Employability Challenges in Today's World
Employability is a major issue in today's world. There are management and engineering colleges of below-average quality. Students from these colleges often struggle to secure jobs. If a student is a struggler and possesses a fighting spirit, they may eventually find a job and build a career. However, in these colleges, there are a few students who genuinely want to learn. They are talented, good, and actively seeking good opportunities. Talented individuals exhibit recurring patterns of thought, feeling, or behavior that can be productively applied. When they get an opportunity, they value the job.
Unfortunately, industries tend to pick candidates from reputed institutes, which is not wrong, but hiring candidates from reputed institutes at a high cost for routine shop floor jobs and keeping them for only routine tasks is not ideal. I personally feel that these students should be challenged, rotated through different functions, and finally assigned result-oriented high-level tasks. This way, you truly understand the candidate's capabilities.
Value for Money in Hiring
Students from Tier 1 schools are generally more prepared, but when considering value for money, there is no significant difference compared to other schools. When a new MBA graduate from a top institute enters the workforce, they come with a "premium tag," but this does not guarantee the most or best practical knowledge.
Routine Jobs and Required Skills
Jobs like supervision, regular maintenance, logistics, QA, and regular production, which follow standard operating procedures, do not demand high-level intelligence. However, they require greater frustration tolerance, personal discipline, organization, management, and interpersonal skills than were needed two decades ago. These are precisely the skills many young people in business schools today lack compared to two decades ago.
Education System and Skill Gaps
India's school and university-based education system does not equip students with the skills employers seek. While Indian graduates have some theoretical knowledge, they lack domain skills, communication, and professional (employability) skills. Curriculum and pedagogy at teaching institutions are increasingly set by individuals who do not understand company needs. Often, the quality of teachers is a major issue. Many teachers are individuals who failed to secure good industrial and professional jobs and accepted teaching as a last resort, lacking a passion for teaching.
Student Attitudes and Expectations
The attitude of students is also different. They spend significant money to obtain a degree certificate, sometimes without knowing why they are pursuing a particular degree. Their expectation is that spending such an amount will lead to a highly paid job with an air-conditioned office. Third-class management institutes have turned this into a business case to earn money without adding value.
Focus Areas for Institutes
Institutes should focus on the following areas while preparing their students for industries. Otherwise, these institutes will eventually perish.
- Skills: Skill is the "how" part of a task and job. It includes capabilities that can be transferred from one person to another. This can be achieved by aligning with industries. Institutes need to reach out to industries, understand their expectations, and prepare the curriculum accordingly.
- Knowledge: Knowledge is "what you are aware of." It includes factual information (things you know) that can and should be taught, and experiential knowledge (understandings you have picked up along the way), which is less tangible and harder to teach.
- Talent: Talent involves recurring patterns of thought, feeling, and behavior that shape individual minds. If someone does not have talent as part of their filter, it is very difficult for others to instill it.
Now, consider how many candidates possess the above capabilities. I believe there is a long way to go to reach the goal.
Employability is a major issue in today's world. There are management and engineering colleges of below-average quality. Students from these colleges often struggle to secure jobs. If a student is a struggler and possesses a fighting spirit, they may eventually find a job and build a career. However, in these colleges, there are a few students who genuinely want to learn. They are talented, good, and actively seeking good opportunities. Talented individuals exhibit recurring patterns of thought, feeling, or behavior that can be productively applied. When they get an opportunity, they value the job.
Unfortunately, industries tend to pick candidates from reputed institutes, which is not wrong, but hiring candidates from reputed institutes at a high cost for routine shop floor jobs and keeping them for only routine tasks is not ideal. I personally feel that these students should be challenged, rotated through different functions, and finally assigned result-oriented high-level tasks. This way, you truly understand the candidate's capabilities.
Value for Money in Hiring
Students from Tier 1 schools are generally more prepared, but when considering value for money, there is no significant difference compared to other schools. When a new MBA graduate from a top institute enters the workforce, they come with a "premium tag," but this does not guarantee the most or best practical knowledge.
Routine Jobs and Required Skills
Jobs like supervision, regular maintenance, logistics, QA, and regular production, which follow standard operating procedures, do not demand high-level intelligence. However, they require greater frustration tolerance, personal discipline, organization, management, and interpersonal skills than were needed two decades ago. These are precisely the skills many young people in business schools today lack compared to two decades ago.
Education System and Skill Gaps
India's school and university-based education system does not equip students with the skills employers seek. While Indian graduates have some theoretical knowledge, they lack domain skills, communication, and professional (employability) skills. Curriculum and pedagogy at teaching institutions are increasingly set by individuals who do not understand company needs. Often, the quality of teachers is a major issue. Many teachers are individuals who failed to secure good industrial and professional jobs and accepted teaching as a last resort, lacking a passion for teaching.
Student Attitudes and Expectations
The attitude of students is also different. They spend significant money to obtain a degree certificate, sometimes without knowing why they are pursuing a particular degree. Their expectation is that spending such an amount will lead to a highly paid job with an air-conditioned office. Third-class management institutes have turned this into a business case to earn money without adding value.
Focus Areas for Institutes
Institutes should focus on the following areas while preparing their students for industries. Otherwise, these institutes will eventually perish.
- Skills: Skill is the "how" part of a task and job. It includes capabilities that can be transferred from one person to another. This can be achieved by aligning with industries. Institutes need to reach out to industries, understand their expectations, and prepare the curriculum accordingly.
- Knowledge: Knowledge is "what you are aware of." It includes factual information (things you know) that can and should be taught, and experiential knowledge (understandings you have picked up along the way), which is less tangible and harder to teach.
- Talent: Talent involves recurring patterns of thought, feeling, and behavior that shape individual minds. If someone does not have talent as part of their filter, it is very difficult for others to instill it.
Now, consider how many candidates possess the above capabilities. I believe there is a long way to go to reach the goal.