MSc in Biotechnology, No Guidance in R&D: What Are My Career Options?

Ans: Hi Priya,

Current Investments -
Your current investments are more (over 90%) in Debt than Equity e.g. PF (PPF+PF) = 39 lacs out total 44.4 lacs.
Debt investments like PPF/PF provide safely and security to the invested capital. But the interest rates just about help meet inflation. Growth is not achieved with these investments in the true sense.
Equity based investments like Equity Mutual Funds will provide growth in the long term (at least 5 years, and you have a good 16 years). Your current allocation is just over 6 lacs even assuming NPS as equity (check and update allocation to equity to max possible).

Loans-
Personal loans will typically have very high interest rates. This should be the first one you should try to close as early as possible. There is no point allocating any savings to investment giving less returns and paying high interest in this loan.
Car loan can continue as per schedule as its interest rate will be much less compared to Personal Loan. Unless you can prepay and close it also early, depending on your saving potential.


To retire early at age 50, you have the next 16 years to grow your corpus to a respectable amount.
I assume you are employed and contributing to PF and NPS. Hopefully you are contributing regularly to Mutual Funds also.
As income, expense and saving/investing details are unavailable I can provide some guidelines only.
Do try to maximize your monthly investment towards Equity Mutual Funds to accumulate a decent corpus for retirement.
Unless you are claiming tax benefits for PPF, consider lesser contribution to it now.
By the time you retire your Equity and Debt should be near 50% each, there by providing you safety and growth. In fact you can try to achieve higher Equity % if possible.
Overall your corpus should fetch average of over 10% returns (currently its under 8%).

Action items
1. Pay off personal loan ASAP
2. Invest maximum savings into equity mutual funds
3. Once you have done above 2, consult a CFP to help with retirement corpus - this depends on various factors, monthly expenses, life expectancy, etc.
4. Ensure you have adequate health cover. Take a topup plan with a higher coverage and lower premiums.

If you have other goals/requirements, then do discuss with CFP and arrive at a holistic plan.

Thanks & Regards
Janak Patel
Certified Financial Planner.

Ans: Yes. You have to pay STCG. However, some amount will get adjusted against difference between basic exemption limit & your actual income. Moreover, you may also get some relief u/s 87 under old Regime. If you opt for new regime your tax liability shall comparatively be more.
Most welcome for any further clarifications. Thanks.

Ans: I feel, UPS is comparatively better than NPS.
Most welcome for any further clarifications. Thanks.

Ans: Dear Anonymous,
It isn’t wrong to expect that he should also inform his parents, but it is also important to give him some time to come up with a strategy on how to present it, or just enough time for him to be comfortable with the idea of disclosing his relationship. I am not sure how your parents found out, but I am guessing that you didn’t directly confess. There’s a difference between telling your parents and them finding out; the first one takes some courage, especially in Indian families. Please allow him the time, but if he keeps delaying even after a considerate period of time, then you can directly confront him about his intentions. I am sure he will tell them about you soon.

Hope this helps.

Ans: Any Private College of good or medium reputation in Pune.

Ans: With a 90 percentile in MHT CET and OBC category, you have good chances of getting into reputable private colleges for Computer Science Engineering (CSE) or Information Technology (IT). While top government colleges like COEP or VJTI are unlikely, you can target colleges like PCCOE, DY Patil, MIT WPU, and AISSMS, which offer good placements and are accessible with your percentile.

Ans: Yes, Both education and placement are good.

Ans: ATLAS SkillTech University is considered a good option for B.Tech programs, particularly in Computer Science and related fields like AI, Machine Learning, and Robotics. The university is known for its innovative, new-age curriculum, strong industry connections, and emphasis on practical learning and skill development.

Ans: AMITY noida for CSE