Life In A Professional Society

This is my own story based on experiences and memories regarding the workings of NUST Science Society and my perspective of things happening there.

When I first read the promo of NSS, I got all wide eyed and wishful. I saw in NSS everything an official society is depictive of, the professionalism (at least in their ads), the working way and the general environment. It was all very sophisticated and official and beautiful for me. Yes, I say beautiful because I had this feeling that being an NSS member makes you automatically very important, that you are contributing to the science throughout the world, and that you are at a level above the lowly laymen (read students who don’t give a damn about societies).

My professionalism rating of NSS 10/10.

 Well I applied in publications, submitted the tasks…. and lo and behold; I got an interview call. I couldn’t believe my luck. Being a freshman in engineering and just beginning to grasp the intricacies of the professional world, it was heaven for me that I was being called for an interview!!A real live interview!!!! I got all excited and waited anxiously for the big day. Being from another campus of NUST, I had my interview on Skype. I had this picture of a strict, important looking man, thoroughly professional, with the aura of a dragon. The next thing I knew I was looking at the face of this crazily smiling nice young girl (three years senior to me but still a girl!!!). I immediately relaxed and then we were talking, laughing, sharing experiences and I don’t know what else. But then the meeting (it didn’t seem like an interview really) was over and she was saying that if we select you we will tell you. Ok I said.

And then I waited. And waited.And continued waiting.

 And then again I waited.

Then I asked my elder brother who is doing job whether you call an interviewerand ask whether you were selected or not. I was of this view that maybe I had been rejected that’s why I was being ignored. My bro said ask them, they won’t bite:D Ok I said.

 I wrote them a nice long email asking about what happened to that interview I gave a month ago, and WOW!!! They were tumbling over themselves saying apologies, and that it was a mistake and that they are extremely sorry and that I had been selected. This was one and half months after the interview, mind you! So that’s how my impression of a professional society slipped some notches.

Professionalism rating 8/10.

This is summer semester and the month of May. I anxiously wait for my letter. Which not unexpectedly, never comes. Then the finals start and I am beginning to curse the society heads for being so irresponsible about their recruitment drive.

Then in the fall semester, after two and half months that is, I again contact them and ask them about my selection. Their response hit me like a bombshell. They were saying that it was the beginning of a new session all the old admin had left and they had a completely new admin and didn’t know anything about any recruitment drives in March. What the hell! I thought in my head. I showed them their own promo. Which, againnot unexpectedly, they didn’t recognize. Sigh. I then contacted my campus coordinator, who contacted the HR Director, and after a week of pulling strings, I was able to make them realize that they indeed had selected me and that I was now officially executive member of the Professional Society. Let’s see what lies ahead.

I went to the event immediately after my selection that was MTS (Meet The Scientist).All executives’ presence was mandatory as here was to be a group photograph of the full team of NSS comprising around 80 executives, office bearers, group head etc.  So my friend (who also got selected as NSS member)planned to go to the event. Unfortunately we got very late, and upon reaching SCME (School of Chemicals and Materials Engineering) Seminar hall, we found that everyone was filing out. We waited sheepishly at the entrance for the photograph. After the group photo I asked about my director from the joint secretary and explained to him that we got late;sorry about that. I expected a reprimand, but their response took me by surprise.

Us: Sorry sir hamaydairhogaihm ne meeting misskr di. Apbta den wo(director)kahanhain

He: Meeting misskrdi?koibaatni, group photo me to thayna?

Us: Han sir thay

He: Phirkhair ha

Us: :D

I was just beginning to grasp the meaning of the word professional. Oh so thoroughly professional:D

Professionalism Rating 7.5/10

Then I found my director and had a long chat with my director about how I am from a different campus, and how I cannot come to each and every meeting, probably I will rarely be seen here,I said. Its ok she said. I was thankful she understood me. We had his conversation for like 30 minutes. Then after this we (my friend and i) left for EME College.

 I was now at ease. I had become the member of a professional (looking) society, and I had made friends with director (sort of) and didn’t have to goto their meeting, but still got to carry the tag of NSS with me and show off to my friends. Oh how I enjoyed watching them burn :D

Then a week later, tragedy struck. My director changed and the new director immediately called ameeting of her team. I was left standing in chest deep water. But I managed to wiggle out of this one. And once again everything was ok.

Then one day as I was online on Facebook, I got a message from the president….I couldn’t believe my eyes. I, a lowly executive member, was being inboxed by the NSS President. Wow, this HAD to be important. It sure had to be. I quickly replied her. Better read the conversation.

President: So how does it feel to be a part of NSS finally?

Me:(feeling that I had to be extremely professional and sophisticated as this was the high and mighty president… better impress her).

Me:It feels quite great to be sitting in EME and have some association with H-12 campus frankly and some apprehension on the high level of quality and work. I will have to be on my toes as i will be very concerned about the quality of my work not matching your high level of expectations :D

President (obviously bored by my professional talk):Ok , for now just share it on your wall.

(Sends me the promo  of the next event)

Me: (speechless)

Had I read correctly? Was this really the president? Was this the leader of NUST’sBiggest and Most Professional Society? She was asking me to share the promo on my Facebook wall. What a dumb thing to do. And surely unbecoming of the president. But well I guess she was human too (ofcourse she was -_- , that was me on the seventh sky, everyone else was on first slip , stupid me, share the poster on my wall, of course I could do that, what was stupid in that, stupid me,I will never forgive myself for thinking that way again.

Professionalism Rating 6/10

Well, well, well, so much for professionalism. After daydreaming two months about the most professional society of NUST, I was getting enlightened on every step. After that , as I was to find out through experience, there was not so much work to do as the showoff that came with it. On the society’s main page, the main regular activity was..,. Guess what??? Wishingbirthdays !!! Yes you read correctly. Upon asking the HR Director (whose job I guess it is to keep the page healthy, juicy, and full of activity, no matter how mundane it is ) her answer was;

HR Dir: NSS is a professional society and we wish birthdays to show that we are apart from the grinding factories of the professional world andwe do care about our executives. Fair enough, I thought.

But the continuous lack of activity on my group page of publications was unnerving. Wasn’t there anything to do at NSS I thought?

Then my sensible friend of EME college told me that as NUST is a new university they don’t have that much societies and events, so whatever societies they have, no matter how much people are on their team, work is done by only a diligent few. And the rest are merely on reserve. Wow I thought.

Professional Society Rating: 4/10.

Life kept going on this way. I was at my grandmother’s one day when I got a text from my director “Check fb inbox”. Sigh. I thought. After waiting for any type of work to do for almost two months, I am now being contacted when I have come to uncle’s wedding.

Apni to bad luck he kahrab ha yaar.

 I profusely apologized , she graciously accepted. And life was normal again.

Then next semester started and I began with a new will to scale back on extracurricular. I resolved to give aback seat to professional society (was it still professional? the only thing professional was their two piece suits in events)

The Dawn Of Inspire:

But to my horror, NSS pulls off a big one with Inspire (Internship  Student Poster Presentation), I wasn’t even following it on the group as I didn’t give a damn about internship ( I was still in second year and not interested in internships, at least for now ).

I am at my aunt’s one day and then I get this text from my friend, tune on Sachal TV. I had never heard of it before, but still I tuned in on it, and wow!!!This is my society on TV. Can you believe it. The professional society is professional after all. I tell anyone and everyone under the sun about this event.

I AM in this society. This is MY society. I AM an EXECUTIVE MEMBER of this society.

 Did you appear on TV?

Go to hell dammit. Who cares whether I came on TV or not. IT is my society and I am still a member of it.

But nobody Is interested and I start to cool off too. After all, what is the big deal anyway, Professional society or not, it is still run by students.

What the matter if everyone is not so sophisticated as I hoped, they are after all humans, and you can’t be perfect. That does not mean that I am, but I still felt that these people were super professional people.

 In short I have come a long way from the wide eyed, highup to the seventh sky kid of the first year who wet his pants just watching the message of the president on his inbox.

Enlightenment:

After all, this is student society and everyone, no matter their posts is a student. At the end of the day it is collective benefit for all of us. We all learn from each other. What’s the big deal if we crack jokes sometimes? We are humans too.  And I personally liked everyone’s happy go lucky attitude in the event I went and met them (that happens to be a grand total of two events :D ). At the end I am thankful to NSS for giving me an opportunity, and I am sure I will learn more from it in the days to come.

Professionalism Rating:  Who Cares?:D