So then she decided to learn some practical skills in an attempt to secure a brighter future for herself. She opted to train in fashion designing and learn the ropes of running a boutique. She enrolled at the CIE Fashion the Boutique for the purpose where she has been training for the last six months."I feel the years I put in to get my degree were a waste of time. The last six months of my training has made me feel independent. I believe now I can start a boutique on my own," she says. Pooja has her family support to open a boutique once her one-year course comes to an end.
Anju Tandukar also echoes Pooja's sentiments that a practical course such as fashion designing makes students skilled and also helps many women get employment. Anju, a high school graduate from Kuleshwar, is not attracted to the idea of working under someone else and finds that the salary is also not tempting.
"It seems that universities in Nepal have a lot of useless degrees and have no value when it's time to find a job. My friends have graduate and post graduate degrees but are still unemployed. It's a huge problem that our education and our degrees are not able to give us suitable employment. I've been preparing to open my own boutique since the last eight months," she says.
For Suman Poudel, it is her fashion designing training which makes her feel more self-reliant though she is currently pursuing a Business Administration degree at Rhedon College, Balaju. The fashion designing training is an additional way of ensuring that she is employed soon.
Suman says that having proper skills in designing will be helpful anywhere in the world.
"I'm learning all about stitching, designing, cutting, sketching, and color combination. We're also encouraged to be creative. It's not enough to have a conventional degree. If one has the right skills then it's possible to be self employed and generate employment to others."
CIE's Managing Director Srijana Nakarmi has 18 years of boutique experience. The one year course at CIE only takes in five students per batch.
"I feel very proud seeing my students running their own boutiques in the country and abroad. Once a woman is skilled and is able to work, she becomes financially independent," she says.
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