacher, you do not seek for handsome salary, but here your purpose is to seek knowledge to survive in market. You seek the ways to move in a professional environment. This experience gaining helps you in your future work.
• As second step you seek for a better job. Here the questions come what is the better job and WHEN? The choice of 'what' is totally person dependent because some people are comfortable with teaching, others are not so they may pursue for other fields and start from zero again. 'When' is a crucial thing to answer. Because your first job is very important for you to teach youself professionalism. But at the same time not all first jobs are so generous to offer you good income. So you've to move along. This move along can be tricky and context dependent (see for pragmatics here folks ;-) ). A few things should be kept in mind in this regard:
• You are being offered by a more prestigious organisation with a more suitable salary package.
• You think that you've gained as much as you could from your current institute.
• You think that you've spent reasonable time in the institution.
• You think that you wouldn't be able to survive in this institution any more (this can be due to some unfortunate reason)
• You think that you should concentrate on further studies instead of the job.
• Today's professional world offers you no generosity but 'cut throat' competition. If you are best, you'll survive otherwise you'll be left behind by the natural selection process. So you need to improve yourself constantly. In teaching you should be aware of latest techniques of teaching, use of technology and other gadgets which keep on emerging every day. Along with it, you need to improve intellectually as well. Being a teacher does not mean you've stopped learning yourself. You learn even when you are teaching in class. But that's 'learn to teach', what I want to focus here is to continue your regular studies. Masters degree is nothing today. Hundreds of universities across this country produce thousands of masters degree holders every year. So you are no exception. For improvement, to be exceptional, to be better, you will have to pursue for higher studies. When I see for myself, I have a plan for PhD and Post Doctorate (if possible) in next 5 to 10 years. You should also plan for yourself that what you want to get more along with your masters/ graduation degree.
• Reflection and Hope are two elements which are crucial for career advancement. You should, after a reasonable period of time e.g. 1 year, reflect on your previous time, sit and think about it. What have you gained, what have you lost and where did you overestimate about yourself. Hope is something which keeps you alive, and urges you to move forward. Never let the hope die. Because time is meant to change. Today if something is unfavourable, it wouldn't be so for long. In past 1 year, I always hoped for the best, that I would be no longer in that miserable school. (That's a different story how 1 year teaching in school benefited me and on what cost). But I never let the hope die. I had an urge that after some time I'll move forward. And to remind myself of this, I thought myself as water in a pond, which if stays long in the pond will grow algae in it. So I constantly reminded myself that if I stayed there for long, I'll rot and corrupt myself, because I've never seen myself as a school teacher. At least what I can bear for myself is a university lecturer. But to get this goal, I've to struggle and work hard, measure each and every step, move forward bit by bit, be patient, and keep on getting expertise in terms of education and experience of the field. Then with the Grace of Almighty, soon enough I'll see myself on the desired goal. And perhaps I wouldn't stop there as well, and will set new goals for myself.

So folks keep on moving, never stop and never let the hope die, plan well, be positive and patient, and keep my company ;-). You'll keep hearing such babbling from me in future as well. And your comments are absolutely desired. Correct me if I am wrong at some point, suggest a better way and add in, if I forgot something. What I said was just my experience, maybe you've something better to share.

Misguided Attitude of our Students about Professional Life

He blames me of misguiding him. He thinks that his degree is a piece of s**t, wastage of money and time, killer of the hopes of his parents. And for this he blames me, because as a senior I motivated them to continue their career in linguistics, because I told them that linguistics was going to have a bright future. So he blames me for all that. But you, the reader, be just, and tell me. Was I wrong doing so? But first of all let me explain in detail so you may understand what do I mean when I say “he blames me”.

I was one of the lost children of my nation who didn't know where to go, what to do, what is the career, how to move in life, how to plan for future, what would be the consequences of studying science, arts or commerce. I studied science in matric because “intelligent” students were supposed to study science. It was in fashion, and as I was unfortunately considered an “intelligent” student I opted for science. Thank God there were no further choices in science, it was just Biology, Chemistry, Physics with Maths as compulsory subject. I studied and got good marks, 79% actually.

When I encountered a college first time in my life, and got prospectus again I was confused to select. My friend, actually best friend at that time, was opting for science and per-engineering (Physics, Chemistry, Maths). So I opted for science as well as per-engineering. Science because I had started thinking myself “intelligent” and per-engineering because my friend was also opting for it. That's another story that our sections were separate, we just met in the morning we were coming to college or in afternoon while going home on bicycles. My performance was rather poor in intermediate and I only managed to get 62% something marks.

Two years passed like two minutes and again I was standing there, thinking what to do next. I was not “intelligent” as I used to be. I had financial issues in front of me. My friends moved to engineering, telecommunication, repeating intermediate examination to get good marks and so to get admission in engineering university. I was left behind, thinking what to do. Then someone told me opt commerce subjects in graduation. And I did. I'd never studied commerce in my life. There were subject choice available in intermediate named Intermediate in Commerce (I. Com.) but as I had studied science, there was a little problem for me. But I got it as a challenge. I worked a bit harder, and tried to get good marks in Bachelors of Commerce (B. Com.) part 1, 62% actually. I found in this period that accounts, commerce, business, economics were not that difficult as they looked like. In second part, however, I couldn't maintain my percentage and finally I could barely secure 60% i.e. first division.

I was thinking myself to be a teacher somewhere in some college, teaching commerce. So my intention was to pursue for M. Com. (thank God I was a little bit clear about my career after 20 years of my life). But this was not the case with fate. My fate led me to Linguistics. It was really ironic for me when I was informed that I couldn't get admission in M. Com. at Govt. College University, Faisalabad. The Commerce Department had conducted test plus interview. I passed test, and they failed me in interview with 0 mark. If they had given me 1 mark, I was in. But I couldn't get admission because there was someone else who had a giant behind himself endorsing him for admission. So I, a refused Shakir, turned to Allama Iqbal Open University for MBA, and started looking for jobs. What kind of Jobs? Job was to get a home tuition, to teach in an academy, to work with someone as a computer assistant.

I did these jobs for a few months. As mentioned earlier, I was working as a computer assistant with someone. And here happened the most ironic twist of my life. The people I was working with as assistant (now my teachers) convinced me to leave commerce and study linguistics. OHH MY GOD :-@. Can someone has such a twisted educational path as I have? But I accepted that and 3rd time in my life changed my field Science > Commerce > Linguistics. So I worked for them in the morning, and took classes in the evening. It was not a regular program, just a post graduate diploma in which I was granted admission on continuous insistence of the teachers I was working with. Other member of the Department of English, including the head weren't convinced that I could be allowed to study English Language Teaching. But I did it, I got admission, I completed the degree.

Here, before coming to this degree, for the first time in my life, I was crystal clear. I knew where I've to go. I had a path in front of me. I knew that there was not going back. I had burned my boats. I was now a linguistics learner for whole of my life. My job was to teach English, research on Urdu and Punjabi and translate (as I later became). I had started a 10 year plan for my life. Because PGD was not enough, so after PGD, I went for MSc in 2008. In the mean time, thanks to a very kind person, Talmeez, as I mentioned above, I started working as translator. With the passage of time I got better, my interests developed in corpus linguistics, computer assisted linguistic research, computer assisted language teaching, research on Urdu and Punjabi. And now I am here, after one year of my masters, seeking to get admission in M Phil, working as a translator, having worked as a teacher for 1 year, looking forward to PhD.

And now, today, he says to me that I betrayed him. He thinks his education is just a piece of s**t and I am one of the responsibles. But how he can blame me for all this? Hadn't he a mind in his head? Couldn't he think of a better way at the time of admission? The reality is that he was like me, like one of thousands of students who are left behind, because they are not “intelligent” so they can't study science and can't be doctors or engineers. So they move to arts, they complete BA, then they move to specific areas of arts, Sociology, Psychology, Islamic Studies, Business, and English (to include now Linguistics as well) etc. They don't know where to got, they just follow others, sometimes they seek some department to get admission in because their marks are not enough for merit in certain other departments. We faced this dilemma for last several years in Applied Linguistics Department. Students who came here for admission had lowest grades, no idea to move where to, seeking for some magic degree which could give them employment. We as old students motivated them, told them about the benefits they could get after becoming a linguist, ones who convinced took admission and got degree. And now one of them blames me. Is he right doing this?

Sir Asim used to tell that Winners have place in linguistics not Loosers. So I ask them all, are they winners? Are they having something in them? Any spark? Good grades? Abilities? Motivation? Courage? Patience? If they don't have all this, then they should blame all of the world which is against them.

Our students need to realise the world is not a bed of roses. They think that every thing would be just fine once they get the degree. The employer will be standing at front door of their house requesting them to honour him by joining his organisation. This is not a Utopia, an ideal world. This is real life with all cold bitter harsh realities of life. You have to struggle, you have to be a winner, if you are not, you have no place here. I would suggest my juniors do not expect miracles for themselves. 1400 years ago Angels have stopped coming to this world to create miracles, now we are on our own. You should have faith in Allah, thankfulness for what He has given you, and courage to struggle patiently. This is not the end, this is beginning of a new degree, Masters in Life. Here you will learn for all of your life, you will get good grades only if you are capable. And remember in the tests of life, there is least chance of cheating. May Allah be with you all.

M Phil Applied Linguistics

I've the prospectus in my hands and the title says "2011 GCUF Prospectus". I am having this booklet in my hands and my soul is wandering around those moments which I've spent in this university millennia ago. Yes it seems I was there in another life. The days of MSc Applied Linguistics, the last and forever prevailing moments, I cannot forget them. At that time, 1 year back from now, I'd tried to write something. I'd tried to mourn on the loss, but I failed. I could not gather words, as if though my words had become meaningless. I was unable to say what I wanted to say. So considering myself a desert struck by drought with no single drop of water, I'd abandoned the effort to produce something. And now after 1 year, when I am supposed to be more wise, more practical, more mature and more professional, I am becoming saddened on the loss of my good old days. Sadness prevails in me, it adds to my feelings drop by drop and I feel myself a container filled with it. And when I move in my good old days, when I re-picture those moments, the parties, the joyness, the classes and even the hardest times of final examination I can feel this sadness within the deepest corners of my bones. I wonder why this is now, when I am supposed to be more stronger and ignorant of such things, why I feel it now. When nothing is left behind. The air itself has become a stranger to me, the place where I had sit for 2 years, my classroom, has made other friends, other ones like me who succeeded me on that same corner chair of last row. I wonder why I feel this now, when I am going to sit there again, perhaps on that same chair and bench and same classroom. Perhaps this is because now I wouldn't be able to laugh out loud, the parties wouldn't be that enjoyable, maturity would hinder with joy and innocence, torments of time and tension will dance in my head, the god of money will bend my attentions. Perhaps I wouldn't be that old shakir this time, I would be more selfish, more swollen in my ego and I. Perhaps I would be more like a prisoner behind the walls of my own self.

The State of Affairs at Government College University Faisalabad

GCUF is the university created in the 'revolutionary' period of general retired Pervaiz Musharaf. It is one of the govt. colleges which were converted to universities in bulk after the 'revolution' back in 2000. It was given the status of university in 2001 and since then this newly born university is in problems.
The biggest of all is the attitude of the administration and students of this university. The administration of the university always tries to create monopoly. They pull each other down to progress and they do not want to bear anyone who is 'outsider'. Here outsider means someone appointed as vice chancellor from an other city/university. The administration is too corrupt, monopolist and seeking for their own benefit from the official funds of the university. Current vice chancellor is on his designation because he has a link with the current governor of Punjab Mr. Salam Taseer, otherwise this person is not of worth to even be considered as a dean of university. Far more superior and having high impact factor officials who can run the university far better are waiting outside to be considered for this post, but the governor just wrote a line on the appointment letter of this vice chancellor 'till November 2010', so he is enjoying this job politically. There are two lobbies in the university, pro-vc and against-vc. And the pro-vc lobby is obviously dominant, always suppressing others and always seeking for their own benefit. The corruption of the administration and illegal usage of the funds let the university at a state that sometimes it does not have funds to pay for daily expenses of the departments e.g. the stationary expenses. There are four blocks in the university, 1 is funded by a former student and it was the very first constructed portion of the newly born university, a new block is constructed by govt. funds and other two are left unreconstructed, the structure is complete but for the furnishing university has not funds and so the case with government which also does not have any funds. Like other universities, it has the problem of political parties. After the rehabilitation of 'democracy' various sub-organizations of parties like PML-N and PPP started showing their power on the walls of university. Now they have groupings within themselves, they quarrel with each other, they break the rules of university but no one can stop them because of their strong political back hand. At last the teaching system of university is too week, their is a reputation of this university in the marked as a time-pass university: people say that it is the best place in Faisalabad where you may go and have a date with your partner. This negative image is being 'positivised' by banning 'couples' and even mixed groups of students sitting in university, they are fined and warned but again the ones with political back hand are exempted. But there are no serious efforts made to create a study oriented environment.
The current problem is related to study. We are always facing new marking schemes, GPA rules, passing criteria and soforth. Same happened last weak when the passing and marking criteria was changed and students showed their anger. The next day a notification was distributed telling that the previous criteria is restored but again there were hidden problems. There was a distinction made in the criteria for morning and evening (which are studying on self finance basis) students. So the rebels created violence, they lambasted the security guards and eventually police was called. After the inner violation they marched towards district council and raised slogans for the removal of current VC. The university remained close last 2 days of previous weak and the signs are still not positive. It looks that this violence would continue. A video is shared here to let you have an insight of the current situation. More can be seen here.