Divide and Spoil

Though students graduating from engineering colleges that enforce conservative rules and regulations perform well in academics and possess technical skills, Human Resources personnel say that it is not all that it takes. The strict environment prevalent in few engineering colleges has taken a beating on the social skills of students and some of them have a tough time breaking out of the shell even when they step into the corporate world for employment. 

Priyanka from Sriperumbudur, a student of one of the most sought-after ‘disciplined’ colleges in the city, attended a campus interview with Tech Mahindra in September 2016. The fourth-year Information Technology student came across the most unexpected question from the Human Resources team. ‘Will you be comfortable interacting with everyone in office, including men?’. “I was taken aback by the question and quickly responded in affirmative. I understand that the college does have a conservative image as guys and girls are not allowed to speak to each other. But I didn’t think it was seriously taken by recruiters who would put it as an interview question to me.” 

She added, “Our college is so stringent with rules that staff monitor us even during breaks and anywhere inside the campus. If we violate the rule, the staff informs the Head of the Department summons our parents. The management feels that if we focus only on studying, we will perform better. Girls and boys are not even made to sit and work on group assignments. Sometimes, this kind of moral policing is also extended beyond the boundaries of the campus.” 

Hari, another student in a similar college, who is in his final year said, “During the campus placements, I asked my teacher during class when Zoho would come for recruiting. To my surprise, she said that the firm was reluctant to hire students due to the strict environment in our campus. Such rules do no good and affect our career prospects. Also, a restricted environment will only prompt students to go against rules.” 

Often, the students draw into a shell and even feel lonely due to such rules and regulations. Vignesh, a final year Mechanical engineering student of Veltech engineering college says, “I have friends who study in such colleges and most of them are shy to interact with members of the opposite sex, unless they studied in a co-education school. Some of them are even hesitant to talk to sales girls in shops. When they start working, they even misunderstand people who are friendly and courteous and get other ideas in their head.” 

Speaking to DTNext , a lecturer from Panimalar Engineering college said, “Some companies have been hiring our students every year. However, some firms have stopped coming for campus interviews citing our students are not suitable, they have not mentioned any particular reason for it. I agree that students do face communication hiccups when they start to work. But that would just last for the initial days and later they develop skills to overcome it. Restricting boys and girls from interacting is something the management believes in and we follow such principles for the benefit of students. They do have time outside campus for socialising.” 

Santhosh, HR personnel with HP, said, “When we hire freshers from colleges we start with a 15-day training programme. This is not to talk about their work, but to talk about the corporate culture. We have come across candidates with extremely good technical skills but lack communication abilities. A corporate has a mixed crowd. People who are not sportive or social do not stick around for long.” 

Ajay Kolla, Founder & CEO, Wisdomjobs.com says, “We often come across instances where a candidate who is highly skilled in their core area is not able to effectively convey their expertise to the interviewer or employer. There is a lot of emphasis on a candidate’s social and interpersonal skills, even when they are being considered for technical or non-client-facing roles. At times, social and communication skills are the only differentiating factor that decides how a candidate’s career progresses. Colleges should find ways to ensure that students are able to build on their communication and soft skills by simulating real-world situations.” 

President of National HRD Network, Chennai chapter, Sujith Kumar says, “We must ask why parents put children in such colleges in the first place. HR teams have discussed issues with colleges. Such an environment is created probably because colleges see admission being filled up at a fast pace. We also need to question why parents put their wards in such colleges.”