CHENNAI: Students and their parents should get rid of the herd mentality of choosing computer science engineering courses over other streams, said directors of five IITs at a panel discussion organised on the IIT Madras campus here on Friday.
Speaking at the discussion organised under the banner of PanIIT Alumni Leadership Series (PALS), a voluntary initiative by IIT alumni, on the topic ‘Engineering education for a new era’, V Kamakoti, director of IIT Madras, said toppers should be encouraged to opt for disciplines other than computer sciences, since the country needs bright minds in other disciplines too.
Stating that the country needs administrators who are tech savvy policy makers, he said engineering graduates should also take up civil service.
KN Satyanarayana, director, IIT Tirupati stressed the country needs more engineers in the core fields at present. “There is a big vacuum in the battery, semiconductor sectors which are the sunrise sectors. A chemical engineer, or a material scientist is the need of the hour,” said Satyanarayana.
Shreepad Karmalkar, director, IIT Bhubaneswar said many students opt for computer science over core engineering courses due to the parity in pay packages at entry levels. “This herd mentality needs to be get rid of,” he added.
BS Murty, director, IIT Hyderabad appealed to the youth to put the country first over their personal aspirations. Venkappayya R Desai, director, IIT Dharwad urged students to use their creativity in making society a better place to live in.
The panelists also shared their vision on how engineering education must evolve to meet the demands of the 21st century, stressing the need for interdisciplinary learning, integration of emerging technologies like AI and sustainability, academia-industry collaborations, and improving access and inclusivity for students from diverse socio-economic backgrounds, CN Chandrasekaran, chairperson of PALS, also spoke.