Top career options for an Engineering Graduate in India

Lengthy semesters, countless hours of classes, a plethora of stressful exams, hectic schedules, and wakeful nights! Does this sound familiar? Millions of college graduates produced in the country every year will be able to relate to this sentiment.

It is the great Indian dream of having an engineer at home. But the question of the hour is, what to do after graduation? Your engineering dream is done and dusted, but your life goals are not accomplished yet. Selecting your career is a life-changing decision and needs to be taken with thorough research and understanding. 

Don't stress out, my friend! This article is going to acquaint you with the top career options that you can opt for after engineering. Well, let's begin now! 

1. Plan Higher Studies with Specialization

Pursuing higher studies is perfect to have an edge over your adversaries. Numerous options are available for pursuing a master's. Let's dig a little deeper and list some of the choices.

1. Masters from India: A B.Tech graduate can appear for the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering, which provides a doorway to prestigious colleges such as IITs, NITs for M.Tech/ ME courses. A few private colleges like BITS, VIT, SRM, have their own entrance exams. 
2. Masters from Abroad: Several students aspire for masters, known as MS, from foreign universities, for which they can appear for TOEFL/ IELTS & GRE to get scholarships. 

2. Business & Management

Have you increasingly felt that engineering is not your true calling? Well, it is time to look for other career alternatives, and management seems to be the prime choice for many. Going for a Master of Business Administration (MBA) unlocks the doors to a world of possibilities, along with supplementing your technical know-how with managerial skills.

Specializations are aplenty like Human Resources, Marketing, Sales, and International Relations. A plethora of leading institutes offer this degree, namely, IIMs, Xavier's, S.P.Jain, Symbiosis, ISB, NMIMS, TISS, etc., and have their specific entrance exams granting admission.

3. Get a Job at a PSU

Public Sector Undertaking (PSU) consists of companies owned by the state or central government. Nobody in India says 'no' to government jobs. These lucrative jobs come with a good salary, along with a respectable position in society, and are obtained with a valid GATE score. BHEL, SAIL, IOCL, LIC, and others offer substantial compensation and job security.

4. Get a Job via Campus Placement

An extremely popular choice for engineering students, getting a job in a private organization, specifically via campus placements, provides the possibility to be employed even before having a degree in hand. The well-paying jobs are particularly fruitful for students vying to get professional experience.

A few tips for getting the desired job include maintaining a good grade in the specific subject, having an up-to-date resume, participating in extracurricular activities, and holistically developing your personality to enter the real world.

5. Be your Own Boss

In this world of inventions and start-ups, entrepreneurship is a go-to career for people of all age groups. Gone are the days when engineering students used to shy away from taking charge. Nowadays, many engineering graduates are inspired to think out of the box and set up their own businesses.

Entrepreneurship is a challenging path but comes with tremendous satisfaction and fulfillment. It provides the freedom to express one's creativity with no inhibitions, and increasing flexibility. If you have a unique business idea that can suffice in the present and the future, as well as an able team, all you need is funding and the appropriate techniques to turn your aspirations into reality.

6. Crack the Civil Services

Most of us envisage landing a fancy job with the government for job security as well as maintaining the status quo. Hence, a large number of engineering graduates are joining the civil services bandwagon in recent years. Though it is one of the toughest examinations to crack in the country, if you have the will power to serve the nation, and make a dent in the system, civil services are the way to go. Be rest assured your parents would definitely be the happiest with this choice!

7. Become an Expert

For those of you who are sure about engineering as your career, but want to stand out from the crowd, certification or diploma courses are the way ahead. Today, several organizations are looking for engineers who are experts in a particular field and have holistic knowledge about the latest technology.

With the advent of online learning, you can take advantage of the resources at hand and become an expert in a short time. The range of specializations is limitless, from data science, robotics, ethical hacking, artificial intelligence, blockchain to machine designing, digital marketing.

8. Become a Teacher

As reflected in the aforementioned options, getting a well-paid job is not the only choice for engineering students. If your love for academics is boundless, you can join an engineering college as a professor. With a passion for teaching, the profession provides ample opportunity for growth on the professional front.

Another possibility is to provide coaching classes to aspiring engineers, helping you brush up your knowledge while grooming the future generations of the country.

9. Serve the Nation

Have you always been patriotic and dreamt of serving the nation? Take this chance to join the defence forces: Indian Army, Navy, Air Force, or any other wing. Several technically sound professionals are recruited every year to these armed forces, enabling you to be respectably employed while supporting the troops on the field.

Each wing has a separate entrance procedure, where you can join the Army through Technical Graduate Course (TGC) & SSC Tech entry schemes, the Air Force via the Air Force Common Admission Test (AFCAT) entry scheme, and the Indian Navy using the Special Naval Architects Entry Scheme (SNAES).

10. Create Your Own Path

Did none of the above options sound compelling enough to you? If your answer is yes, do not worry. After four years of engineering, Farhan walked out of his campus interview to follow his passion. So can you! If your hobbies of music, dance, photography, writing, fascinate you more than engineering, it is time to get off the railroad, my friend, and choose your own path.

With reality shows, competitions, social media, and plenty of other platforms right in front of you, there needn't be much ado about how to make a career out of your passion. Though the journey would be treacherous, lined by obstacles, with the end goal in sight, you should keep moving forward and cross the finish line!

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The Bottom Line

As is clear from the above-curated list, engineering graduates have tons of career options. Whether you want to climb the corporate ladder, conduct research, or increase your knowledge, there are ample opportunities everywhere. 

Well, what are you waiting for? Check out which option excites you and start working! Now, the only question in your mind should be, "which career choice interests me?" and the answers are right in front of you. Get going and make your mark on the world!