How education can integrate practical job-oriented experiences
This article is authored by Piyush Nangru, co-founder and COO, Sunstone.
Imagine graduating at the top of your class, only to find that your hard-earned degree doesn't fully prepare you for the challenges of the modern job market. This is the reality many students face today. The traditional educational paradigm, heavily reliant on theoretical knowledge, often fails to adequately prepare students for the demands of the modern workplace. To address this disparity, it is imperative to reform educational systems to integrate practical, job-oriented experiences alongside theoretical learning.
Higher education institutions are increasingly recognising the need for practical, job-oriented experiences. Work-Integrated Learning (WIL) has emerged as a transformative approach, combining academic study with real-world work experiences such as internships, apprenticeships, and co-op programmes. These initiatives allow students to apply theoretical concepts in practical settings, develop job-specific skills, and gain insights into industry dynamics. The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) reports that 78% of technical institutes now have some form of collaboration with industries to provide internships, skill-building workshops, or research projects.
Despite these efforts, the employability rate of Indian graduates remains alarmingly low. The Economic Survey 2023-24 indicates that just 51.25% of graduates in India are considered employable, underscoring a notable skills gap. This stark statistic raises a critical question: Why, despite the shift towards practical education, does the employability rate remain so low?
The answer lies in the metrics we use to measure educational success. Simply completing an internship or participating in a live project does not guarantee employability. The current approach often focuses on quantity over quality, measuring success by the number of internships completed or projects undertaken, rather than the actual skills and knowledge gained.
What's needed is a more nuanced, personalised approach to measuring student progress and employability. Educational institutions should focus on tracking individual student growth throughout their academic journey. For instance, instead of merely noting whether a student completed an internship, institutions should measure how the student performed, tracking baseline, midline, and endline scores for each subject. This approach allows for a more accurate assessment of the internship's effectiveness and the student's skill development.
There are several key metrics which can provide valuable insights into student employability, like technical proficiency, resume quality, interview performance, and job offer efficiency. For tech students, the frequency and volume of commits on platforms like GitHub can indicate engagement and skill development. Further, regular commits demonstrate not only technical proficiency but also a commitment to continuous learning and improvement.
The number of relevant line items in a student's resume, reflecting skills, knowledge, and extracurricular activities, can significantly influence employability with proper stress on the extracurricular activities of the students. Educational institutions must ensure that students’ extracurricular offerings align with skills that are valued in the job market.
Another significant metric of students’ employability is Interview performance which is the number of interviews students secure before landing a position. By analysing trends in interview numbers over the years, educational institutions can assess the effectiveness of their curricula and support systems. If a student averages fewer interviews before receiving an offer, it suggests that they are becoming increasingly employable and can navigate the interview process with greater ease.
In addition to this, institutions should aim to reduce the number of interviews needed before a job offer over time, signalling that students are gaining relevant skills and experiences that resonate with employers. This could be facilitated through enhanced career services, mentorship programmes, and industry partnerships, which provide students with insights into employer expectations.
To truly enhance employability, education today needs to embrace the right metrics and adopt a microscopic focus on each student's performance. This personalised approach allows for tailored education that addresses what each student needs to become employable. With the onset of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, characterised by rapid technological advancements and shifting industry requirements, the traditional model of education is increasingly out of sync with real-world demands.
By implementing precise measurements and using data to continually refine their programmes, educational institutions can significantly improve the employability of their graduates. While the shift towards practical, job-oriented education is a step in the right direction, it's not enough on its own. By focusing on the right metrics and personalising education based on individual student needs and performance, we can bridge the gap between education and employability. This approach will ultimately increase the effectiveness of our educational systems and better prepare students for the challenges of the modern workforce, ensuring that the skills they acquire remain relevant in a rapidly changing job market.
This article is authored by Piyush Nangru, co-founder and COO, Sunstone.