EMC and JA focus on employability for Bangalore's engineering students
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EMC and JA focus on employability for Bangalore's engineering students
Bangalore: EMC India's Center of Excellence along with Junior Achievement (JA) India, a not-for-profit organization, has expanded its presence to nine engineering colleges in Bangalore and covered nearly 1300 students as part of the 'Bridge IT India Program'. The program seeks to increase the employability of Indian engineering students by providing them with an operational understanding of what to expect at an IT firm, and how to contribute on the first day of the job. Dayanand Sagar, East Point and MS Ramaiah Institute of Technology (MSRIT) are few of the colleges that have been covered over the last few months. The program involves volunteers from EMC India Center of Excellence engaging with engineering students aspiring for a career in the Indian IT industry. "The programme seeks to bridge the skills gap between engineering or technical graduates and the needs of IT employers in India," said Venkat Matoory, CEO JA India. "The response to the programme is picking up and we are planning to gradually expand it to more colleges." According to Yogesh BS, a volunteer and engineer at EMC India Center of Excellence who attended one of the sessions at MSRIT, students fail to understand what directions they need to take when finishing their course or what the industry expects from them. "The idea is to enlighten them and broaden their views on the industry, so that it will benefit them in the long term," said Yogesh. The 6th semester students at MSRIT came out of with positive reviews for the programme, happy to have attended it, as they feel that it is crucial to make the right career decisions at this point. Says Meghna N, a 6th semester student of Information Science at the institute, "What I found most beneficial at this session was that they made us realize the importance to connect our field of interest with our chosen elective." Rajani BV, another student couldn't agree more. "The programme actually broadened our perspective on the industry. We were under the impression that an IT job involves nothing more than writing codes and programming. Now I know how the industry works and what to expect when I join a company," says Rajani. The timing for the programme too has been good, as most of these students are choosing their electives that will decide the career path in the days ahead. According to George Philip, Assistant Professor of Information Science at MSRIT the students need the right guidance before choosing their electives. "Giving information through such interactive sessions is important," he said.