Rise Program – Career Counselling Initiative - 4th January 2026.

The Aga Khan Hostel, Botad, in collaboration with the Aga Khan Education Board (AKEB), successfully organized the Rise Program—a structured career counselling initiative designed to guide students from Classes 9 to 12 toward informed academic and career choices. The program was carefully crafted to help students explore their interests, aptitudes, and personality traits, empowering them to plan their future with clarity and confidence.

Orientation Session (Online) – 28th December 2025 As a preparatory step, an online career orientation session was conducted on 28th December 2025 to familiarize students with the career assessment process. A total of 15 students actively participated in this session:

• Class 9: 8 students

• Class 10: 1 student

• Class 11: 5 students

• Class 12: 1 student.

During the session, students were guided step-by-step on how to fill in their online assessment details. They were informed that the collected information would be used to analyze their interests, aptitude, and personality, forming the basis for personalized counselling. The orientation helped students understand the importance of career assessment and prepared them to appear for the aptitude test and counselling scheduled for 4th January 2026. Overall, the session proved to be informative, engaging, and beneficial in building awareness about future career planning.

Counselling Session – 4th January 2026 

On 4th January 2026, Mr. Ishfaq Khan, an experienced career counselor from Mumbai, visited the Aga Khan Hostel, Botad, to conduct face-to-face counselling sessions. Each participating student received individualized guidance, helping them identify suitable career options, academic streams, and subject choices aligned with their strengths, interests, and aspirations.

In addition to individual counselling, Mr. Khan extended his interaction to other hostel students, ensuring that a wider group could benefit from his expertise. He conducted a 30-minute orientation session for all hostel students, during which he shared valuable insights on:

Effective and smart study techniques

• Methods to improve retention and understanding

• Building discipline, focus, and consistency in daily routines.

His practical advice and motivational approach encouraged students to adopt better study habits and approach their academic journey with renewed confidence and clarity.

Commitment to Student Growth The successful organization of the Rise Program reflects the strong commitment of The Aga Khan Hostel, Botad, toward the academic progress, career readiness, and holistic development of its students. Such initiatives play a vital role in empowering students to make informed decisions and prepare for future challenges.

Impact of the Rise Program

The Rise Program proved highly impactful by providing students with:

• Clear understanding of career assessment and aptitude testing

• Personalized counselling to explore suitable career paths

• Practical study tips and academic motivation • Direct interaction with an experienced career counselor.

Conclusion The consistent guidance and forward-looking vision of Aga Khan Hostel, Botad play a vital role in shaping meaningful initiatives that positively impact students’ lives. The hostel’s proactive approach ensures that students are provided not only with a safe, disciplined, and nurturing residential environment, but also with opportunities that promote academic excellence, career awareness, and holistic personal development. By encouraging and facilitating programs like the Rise Program, Aga Khan Hostel, Botad reaffirms its strong commitment to preparing students for life beyond the classroom and empowering them to make confident, well-informed decisions about their future. Through such initiatives, the hostel continues to nurture bright futures and develop confident, informed, and responsible leaders of tomorrow.

The Aga Khan Hostel Botad, extends its gratitude to Mr. Ishfaq Khan for generously sharing his time, experience, and expertise. Sincere thanks are also extended to National AKESI, Regional AKEB, and the Local AKEB for Botad Sudendranage for their support. We also express our appreciation to Mr. Anand Surani, Joint Secretary of the AKEB Local Board, for his coordination in making this program a success.