A Career In Mechanical Engineering(PSA): Problems(s)
Tags: Careers, Advice, Mechanical Engineering, Career Change, Engineering

A career in Mechanical Engineering(PSA): Problem

{TLDR: Lot of headaches in mechanical. all are interlinked.}

So before I begin, I am breaking this blog into 2 parts. Firstly, I will elucidate on the problems faced by the mechanical engineering graduates of India. I will follow it up with possible solutions and alternatives to this conundrum.

Let’s dive right into this!

The central problem from which all the other issues stem is the lack of skills in this field that are relevant to the industry. Those words are highlighted for a very specific reason. The phrase which attracts 18-year-olds to this field,” Mechanical is the mother of all branches” can be very well cited here. To elucidate, the department is very broad and one cannot make do with surface-level skills in several niches. This brings us to our 2nd problem- which skill to excel in? If you ponder on this question for a sufficient amount of time, then you would automatically be lead to the following question-

Which skill is needed in the job market? Many might find fault in the interconnection between these 2 questions. But to put it succinctly: Out of all the fields within mechanical engineering, you would only come to find the design division to have bountiful openings(although the salary will nowhere match your expectations). In this case, if you decide to excel in materials/composites/Vehicle Dynamics/CFD/MBD/Mathematical modeling using Simulink you might end up with multiple papers in renowned journals but might not land a job. Another major issue is the Demand-supply issue in our field. The term is quite self-explanatory but just as a formality: The credible openings in the field of mechanical which involves a pay of around 6+LPA will mostly be fulfilled by the top 6 IIT’s and top 5 NIT’s. There isn’t a need to look for skilled candidates outside this sphere.

I am taking the liberty to hypothesize right now. Suppose one does find a job in a mechanical MNC. She or he usually ends us leaving the job in order to pursue higher studies. The most cited reason for this being “inadequate room to groom their technical skills; nonexistent job satisfaction; The work delegated to them doesn’t actually require the implementation of any of their knowledge or skills”. I have witnessed that the IT folks have no issue in working in the same circumstances since the working conditions are good, it’s a high paying desk job and gives them a sense of security. All this lacks in our field so the letters in bold might be considered as the last straw on a camel’s back.

Many people are able to ride out the wave of “on-campus placements”. These are the ones that end up leaving in the first few years. Because even though they do not expect a staggering growth in their paychecks but they definitely expect a steep learning curve(I know I do). This although might be possible in startups but is doubtful in MNC’s since these freshers are most likely to be sent to the operational & logistics division rather than the R&D. From there on any possible switch will warrant a business degree and hence an MBA (EXIT: Mechanical).

I learned a very crucial word from a dear friend of mine which also coincidentally is our next problem: Sustainability. I am referring here to the need for sustaining ourselves through the means of our career and ensuring a positive slope in our career growth. Your worries can or will never be limited to just landing your first job right out of college because the human mind if driven enough will always land up on the “What Next?”. Those who end up in MNC’s can afford to procrastinate on this question for a year or two while others obviously don’t have that luxury. Honestly, it was never my intention to address this issue as whenever I brought this up I have usually received the response of “have faith/wing it/it will work out” & other good morning quotes your grandparent forward to you. I don’t think most middle-class families can just think about just tomorrow & not the day after. Then there wouldn’t be any market for fixed deposits, long haul in trading, the pressure to take science stream, 80/50/20 rules, etc. We have been pre-programmed to think about rainy days. Although this code is losing its fad since I can see a lot of people making financial choices that are nowhere logically justified(obviously talking about EMI’s here, Duh!).

But few good souls were happy to open up to me. I inferred that you might have to face a situation where a person with 8 years of experience will have to go and work at a startup after his losing his job at an MNC. Anyone whose mind has just triggered a “so what?” to this statement has not been around the block, called the REAL WORLD. [ Ok just to summarise: your returns in the organization actually with passing time so you lose out on that and adding to it after a certain age you can only delegate and can’t get your hands dirty. Mind you, I mean you will have the intention or the will power but your age might not co-operate.]

Another issue is the signaling value of educational institutions. You pursuing a Mtech as an atonement for not landing a great college in your undergrad has also been found to be a popular trend. But as mentioned previously there’ are very few places which could steer you in the right direction. Hirings based on the location and proximity offers a deviation in this list of good places. ( For example, pursuing a Mtech in thermal & fluid sciences in NIT Karnataka can bring you in the eyes of the right people[Siemens, Bosch].)

A great problem that has sprung up(I honestly acknowledged this problem as a “problem” only after reading a post on Linkedin yesterday) now is the avenues to be pursued in order to upskill. Whether to spend/not to spend, if yes then how much is justified. what will be the ROI etc? I will straight away address this in the next part.

There’s a set of problems faced by students planning to pursue masters too. Those who end up going as freshers without any experience face a tough competition with people who have their entire learning model as a hands-on one. Adding to this is the issue of availability of jobs in foreign in mechanical engineering but only in select niches and applications.

You can suggest additions in the comments. Thanks for making it till here. :)