E-Paper
NIT graduate shares take on skills vs degree in corporate journey
NIT graduate highlighted gap between engineering degree and job, stressed importance of skills.
A woman with a degree in Chemical Engineering from a National Institute of Technology has stirred a conversation online after opening up about the gap between academic learning and corporate work.
(Also read: Harvard graduate explains why she prefers living in India despite ‘more money in US’)
Taking to Instagram, the woman identified as Manvi shared a candid video reflecting on her professional journey. She said, "I have a degree from NIT in Chemical Engineering and my job has just used maybe 3% of it. Now, I'm not here to tell you that degrees are useless, but I'm here to tell you what nobody told me before spending four years figuring it out myself."
She further added, "In fact, most of my batchmates are not doing what they studied. Okay, not even close. In college, I studied thermodynamics, mechanics, kinetics, you know, all those cool science stuff. But at work, I am just in excel meetings and figuring out things on internet by myself."
Highlighting what truly made a difference in her career, Manvi said, "Only thing that got me ahead was communication and upskilling. But yeah, I'm not bitter about it because my degree has only helped me to get to the interview, but after that, it's just me."
(Also read: IIT graduate in US says mother calls manager to ‘check in’ and track his ‘life KPIs’: ‘Outsourcing Indian parenting’)
Summing up her experience, she noted, “So here is my honest take after living it: degree is just an entry ticket, it's not the whole ride. Okay, if you are in college right now, then learn something on side. It can be anything: a skill, a tool, a hobby, anything which can make you money alongside. Not instead of your degree, just alongside it.”
Watch the clip here:
The clip was shared with the caption, "More than half my engineering batch isn’t doing what they studied. And honestly? I get it."
Post resonates with many online
The video has garnered several reactions. One user wrote, "This is so true, most of us are doing jobs completely unrelated to our degrees." Another said, "Engineering teaches discipline, not necessarily the job itself." A third commented, “Same here, Excel and meetings are my daily life now.”
Speaking with HT.com, the woman said she has great respect for her educational background and institutions, and emphasised that the video reflected her personal experience, not any intent to misrepresent or disrespect any organisation.
(Disclaimer: This report is based on user-generated content from social media. HT.com has not independently verified the claims and does not endorse them.)
