Mind-set
amongst engineering students: Findings of a study
Nandini
Consultancy Centre, a chemical engineering and chemical business consultancy
based in Chennai and Singapore, conducted a study on the mindset amongst the
engineering students, with regard to their career prospects and future plans.
The study was conducted during April-June 2016, when informal discussions were
held with a cross-section of students, studying in engineering colleges, those
aspiring to get into engineering colleges and those awaiting results after
completing the course.
Objectives
More than one lakh seats remain unfilled in Tamil Nadu,
which has around 550 engineering colleges. Similar conditions prevail in many
other States in India. With so many seats now available, any student with
minimum marks and who can raise the resources can join an engineering college,
irrespective of merit and competence. Unemployment amongst fresh engineers has
reached alarmingly high levels, with many under-employed or in areas totally
unrelated to their engineering education. In addition, a large number of diploma
holders in engineering subjects are also passing out every year. In such
circumstances, it has become necessary to ascertain the mindset of engineering
students, as to what they aspire and hope to achieve.
Findings of the study
Vague view on prospects for engineering education More
than 90% of the students join engineering course not because they have
understood the prospects of the particular branch of their study very well, but
only due to their expectation that engineering education may provide them better
career prospects, compared to the graduate level science subjects. This is a
vague view, without any substantial evidence before the students or their
parents. Students and their parents are disadvantaged in making their choice,
since no reliable assessment has been made by the government or any private
organization about the employment potentials for the various fields of
engineering study.
Choice of course
A few years back many students thought that a course in
computer education would inevitably land them plum jobs. However, recent
reports in the media that several information technology companies have slowed
down their recruitment process or have failed to honour commitments made in the
campus recruitment have created an impression that all is not well with the
computer education as far as the job prospects are concerned. With herd
mentality, several students and their parents are veering to the view that
traditional subjects such as civil and mechanical may now offer better
prospects. In most cases, the choice of course for study seem to be more
decided by the parents and the elders in the family, rather than by the
students themselves. Many students understand the nature of the course only
after joining and some think that they have not made the best of decision after
studying for two years. But they find it too late to change, and have to
reconcile themselves for lifelong association with the subject, which may not
be to their liking.
Students bank on reputation of college
Many students think that reputation of the college is
the primary requisite for the students to land good jobs. Therefore, there
appears to be a view that more than the choice of the course, the choice of the
college is an important factor.
Anxiety about job prospects
A small
percentage of students are clear about the future option such as going for
higher studies in India or abroad, or entering into business
activities/self-employment. However, more than 95% of students only look for
jobs. Many students seem to think that post-graduate education will not really
improve job prospects in the present circumstances. Only a few colleges are
visited by companies for campus interviews and these companies offer jobs only
for some selected students. Unfortunately, engineering colleges organize no
systematic counselling programme for the benefit of the students on choice of
jobs. Even the few that do, do not do so in a well planned way. Many colleges
do not organize interactions and/or lectures by experts in the field for the
benefit of the students; and one or two programmes that are organized by a few
colleges are often found to be inadequate and lack focus. This seems to be one
of the major regrets of the students. In desperation, in several colleges,
final year students organize themselves and write to various industries
inviting them to visit the colleges for campus interview. Students from a few
colleges said that they have never even received an acknowledgement for their
efforts from the industry.
Prospects in core industries
Many students seem to believe that irrespective of
their course of study, they should get into IT, primarily due to the attractive
salary offers and comfort level in the job. Many are aware that by joining the
IT, they will burn their bridges with core subjects like chemical or mechanical
engineering and will settle for unrelated jobs. But they think that they have
no option, as jobs in the chemical or mechanical industries are not many to
absorb all of them, with good salaries.
Where are jobs available?
Students point out that very few advertisements appear
in the media seeking fresh engineering candidates for jobs. Therefore, not
knowing where jobs are available, students send large number of applications by
email or letters to various companies. Rarely, acknowledgements are received.
In such circumstances, students conclude that “contacts” have become necessary
to get jobs.
Prospects for women
Compared to male students, there appear to be even more
anxiety amongst female students about employment prospects. Most women
engineers think they should get into IT or research functions. While this is
possible for bright students, others with lesser academic performance do not
find attractive job offers forthcoming. Many women students in the past have
taken up entirely unrelated jobs or are not in the job market at all.
Under-employment
In a scenario where anyone with minimum marks can get
admission into an engineering college, there are large number of students who
have arrears or get low marks. In such conditions, it appears students who do
not get high marks and who do not have “contacts” end up in jobs for which even
10+2 level of qualification is adequate.
What students want?
Students are aware that there are jobs available for
meritorious students who consistently show high academic performance, which may
consist of around 30% of the students. Nevertheless, the students point out
that all graduating students are also engineers and high prospects for just 30%
of students is not adequate. Students in the final year who are in the
threshold of entering the job market find fault with the All India Council of
Technical Education and the state governments for permitting so many
engineering colleges, without relating them to the job avenues available and
also not ensuring the requisite standards of education in many colleges. After
completing the course and facing grim employment prospects, considerable
section of engineering students, particularly those with not-so-good academic
performance, think that they have erred in their choice of course of study.
-
Special Report Chemical Weekly August 23, 2016
No comments:
Post a Comment