Ability, aptitude and ambition

Harish wants to be an engineer.  So do Swathi and Rahul.  Neelima could not get a seat in medicine, so now she says she will take up engineering. Aditya loves literature and would have loved to be a journalist, but his parents have (almost) convinced him to take up engineering.  All of them are anxiously waiting for the  CET counselling to begin on July 7.

CET counselling is held every year in Karnataka, as in other states, to allot seats in over 150 colleges which are affiliated to Visvesvariah Technological University (VTU). Fifty per cent of the seats in private colleges, 40 per cent in minority colleges, and 100 per cent of the seats in government colleges are allotted through CET, adding up  to a sizeable number of seats in the state. Thus CET continues to be the most popular entrance exam for engineering.

Students who get admission through CET pay less than Rs 20,000 a year as fees, as compared to an average of Rs 1,25,000 for those who get in through COMED-K, or even more for those who are admitted through the management quota.

Engineering opportunities for students of Karnataka go far beyond CET.  All students are eligible to appear for IIT-JEE which annually allots over 7,000 seats, AIEEE which allots 26,000 seats in NITs and other Central colleges, and entrance exams of various other prestigious universities all over the country.  Many students seek admission in colleges such as Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), BITS Pilani, Anna University in Tamil Nadu and so on. Specialised institutes such as these offer courses in Marine, Aerospace, Environmental or Leather Technology Engine-ering.

In Karnataka one has the option of seeking admission to engineering colleges affiliated to private deemed universities such as Manipal, Amritha, BLDE, KLE, Yenepoya etc., which have their own entrance exams.  One can also pursue engineering privately. For instance, AMIE of the Institution of Engineers India offers a degree which is considered the equivalent of a BE degree.

There are correspondence courses in engineering being offered by IGNOU, Aero-nautical Society of India, BITS, Karnataka State Open University (KSOU), SRM in Chennai and Thapar in Patiala.

Why engineering?

The irony of this whole exercise is that after the entire admission process is over, there are inevitably engineering seats left  in the newer and less popular colleges all over the state.  Hence let us understand that admission in engineering is not as difficult as it is made out to be.  It is true that one has to compete fiercely to get into a reputed college, but that holds true of all educational institutions, starting from the school level.  The question to be asked is why is there such a tremendous rush for engineering as compared to the innumerable other courses available much more easily.

For several decades engi-neering has been the most preferred course of study, not only for those who desire to get into technology, but also for those who want to pursue a career at the managerial or administrative level.  Trad-itionally the cream opts for engineering.  There is a huge demand for seats in IITs, BITS, NITs, other autonomous institutions, and then the local engineering colleges.  Since these colleges attract the best  students and put them through four years of rigorous training that goes beyond classroom and textbook studies, they are inevitably found to be very successful in whatever they take up.  For example every year, more than two-thirds of the students who get into the IIMs are from the engineering stream.  Many students who clear other competitive exams such as Civil Services (IAS etc.) or Military Service also come from an engineering background.

While engineering continues to be No. 1 in popularity, one should not be ignorant of the alternatives that are available today.

Law has emerged as an excellent foundation for those who seek a fulfilling career, particularly after the establishment of National Law Schools all over the country, and the Common Law AptitudeTest (CLAT) for admission in them.

Medical and Paramedical graduates are also making their mark in managerial and administrative roles.

Other professional courses such as agricultural sciences, arch-itecture, hotel management, pharmacy, integrated MA and MSc programmes have been found to be equally good.

Hence Harish, Swathi, Rahul, Neelima, Aditya (and you!) need to think before taking the plunge into engineering.

Some of the skills you need if you are opting for engineering, are:

- Proficiency in maths and physics (if your marks in these two subjects have significantly come down from 10th std to 2nd PUC, beware!)

- Consistency in your overall scoring pattern.  Though the minimum requirement for engineering is 45 per cent, very few candidates of that level who join engineering find it easy to pass in all subjects.

- A logical bent of mind, an ability to calculate and think sequentially.

- Basic communication skills, confidence, natural curiosity and the ability to come up with new ideas.

- Motivation and capacity to work systematically through 8 semesters of assignments, presentations, examinations and internships.  Those who start piling up “back papers” in the initial semesters inevitably fall behind and lose a year or two, along with their confidence.  Employers also keep away from those who’ve had to repeat subjects.

- A genuine desire to learn and use technology.

Which branch?

Now come the questions:  which engineering branch would you like to pursue, and which college would be most suitable. There are more than 25 options available and many of them, just because they are not well-known and popular, are available even if your merit rank is not very high (see Box for list of engineering branches).

Do not fall prey to the herd mentality by selecting only those streams that everyone else seems to be choosing.  Remember that scope will increase and decrease numerous times in the 40-50 years of your working life.

If you have a passion for a particular branch of engineering and have done your homework, go ahead and take it up, regardless of what well-meaning but ill-informed people tell you about its “scope”.  However, if you do not have a strong interest in any particular branch, then it would be advisable to take up one of the basic streams and keep your options open for diversifying into a career of your choice later on.  If you are a logical person, then Electronics, Telecom-munication, Instrumentation may be of use to you; if you have a love for computers, then you may opt for Computer Science or Information Science.  If you are people-oriented, Industrial Engineering and Management (IEM) may suit your aptitude.

Which college?

If you select a good college, you will get the company of ambitious and dedicated classmates; you will have good teachers and quality equipment; the environment will be conducive to learning; and your exposure to industry experts and guest faculty will be better. Do not select a college only because it has prestigious companies coming in for campus placement. First, you do not know how the campus recruitment will be four years from now.  Second, be aware of the fact that most engineers stay in their first job for an average of 1.3 years.  This means that within two years you will be competing in the open market for your next job. Third, if the college is giving you a good foundation, you should be able to compete in the job market and get your first job on your own steam, which will not only boost your confidence but also give a good start to your career.

Keep in mind that while many prestigious organ-isations go to the most reputed colleges to recruit new graduates, it could be in your interest to take up your first job in a smaller and less stable company because your learning there could be much better than in huge, established set-ups where you are likely to become a cog in the wheel and start stagnating very soon.  

This is the reason why even in the best of companies, students recruited through campus placement sometimes do not last more than a year or two.

Select your college based on the following:

- Find out whether the teachers are qualified and experienced.
- Survey the infrastructure.
- Pay attention to the quality and attitude of the students already studying there.
- Find out if that particular college has a good reputation in the branch you are opting for.
- Check out the rating that NAAC and AICTE have given the college (naacindia.org, aicte-india.org, aicte.ernet.in)
- Do not restrict yourself to your own city or town.  There are more than 150 colleges in Karnataka.  Depending on your merit ranking, you may be able to secure admission in a good college in the other end of the state. Going away from your parents and your hometown is in itself a good education. This is the reason why all IITs have traditionally made residing in hostels compulsory for  undergraduate students – a great deal of learning takes place beyond the college hours.

If you do not make it...

If you do not get the branch or college of your choice, immediately explore the COMED-K option if your parents can afford the higher fees, or if you can avail of an education loan.  
Do not get disheartened.  Wait for the Casual round.  You will be surprised by the number of seats that fall vacant because students move on to courses or colleges of their choice.

There are many good courses where admission is available for those who are not toppers, only because those courses have not caught the eye of the public even though many of them lead you to a lucrative and rewarding career.

Some students do not mind losing a year to prepare for the entrance exam next year, hoping to get into any of the IITs.  This is a very risky option, because the student is not only losing a year, he could also lose the discipline of full-time and regular study.  

If something goes wrong in the subsequent year, the student may also lose his confidence and self-esteem, as he has already lost one year while his friends have moved ahead academically.

Branches of engineering available hrough CET in Karnataka

- Aeronautical
- Architecture
- Automobile
- Biomedical
- Biotechnology
- Ceramics
- Chemical
- Civil
- Computer Science
- Electronic Info Tech
- Environmental
- Industrial Production
- Information Science
- Mechanical
- Medical Electronics
- Metallurgy
- Mining
- Polymer Technology
- Printing Technology
- Silk Technology
- Telecommunication
- Textile
- Transportation