CHENNAI: Following the trend over the years, the computer science stream continued to be the top pick among students at the counselling for Tamil Nadu Engineering Admission (TNEA) that began on Saturday. The trend, however, is worrying academicians as many feel that due to the huge demand for computer science seats, colleges will struggle to fill in seats in core engineering courses.
They have advised students to choose their stream wisely as after the recent revamping of the curriculum by Anna University, the affiliating university for engineering colleges in the State, students from any stream will be taught basics about emerging technologies to help them bag an IT job.
As per the new syllabi, any student from any department can pursue a minor degree along with their main course by taking a set of 18 credits in a particular subject. Each department will have a set of verticals which will include elective courses.
For instance, a student of mechanical engineering can opt for courses such as computation engineering; logistics and supply chain management; additive manufacturing; and AR and VR in manufacturing.
"We have introduced four new-age emerging courses like artificial intelligence and machine learning, which would be compulsory for all streams," said R Velraj, Vice-Chancellor of Anna University.
'Widen your area of expertise'
A senior faculty member of the university said it was important for the students to understand that IT companies were in demand as they were doing consultancy work for companies involved in core engineering, which don't have expertise in artificial intelligence or machine learning. If students of core engineering subjects like mechanical, electrical and civil gain additional knowledge on IT, they will be very much in demand in the job market, the faculty added.
"IT companies are hiring from different streams, even chemical engineering graduates. They are only looking for skill sets. If students from any stream can acquire additional IT skills, they can easily bag an IT job. Hence, instead of madly running after a computer science seat, they should be looking for a good college," said K Senthil, principal of a private engineering college in Coimbatore.
To enhance their employability, the university has also proposed to teach foreign languages such as German and Japanese, and English as a compulsory language to students of all streams.