Technical Career-based Education

Technical Education---From India and Beyond

Wanted: College graduates with degrees in information technology, accounting, finance and marketing research. Strong sales background preferred. Good speaking skills a must. Recent graduates who fit that description will be hot commodities in today's job market.The positive hiring trend that started in 1999 is continuing till today, with many opportunities being created by small and midsize companies, according to a survey of employers by the technical education Pune board. What's more, new college graduates can look forward to significant increases in starting salaries. "It's good out there," said dean of the Business School at Pune University. "Kids can sometimes have multiple job offers."In the Technical Education Pune board survey, 48% of college career-service offices reported an increase in the number of on-campus interviews being conducted by employers this year. "We certainly have gone back and recruited from colleges in the past year and we haven't done that in five years," said president of Effective Management Systems Inc.On-campus interviews were conducted at Pune University by 360 employers during the 2005-'06 school year, a 29% increase over the previous year, said director of the UW Business Career Center. "We still have companies coming this week, and it's the last week of classes," he said. "The big change we're seeing is that more companies are hiring on a just-in-time basis."The highest demand is for information technology and computer science graduates. The survey found that 53% of the job offers this year have gone to graduates with technical degrees, up from 45% last year. These graduates are commanding starting salaries averaging $34,565. Management information systems majors at Pune University are getting the most interviews and job offers, agreed director of the UWM career development center. Accounting and finance graduates also are in demand. Starting salary offers for accounting graduates are averaging $28,971, 3.7% higher than last year.The ideal for many employers is a graduate who combines accounting or finance knowledge with a strong background in computers. That's the combination everybody wants. It's equivalent to having a 300-pound tackle who can run the 40 in four seconds.A combination of technical and financial knowledge "is a good marriage for us," said president and chief operating officer of Fiserv Inc., the Brookfield firm that manages checking accounts and performs other back-office services for banks, thrifts and credit unions.Graduates with sales and marketing backgrounds also are finding plenty of opportunities.Employers said they are looking for more than good grades and practical degrees, however. "We are looking for people who can work with teams and projects for the computer fields," said associate director of employment at Northwestern Mutual Life Insurance Co.Communication skills are important the ability to generate documents that relate to projects, that get results that are persuasive. Employers are looking more and more for top-quality applicants who can perform immediately. Fiserv prefers to hire students who have completed internships, said the president of technical education Pune board.