Just 6% of engineering students are employable

chennai: a recent study reveals just six per cent of engineering students were found employable. a study conducted by purpleleap, an entry-level talent management firm, tested the students in three areas – communication, problem solving and technical skills. it was found that 56 per cent failed in all three areas. six per cent were found employable; rest failed in one or more of the three areas. the study included 1,000 students from 12 colleges in tamil nadu. these findings give a similar picture as the nasscom-mckinsey report published in 2005. the report  said, ' presently just 25 per cent of technical graduates and 10-15 per cent of general college graduates are suitable for employment in the offshore it and bpo industries respectively.' in the present scenario, when companies are focusing on cost cutting and ensuring quality, lack of adequate skills aggravates the situation further for students. the students need to upgrade their skills and retrain themselves, rather than get disappointed, said sandhya chintala, director of the education initiative of nasscom. the good news was that colleges have turned towards quality, rather than numbers given the current situation, she added. if candidates did not possess  skills like communication, problem solving it would be difficult for them to adapt themselves with the industry’s changes. in the short term, add-on programmes and self-financing programmes conducted with the industry’s involvement would help improve employability of students, she said. 'there are means to address this within the existing system,' she said, adding that instead of blaming the educational system and waiting for a complete change, such short-term measures could be adopted. in the long-term, the mode of student assessment had to be changed, said ms. chintala.