Often referred to as the “Land of Engineers”, thousands of engineering colleges in India produce an average of six lakhs of engineering professionals per year. We are the largest supplier of engineering labor in the world, especially in the UAE, USA and UK. Despite being the number one producer of the engineering workforce worldwide, India has severely failed to train the same workforce.

Focusing on the increase in skills deficiencies among the engineering workforce in the country, a recent IET Feedback Survey highlighted the need for professional training in engineering schools. According to the report, job placements have become more important for universities than skill upgrades for most of the country’s engineering institutions. About 85% of industry and 55% of universities felt that “universities are more focused on job placement for students rather than developing their research skills and abilities.”

Engineering is among the few major job creators in the country and skills deprivation is a concern for both government and industry. About 50% of the country’s engineering graduates are unemployed. The lack of industry training makes them unsuitable for the current needs of the industry and therefore does not help India to improve its employability rate in the industry.

The survey was a combined effort of “Engineering Admissions and Perceptions – India, Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) and Feedback Consulting” that surveyed around 187 engineering universities in India, 200 parents of enrolled students and 100 leaders of the industry.

These are the highlights of the report:

• Basic engineering such as civil, electrical, mechanical, etc. and niche engineering such as biotechnology, textile, leather, etc. have gained their popularity.

• The overall enrollment rate for girls has increased. It exceeded 31%, especially in computer-oriented broadcasts.

• IT / ITES, Manufacturing and Electrical / Electronic continued to be the top three visitors to Indian engineering campuses. However, in 2015 around 20% of analytics, e-commerce and high-tech companies also participated in the hiring.

• According to the report, the peak of students opted for engineering due to a better career outlook rather than individual interest and around 40% ended up working in the sales / marketing / human resources domain.

• Parental pressure is one of the main aspects of opting for engineering in India.

• 80% of academics, 74% of industry experts and 85% of parents believe that international accreditation of engineering colleges and courses is necessary to attract the best professors and quality education in this field in particular.

The comparison in the report was made between fiscal year 2013 and 2014.

What should be done?

IET, the world’s largest engineering institution with around 1.6 Lakh members from 127 countries, works to improve and protect engineering standards in the world. Based on the survey results, the committee recommended the following to improve the quality of engineering in India:

• The improvement and development of students’ research skills should be emphasized.

• More attention should be paid to the accreditation process for engineering colleges.

• Colleges should focus on skill development rather than job placement.

• The participation of women should be encouraged.

• Emphasis should be placed on the industry (hands-on training) of students by enhancing collaboration between industry and academia.