Engineering graduate employability in India

I recently did some research for a talk given to around 1000 students from various engineering colleges across Maharashtra on 'Employment v/s Employability". Came across some data which is fairly disturbing & even though I have witnessed this issue first-hand while hiring engineers in my own team, the extent of the problem becomes more visible when one looks at concrete data.

A study conducted by ‘Aspiring Minds’ indicated the following employability rate in various IT/ITES sectors in India for engineering graduates (2011 pass-outs) across 250+ engineering colleges. Since the study captured data for 55,000 students & given that around 5 lac engineering graduates pass out every year, this is very good representative sample.
Sector                                     Employability
IT product                                    2.68 %
(Knowledge) KPO                       9.22 %
IT Services                                 17.45 %
Hardware & Networking             36.57 %
(Business) BPO                        40.69 %
(Source - National Employability Report - Engineering Graduates, 2011 released by Aspiring Minds)

Supply side quality factors have resulted in a large high numbers of unemployed graduates. But there have been issues on the Demand side too. The financial crisis and economic downturns in recent years are certainly reasons for the reduction in the number of jobs. Due to the global recession most Indian IT companies have put a freeze on hiring & campus offer joining dates are also getting pushed out.

This got me thinking on the steps which need to be taken to rectify the situation & another interesting research study ‘GRADUATE EMPLOYABILITY IN ASIA’ published by UNESCO (ISBN: 978-92-9223-395-2) provided relevant pointers. The following content has been taken from the above-mentioned research and it provides an apt summation of the approach required;

"The results demonstrate differing perspectives among the graduates, universities and employers.
• Graduates generally believe their education and skills are sufficient.
• Universities/Colleges consider their students to be well prepared for transition to the workplace.
• Unfortunately, the employers indicate that new graduates lack vital skills for employment'

'The concept of employability gives rise to questions such as: 
Should employability be the primary basis that shapes the direction of universities? 
Is a university’s purpose to be defined solely by the expectations of employers? 

It is contentious to argue that the quality of higher education should be measured solely in terms of the employment rate of graduates, and that is not the intention of this research study. There is no doubt that universities are expected to nurture their students to become responsible, productive and innovative citizens, and by doing so, they will help to develop the desirable ++ factors in their graduates. The task of producing such graduates does not lie only with the HEIs but is part and parcel of the entire education system, including the primary, secondary and post-secondary education stages. Education institutions at all levels share the same responsibility in developing current and future generations of young people, as do governments, employers, non-governmental organizations and civil society organizations. With more at stake, students themselves have to take personal responsibility to optimize the opportunities they have in institutes of higher learning and ensure that they leave their institutes as highly sought after graduates.'

I have highlighted the last line as I too feel that students should take the onus on themselves. In the subsequent articles, I will attempt to provide tips on what they could do better in their own quest for  'employability'.