The Indian Society and its Prejudice on Education
By: Jairam R Prabhu
Tags: Education, College, Myths, Career Advice, Indian Society

Ever since the results of 10th and 12th standard of the CBSE, state boards and ICSE came out, literally, every conversation in India has been leading to a discussion on marks and ranks. Yes, its that time of the year when relatives and neighbours start showing sudden, unwavering attention towards students who just got their grades.

My heartfelt condolences to over 20 students who gave up their lives in Telangana just because they failed in the class 12 examinations due to improper evaluation and tabulation. May such incidents never be repeated in future.

Students checking their results

When you look at the CBSE class 12 results this year, two students scored 499/500 and heaps of people got above 95%. This just implies the fact that CBSE’s correction is getting more liberal by the year. As for Class 10, there are thirteen toppers this year.

Its evident from the transition over the past few years that scoring above 95% is not the main target anymore; each and every student aims to be the topper, and nothing less.

These are some of the questions that pop up as one thinks of what to do after class 10/12. (Especially if the person is teetering on a non-science career path)

Why not science after 10th?

Didn’t you get admission for Engineering or CA?

Didn’t you score 90% or above in class 12?

What is in this course? Language? Anyone can learn it.

This course won’t give you a place or land you a job.

How do you think you are going to run your family with such a meagre salary?

Didn’t your teachers or parents give you any career advice?

Such a simple course is not enough; you need a professional degree.

What freelancer? You won’t be successful.

Indian society is quite competitive in all fields. Be it wearing trendier clothes than the neighbour, or outshining the aunt’s son or uncle’s daughter in the board exams, most Indian parents get quite violent in the process of making their children succeed.

Recollect the day you got your CGPA above 9 or percentage more than 90, the first question you were probably asked would’ve been “Now what, beta? Science right?”. It just shows that the general mentality of our Indian society is that if you get good marks then you should take science, the next layer of students should take commerce, and only average or below average students should choose humanities.

Suppose you take Science, the next question would be Are you going for tuitions or Entrance Coaching (That too for IIT JEE)? If the answer is no, then they will force you to join one or give an hour long lecture on how you are wasting your time. If your choice is Commerce, then people assume that your career will be B-Com followed by MBA and probably settle for a government job or work in a Bank. If you take Humanities then the lecture would be harsher and people would ask Why Humanities? Isn’t it better to take Commerce or Science? Are you going to be a collector? Don’t waste your Parents’ money. More than you and your parents, your relatives are more ‘worried’ about your future.

Caste System in Indian education

Just like how Indian Society faces the problem of the Caste system, our education system is also rooted in Caste. I am not talking about the varna system but the way our educational degrees seemingly pertain to different levels. The first one is the upper caste comprising of Engineering and Medical degrees, the most sought after and highly respected degrees. Then comes the middle caste comprising of Law and Commerce degrees. Sought after in large numbers but don’t earn the same respect as the high caste. The last one is the lower caste and the so-called Untouchables-Humanities, Arts and Literature. Even in engineering; Computer Science is on the abode and is known for a subject that draw job guarantee while core subjects are known to be difficult to learn and hard to get you a job.

The student and his choices

In India, Passion and Career are two different ends of the same pole. In foreign countries, people sacrifice their career for their passion while in India people sacrifice passion for their career. People in India believe that you can’t make passion as your career, if you do so then you will surely fail or end up losing your money. That is why in real life people would like to see sportspersons, artists and actors on television but won’t allow their sons or daughters to become one. The justification they give is that such celebrities were probably uneducated or poor in studies and so had no other choice.

In the US, if a boy is good at art, then he is sent to an art school, supported by parents. In India, the same person will mostly be forced to take science, write JEE, become an engineer. And the person will mostly end up working in an IT company day and night, wasting away his time and talent.

The logic is that if you are uneducated, then you are given a set of options and if you are educated then a totally different set of options. Both options are mutually exclusive. People who have left their jobs to find their passion are although increasing slowly, they are still very few.

The most prestigious profession in India is being the Prime Minister of India. There won’t be any parents who will be unhappy to see their son or daughter being Prime Minister. But what is the use if you don’t allow him/her to join electoral politics? Then you claim that politics is dirt, it's for the uneducated, for the corrupt. These are the same people who vote for such leaders in elections but won’t allow your educated son or daughter to change the system.

A typical engineering classroom

If you look at a classroom filled with Engineering students, you’ll find that the crowd is pretty multi-talented and diverse. You have geeks who are sure that their marks will help them get placed in the best company. Then you have the tech gang who don’t like to attend classes but spend time doing projects, programming, etc. They believe that their CV is more important than marks. Then you have the uninterested-hardworking gang. Then the set who are not interested in engineering but were forced by an external factor to be here. Finally, you have the uninterested-lazy gang whose faces and attitude scream the fact that they are not here to learn, but just to enjoy campus life or have just come here for the sake of joining a college or after being forced by parents. Amongst every set, you will find singers, writers, dancers, bloggers, sportsmen etc who believe that they are in the wrong domain.

So what happened here? You are good at studies, you join engineering; you are good at programming you join engineering; you are a good singer, you join engineering, and it's the same for every field.

Why is society absolutely glued to Engineering?

Ask anybody. The first answer you will get is that This degree will land you in a job. Wow, this is just a myth. The majority of B-Tech students do not have the employability skills to serve the society or take up a job. All they know is just theory based knowledge.

Some popular myths on courses other than B-Tech

You won’t get a job, you are not employable- Same is true for BTech as well, it doesn’t guarantee you a job. It is the college where you study in that gives the job package and not the degree. What you need in order to get a job is skill and not the degree.

You won’t have good exposure in Arts/Science colleges- There are good colleges in India like TISS, JNU, DU etc which give good campus life as well as needed exposure in academics.

No value for your degree- I don’t believe that one degree is inferior to others. Each one is unique. Scientists and Engineers can’t be compared, they have their own knowledge pertaining to their own fields.

A better degree, a better job, more happiness- The chances that you will land in a job that you don’t like is very high. That is why the majority of high-income people have an immense load of work and high levels of stress. Good pay doesn’t ensure happiness, it is just luxury. Engineers and Doctors are not the only ones who are happy.

If not engineering, then what?

A good question but think for yourself. Get out and see for your yourselves, how many are from B-tech backgrounds and how many are not? You have hundreds of opportunities to build your life and career. The amount a Youtuber earns is the same amount a senior bank official earns. But you can never compare their job stress or workloads. You go back to your old school and see, are your teachers' engineering or medical graduates? Never, each job has its own significance.

It’s not just engineering! there is a pretty lot more to do.

Job myths

Leave the concept of being an entrepreneur after leaving your job. Just imagine what will your parents say if you say that you would like to a freelancer?

A Freelancer!

In India, you can’t work alone, you can’t be a freelancer but rather you need to be in some company or a firm for having a profession. That’s why the most asked question still remains Where do you work? instead of What is your profession? Even WFH is still a big myth in India.

Then comes another set of people who believe that Computer Science or Software Engineering is not real engineering. For them, core branches like Electrical, Civil and Mechanical still continue to be their choice with a justification that These are Evergreen fields. As for Humanitarian engineering, Engineering Maths, Fire and Safety engineering etc, they are the least preferred ones.

This is because what’s happening is, at the end of the day, most of the students in core branches either go for higher studies or work in IT itself.

Another myth is regarding the Reservation in Indian Education. Reservation has always been blamed by the so-called Meritocratic supporters for the bad quality of Indian education system. But the fact is, even if there was no reservation, no one could guarantee that the education system will be better. So next time anyone doesn’t get admission to a good college, please don’t blame reservation.

Advice for youth who are in the education system

Stop comparing- We are very good at comparing Apples and Oranges. Don’t compare and equate different degrees. Each degree is different and unique. Studying MBBS and B-COM is totally different, in no way you can compare both. Don’t follow the caste system about which I mentioned earlier. Stop comparing your self with others. You are unique in your way. Only you can represent yourself. If you believe that BTech is the right option, then you are free to go ahead with it. Don’t join a course just to be with your best friend.

Education is not a certificate for a job- Most of you may disagree with me here. My advice to you is that never learn a subject for getting a job. Continue studying to gain knowledge and understand how this world works and a good job will automatically follow. If you need to get a particular job then you must have the necessary skills. A degree is not a job-generating machine. Even if you have not been able to get a job via campus placement try somewhere else by sharpening your skills.

Good job- Bad job- Don’t consider white collar jobs as the best in the world. All jobs are equally good. Just because one job gives you better pay doesn’t make it the best. Look for a job that you are interested in working rather than a high paying job that involves too much stress. Our aim in life is to have a better life and attain happiness, not to just keep earning. No man has ever been successful just because he is in a 9–5 job.

Don’t blame your parents for the mistakes- Just imagine that you were forced upon by your parents to do something which never interested you. But you start blaming your parents for the same. This should never happen. You have the utmost right to choose your own decisions. You can’t transfer it to your parents or blame them for taking the decision on your behalf. If you have any disagreement with your parents, talk to them and they will listen to you. Be more polite and try to convince them. Make them feel confident about you!

Quality learning, proper syllabus and good infrastructure- Something I wish the government would look into. IITs, AIIMS and JNU are not the only institutions in the country. The private lobby is looting us. We need good institutions for a better tomorrow so that the coming generation need not face the problems which we face today. There is still a lot of confusion in students of class 10 and 12 on what to do after the exams. There is should be proper guidance and a mechanism to know the student’s taste and skills.

Last but not least, I would like to congratulate all those who’ve passed their 10th or 12th board exams this year. Do choose your career path carefully. Don’t let someone else hijack your desires. Your career can be your passion or passion can be your career, you just have to believe in yourself. Don’t fall prey to myths and demotivation. Take a course only if you are truly interested in it. Some actions can never be undone.

Finally, to this generation I’d like to say; when you have kids, don’t make them your pawns. Let them build their own empire with their own decisions. Don’t impose your dreams on them. To those who have failed somewhere in their life, please do have faith and stay in the loop. Keep trying, and success will definitely knock at your door.