A bridge to the future

Gone are the days when college students used to be confined to a classroom and learnt only from the text books. Today, they get a lot more practical exposure than their seniors. They interact with professionals from various industries on a regular basis and go for industry visits once in a while.

Aniket, a student of PESIT College, says that the students’ interaction with the industry is very regular and turns out to be extremely beneficial during placements. “Our college arranges a lot of talks and meets with the professionals, so that we know more about the industry of which we will soon be a part. Apart from that, we are encouraged to intern with the companies and by the time we graduate, we have a basic understanding of how that particular industry functions,” he informs.

Most students prefer interning with more than one firm as it helps them while they are seeking employment. “Internship is an excellent way to learn more about that particular industry. We learn about the various facets of the industry while interning with an organisation. Apart from that, we also learn how to cope with mounting pressure. Our professors encourage us to intern with organisations instead of whiling away our time and it is the best exposure that I could have got,” says Rupam, a communication student.

Students feel that this exposure prepares them for their break in the corporate world and they are able to get a glimpse of the industry while they are in college. “Definitely, the exposure has increased manifold. As there is a great difference between the corporate world and college, it helps to bridge the gap to a certain extent. Students generally start preparing for placements soon after they intern. The kind of exposure we get now helps us in learning the corporate culture and various other things which are not available in the text books,” says Sunil, an engineering student.

Some students are clear about the fact that academics today is not just limited to classrooms, practical sessions are equally important. “It is in our curriculum and the big corporate firms often visit our colleges to talk about the work, conduct mock interviews etc. Moreover, they also take us to their offices to show us their day-to-day functioning. A company would always want to recruit a candidate who has a basic understanding of the industry,” says Srikant, a business management student.

Students are not only interacting with the industry professionals by interning and visiting their office, they are also participating in various industry-oriented competitions and programmes which further enhances their skills and adds to their knowledge. This also helps them innovate and experiment, which is the need of the hour.