Context

• As the admission season unfolds across India, colleges and universities display banners advertising knowledge, transformation, and research excellence.
• The growing enrolment in undergraduate, postgraduate, and doctoral programmes signals a vibrant academic ecosystem.
• However, this apparent progress masks a troubling reality: the number of degrees being awarded is outpacing the creation of meaningful job opportunities.
• This mismatch between education and employment poses a critical challenge to India’s socio-economic development.

The Paradox of Higher Education and Rising Unemployment

• Data from the Ministry of Statistics presents a paradox, unemployment rates in India rise with higher levels of education.
• This suggests a fundamental disconnect between academic attainment and employability.
• The situation is especially acute in non-elite institutions located in Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities.
• These colleges, which cater to the majority of India’s student population, often lack adequate resources, industry linkages, and updated curricula.
• While elite institutions occasionally attract attention for placement woes, the steady decline in employability among graduates of everyday colleges frequently goes unnoticed.
• Instruction in many of these institutions remains overwhelmingly theoretical.
• A student of English literature might explore Shakespearean tragedies but graduate without the ability to draft a professional email.
• Likewise, economics graduates may master complex theories while being unfamiliar with everyday tools like Microsoft Excel.
• This academic-practical divide results in a large population of young, educated Indians who struggle to convert their qualifications into career opportunities.

The Cultural and Structural Roots of the Problem

• This crisis is rooted not only in institutional shortcomings but also in India’s entrenched academic culture, which often glorifies abstract scholarship over practical skills.
• Within academic circles, including prestigious universities, intellectual pursuits are prized, while immediate employability is sometimes dismissed as a lesser goal.
• As a result, many students pursue postgraduate degrees and PhDs as an escape from the job market, eventually entering academia themselves and perpetuating a cycle that prioritises credentials over capability.
• Recognising this systemic issue, various government initiatives such as Skill India, Start-Up India, and the National Education Policy have sought to promote vocational training, skill development, and entrepreneurship.
• While these policies mark important steps forward, their implementation has been uneven.
• Many academic programmes continue to rely on rote learning, and while trendy courses in artificial intelligence or entrepreneurship may be introduced, they often lack substance and integration into the broader curriculum.

Vocational Stigma, the Societal Lens and A Path Toward Reform

• Vocational Stigma and the Societal Lens
  • The Indian education system also faces a societal dilemma: while degrees are revered as symbols of upward mobility, they increasingly fail to deliver on that promise.
  • In contrast, countries like China and Japan have strategically positioned vocational and technical education at the heart of their economic planning.
  • In India, however, such training is often viewed as a fallback for those who are academically unsuccessful.
  • This stigma undermines the viability and attractiveness of skill-based education, limiting its transformative potential.
  • This is not an argument against liberal or abstract education. Such education plays a crucial role in nurturing critical thinking and creativity.
  • However, the system must also deliver tangible economic outcomes.
  • For students, particularly from under-resourced institutions and smaller towns, degrees must serve as gateways to agency, opportunity, and dignity.
• A Path Toward Reform
  • A meaningful solution requires integrating practical skill modules into the core structure of general degree programmes.
  • Modules on communication, digital literacy, data analysis, budgeting, and other applied skills should not be optional add-ons but essential components.
  • Doctoral education, too, must evolve to prepare graduates for a wide array of careers, in policy-making, industry, consulting, development, and beyond, rather than confining them to academia alone.
  • Furthermore, the widespread aspiration among graduates for government jobs reflects a narrow perception of viable employment.
  • While public sector roles remain significant, expanding opportunities in the private sector and entrepreneurial domains is essential.
  • Strengthening employability will reduce the overdependence on competitive exams and diversify career options for the youth.

Conclusion

• India’s demographic dividend will only be realised if its education system evolves to bridge the gap between learning and livelihood.
• This requires a fundamental shift in how education is conceived, not merely as a means of personal enrichment, but as a social contract that ensures economic empowerment and professional agency.
• By aligning academic curricula with practical needs and breaking down the divide between degrees and skills, India can build a future where education truly equips its youth for the opportunities of tomorrow.