Do many young students ask me this question? Instead, they are more inclined to do careers in different fields, except Engineering, such as Banking (IBPS exams), Civil Services, and other SSC exams. The reason for this is twofold. One, the declining number of campus placements for Engineering graduates and, second, the declining quality of engineering education delivery in universities. Both of these reasons have impacted both students and general public psychology towards engineering education and a career option.
But, all these notions about Engineering do not consider a fundamental fact, that Engineering forms the basis of modern civilization and its importance is far from over. In fact, young graduates need to stay more informed and up-to-date regarding the latest engineering trends, rather than thinking about changing their field entirely. One more reason for young graduates to quickly change careers is that when they leave an engineering college, the main motto is to make money and be successful. And, passing government non-technical exams is considered easy for these graduates. But, one misstep in the wrong direction while choosing a career can lead to a feeling of helplessness and lifelong frustration.
The main objective of this article is NOT to criticize what young engineering students think, but to give them an idea of how the four years of their life, when they are used to thinking rationally and with reason, can give them a life of success and happiness. . So how can a graduate engineer have a successful career and lead a happy life? Also, all the negative notions and anxiety that lead young engineering students to make wrong career decisions is because, just like the old days, CAREER and FUTURE are still the two most important things they care about. In my personal opinion, a good career and future depends on:
1. Consciousness
2. Desire to succeed
3. Positive attitude when getting involved in the right thing: ENVIRONMENT, EDUCATION and EXPERIENCE
4. Strategic planning
5. Dedication
6. Hard work
The main structural conflict on the minds of young engineers today is that almost 90% of them think they are not worthy of a good engineering job and career and feel powerless. The current reality and their negative attitude make it difficult for them to achieve their goals and visions. But they completely forget that they have been given the opportunity to spend 4 years of their life to think in the most logical way possible, to be rational and reasonable in their approach to a problem. Therefore, they must use all the gimmicks and guidance received during their 4 years at any engineering college to build a great career, and believe me, engineering is the way to go in the future!
One thing, young engineering graduates should keep in mind that future economic strongholds will be made up of countries and societies that have a STRONG KNOWLEDGE BASE. This can be put into easier words, describing the economy of the future as a Knowledge Economy. This means that the role of knowledge, compared to natural resources, physical capital, will take on, and in fact has taken on, much greater importance. Economic success is now based on the effective use of intangible assets such as knowledge, skills and innovative potential. Education and training, information infrastructure, economic incentives, and institutional regime and innovation systems are of utmost importance.
According to a report, India will have a total of 204 million graduates, that is, about 15% of the world’s total graduates. This means that we will have more graduates than the US by 2020. This further means that the effective utilization of this huge number of young graduates will determine whether or not we are a superpower. Furthermore, according to a report from the Planning Commission, D&B India, the key growth engine in the 2011-20 phase will be substantial investment in physical, agricultural and social infrastructure, compared to investment in the service industry and the increase in demand for private consumption in the phase spanning 1990-2010. This means that the government will increase investments in infrastructure development, which includes roads, highways, transportation, projects, new thermals and refineries that are coming in the new decade. Investment in infrastructure will increase to 12.1% of GDP for fiscal year 2020 from the estimated 7% of GDP in fiscal year 2011 (source from Planning Commission, D&B India). All of this means that new job opportunities will be created for engineers, and well-educated and trained engineers will be required to take up the challenge.
Now the question arises, how do you get that job, which will be created in the near future. The only answer is found in paragraph 3 of this article, from points 1 to 6. The starting point for young engineers is that they should begin preparing for GATE, while they are in their 3rd year of Engineering, so that by the time they pass their course they know where to go and what to do and they don’t depend on their engineering school to help them with placements. GATE stands for Engineering Graduate Aptitude Test, and it is an all-India test conducted by IIT every year to select deserving students for various ME / MTech programs at IIT, NIT, considered universities. Apart from this, a large number of Public Sector Units (PSUs) are recruiting through GATE scores. Future jobs mentioned in the previous paragraph will only be possible through PSU, so it is very important to take this exam seriously. An added benefit of working for PSUs through GATE is that the initial payment packages for a GET and MT are around INR 6-10 lakhs pa CTC, which is much more than what a young recent engineering graduate would get in a private organization. This means that, in recent years, GATE has transformed from a simple exam to a symbol of excellence and competence. And the day is not far off when even private sector organizations will also start recruiting through GATE scores.
This exam, if taken seriously, can transform your life and help you build a great future and a career. Not only this, GATE preparation paves the way for UPSC Engineering Services Exam preparation. Aside from this, many exams are conducted over a year, recruiting engineers through written exams that require preparation along the GATE prep lines. Some examples to support my previous sentence, ISRO hires young engineers in April of each year, SSC hires JEs for various departments in May of each year, etc. This means that preparing for just ONE exam, i.e. GATE, can help you sit for multiple exams.
