For nearly two years student community was bracing for a situation where there won't be any campus placements. In fact we did not have any placement activity at all in the last two years. As a PLAN B, many of them have been working towards either M.Tech or MS. The recent recovery in the market and unexpected success at recent campus has put many of them into dilemma: should I pick up the offered job/or continue working towards PG. This I guess is a perennial challenge and most of you might have faced it and also come out with your own decisions. May be you consider answering the following questions which might help your juniors make an informed decisions.
- Given the current employment scenario, is it better to enter job offered in campus placement or GO for PG?
- Does having PG/NO PG has impact on one's career development in short or long term?
- When is the best time to pursue PG? immediately after Engineering or sometime later?
- Which one is better option M.Tech/M.S
I am not sure if PG is necessary... A PG in India does not guarantee you a better profile @ work than wat one could get as an engineer... The better option would be to join work and take an informed call on whether to join a PG course or not... it would also give you additional time to prepare for PG entrance exams to get into a better college...
ReplyDeleteAdditionally it could also give you an insight into the life of an engineer... There are case where people may find a software job monotonous ... In such cases they are better off doing an MBA then a Mtech or MS... In any case the better option would be to take up a job now and then decide in a years time on further course of action... I am not informed enuf to comment on the difference between MS & Mtech and which is better of the 2 ..
Prof, thanks for bringing this up..Yes, tough times for undergrads and grads. I do agree with what Shashir says. It is better to accept the offered job through campus placements or through other job search methods. The skills that you acquire on the job cannot be taught or practised in a PG or MBA program. These skills are distinct and a certain level of proficiency is required to pursue higher studies. Also, merely doing a PG post engineering does not significantly enhance your market value. Therefore, work experience matters. To add on, the job market has recovered and there should be opportunites knocking around, but they are pretty hard to surface. Students should network with alumni or industry people, visit job fairs etc..The focus should be on reaching out to the employers and developing contacts.
ReplyDeleteSorry, I have no idea about M.Tech v MS.
Siddharth...
Though most of the Universities do consider students having a good work profile behind him/her, personally i think it dose not mater. one or two years into the industry and then realizing its not for you , is just not worth the time. The only reason one should consider working before thinking of higher studies is when his or her stream demands/requires work-ex.Again, having said this most of the students planning to do an MS will not agree with me but when it comes to an MBA work experience does count.
ReplyDeleteSorry i disagree with Shashir,
ReplyDeletePG does guarantee you a better job profile. Some or the other day we should have a PG.
Have a good offer letter in hand, and prepare for PG, if you dont get a good college or university go with the offer letter. Having a PG in good university is what matters (IITs, NIITs etc).
And regarding M.Tech/M.S, it depends on individual interest.
I will try to answer this point by point
ReplyDeleteGiven the current employment scenario, is it better to enter job offered in campus placement or GO for PG?
- Pursue a PG degree if you are really interested in research in some area and enjoy being an academic. If you dont like acadecmics then its better to stick to a job. Well if you dont have a job opportunity an extra degree wont hurt. That being said a higher degree is a big investment time wise and money wise (atleast for MS) so its important that it interests you.
Does having PG/NO PG has impact on one's career development in short or long term?
- This depends, if you want to end up in Google or say Microsoft your chances improve if you graduate from a really good school. so people try to get into good programs for their PG and then attempt getting into these places if their engg school is not good enough.
Also if you are aiming at research oriented jobs it is highly necessary that you have a PG in the related area or maybe even a Phd. Otherwise its OK to stop at BE and as you get more experience you will considered based on how you have performed and what opportunities you have capitalized on.
When is the best time to pursue PG? immediately after Engineering or sometime later?
- I assume that one will pursue a PG after he gets a job only if he finds his area of interest and wants to specialize in it.
After BE you will join a PG program if you dont get a job or if you have found what you want to specialize in.
Which one is better option M.Tech/M.S
- I dont know much about M.Tech programs so cant help you here
If you want to get into a PG program go to the schools site and see what kind of research they are doing and figure out if it interests you
Ultimately this is your decision to make, there will be hundereds of people (like me :) ) with thousands of opinions, do your research thoroughly and decide wisely.
I feel, What matters is individual's interest. If he/she really wants a MS/Mtech Degree or job. If you really like the job profile go for it..if you don't then better look for another job or join the PG course. I don't think M.tech or MS degree will fetch you a better job, but exception is when you get a seat in IIM/IIT kind of college's.
ReplyDelete