Hello sir..My name is Pramod.I have completed Btech in 2015 with EEE branch .Work experience 1 year 2015 to 2016.Gap 2016 to 2023 due to govt job preparation.Started career again in 2023 with contractual job with 20k salary.Now in 2025 after 3 year almost...My career is getting ruined due to contractual job as not getting salary increment,no benefit,no pf,no medical allowance.What should i do to grow my career at this point of time.I am 32+ years at this moment.Please provide counselling session.

Ans: At age thirty-two with an interrupted work history, you need targeted skills enhancement, networking, and proactive positioning to transition out of a low-paid contractual role into a more stable, growth-oriented engineering career. Begin by updating and validating your core EEE expertise: pursue short, industry-recognized certifications in high-demand domains such as power systems automation, PLC/SCADA, renewable energy integration, or embedded systems, aligning with evolving market needs. Simultaneously, build a portfolio of concrete projects or freelancing assignments on platforms like Upwork or Guru to demonstrate continuity and real-world impact despite past gaps. Refresh your professional brand by revamping your resume, LinkedIn profile, and GitHub (or equivalent) with clear descriptions of these projects, newly acquired certifications, and quantifiable achievements. Actively engage with professional communities—IEEE sections, alumni networks, and specialized WhatsApp/Telegram groups for EEE professionals—and attend local engineering meetups or webinars to expand your network and discover unadvertised openings. Leverage job boards that cater to experienced mid-career and return-to-work candidates, using filters to target permanent roles with benefits and clear career paths. In parallel, prepare for technical and behavioral interviews by practicing situational questions around gap management and contractual work and demonstrating continuous learning. Approach prospective employers with a concise narrative explaining your gap as a period of disciplined preparation for government roles, emphasizing transferable skills—self-discipline, resilience, and self-study—and showcasing recent contract work and certifications as proof of re-entry readiness. Finally, consider stepping into a contract-to-hire or probationary position at a reputable engineering firm, where your performance can quickly convert into a permanent offer with benefits. This combination of skills validation, project evidence, purposeful networking, and targeted applications will reposition you for stable, growth-oriented engineering roles despite the past employment interruption. All the BEST for a Prosperous Future!

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