'Many engineers see banking as dream job'

Try other options as white-collar engineering jobs fewer than number of grads, finds study

More and more engineering graduates are opting for jobs in the financial sector and many see banking as a “dream job”, a recent survey has found.

Take the case of Meenakshi Sundaram. An engineering graduate, Sundaram has been working as a customer relationship manager at a prominent international bank in Bengaluru for the past three and a half years.

Soon after studying engineering in electronics and communication at a college in Tamil Nadu, he chose a career in radio-frequency identification only to hate it soon after. He quit his job and when he began looking for other avenues, he decided to pursue an MBA.

Two years down the line, he opted for a job in the banking sector. “The job transition has been challenging but I think I am happy here,” he said.

Many engineering graduates like Sundaram are choosing a career in the growing banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI) sector. A study conducted by a research scholar from the CMR University between 2012 and 2015 found that a number of engineering students from Bengaluru are eager to join the BFSI sector.

The ‘Study of Coaching Companies/Test Preparation and Entrance Exam Aspirants’ was conducted among 500 engineering students in Bengaluru. “I spoke to students from engineering colleges such as MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology and RV College for Engineering. There has been a steady increase in recruitment of candidates in the financial sector. Young graduates feel there is more job security in this sector,” said Ramkumar, the author of the study.

According to a BankersChoice online survey conducted in 2013, a majority of the 1,252 respondents in various cities who saw banking as a “dream job” were engineers.   

According to Joby Joseph, CEO of Freshersworld.com, an entry-level job portal, the number of white-collar jobs in the market is not in proportion to the increasing number of graduates. This has in turn led to the growing interest amongst engineering graduates to try out other career options.

“Recently, HDFC Life hired 38 engineering graduates of an NIT for sales executive positions through our portal. A top healthcare startup hired entry-level graduates for sales executive positions through our portal and the salary offered was an impressive 5.8 lakh per annum. That’s not all, salaries have been increasing consistently across sectors.”

Neeti Sharma, senior vice president, Team Lease, an HR services company, said that many engineering graduates look for ‘core’ jobs because that is the “dream they have been sold”.
However, what is not told to them is the reality of industry expectations, salary offered vis-à-vis capabilities etc, making them unemployable for engineering jobs.

“But the problem is just not that of demand, it also largely depends on the quality of engineers who pass out of our institutions. Many seem to start exploring other vistas and the banking/financial sector is a lucrative sector for employment,” she said.