Liberal Engineering undergraduate education: The need of the hour in India

As per Business World report, roughly 15 lakh students graduate each year with an engineering degree, however, only 3% of these students end up working in highly paid jobs. Most students who graduate are not adequately equipped with the skills required to pursue competent jobs.

A cursory look at the syllabus of the top technological university in India with around 300 colleges and universities following their curriculum demonstrates that Indian education prioritises only core-engineering knowledge over all else.

Subjects such as ethics, constitution of India, environmental studies, and gender sensitivity though a part of the curriculum are discarded in the learning process even though the knowledge of these concepts is what makes us better individuals and citizens who make informed choices in life.

In contrast, Caltech, a top technological institute in the world (QS ranking #6 in the world) ensures that their engineering studies are not just limited to studying the engineering major, but students dedicate more than 50% of their credits to learning topics in humanities, social sciences, sciences, writing, and physical education.

Why do top global universities teach humanities and social sciences to Engineering students?

Schooling focuses on teaching students theories and principles in different subjects while the purpose of college is to teach students to ask pertinent questions whereas postgraduate and doctoral education focus on solving problems and questions in a systematic manner.

As per the Engineering and Applied Science Undergraduate degree at Caltech, the purpose of an engineering degree “strives to develop professional independence, creativity, leadership, and the capacity for continuing professional and intellectual growth.”

In order to achieve this, global universities of repute have recognised that there is a strong need for students to develop an in-depth understanding of the social, environmental, and natural dimensions in which their major field is situated along with the implications and influence of these factors of the field.

It is grossly insufficient for underprepared students to tackle real-world problems when they only have an understanding of the technological perspective of the field they want to work in. Having a holistic learning ensures that students become more intellectually independent and take on leadership roles through which they can engineer creative solutions for the problems being examined.

How are Indian institutes addressing this gap?

India has begun to realise that our education is creating programmers and technical experts but not inventors and leaders in the field. In order to address this gap in education, several intellectuals have come up with liberal education training institutes such as Ashoka University, FLAME University, and Vijaybhoomi University.

These education institutes ensure that the curriculum imparted is more comprehensive, develops well-rounded, and extremely capable students who are not only successful in their careers after graduating but can enhance industry growth through their multifaceted perspective.

INSOFE School of Data Science at Vijaybhoomi University is offering India’s first liberal Artificial Intelligence undergraduate degree as part of which students are required to take courses in Humanities/Performance Arts, Social Sciences, Data Science, Natural Science, Engineering, Legal Studies, and Management irrespective of the major they want to specialize in. You can visit them at https://www.insofe.edu.in/

Such an extensive and multidisciplinary framework ensures that students can creatively explore their area of interest, strengthen their understanding of their chosen field through the lens of AI and become innovative thought leaders who are continuously employable upon graduation.

Disclaimer: No Deccan Chronicle journalist was involved in creating this content. The group also takes no responsibility for this content.