The document discusses strategies to bridge the gap between engineering education and industry demands in India by assessing current educational initiatives and suggesting a comprehensive model that incorporates science, technology, management, and fire-fighting. It highlights the need for curriculum modernization, collaboration between industries and educational institutions, and the development of essential skills for engineers across various career levels. Additionally, it outlines the challenges faced by engineering graduates in the global job market and presents recommendations for enhancing engineering education to meet evolving industry needs.

1. Synthesis on Narrowing the Gap between
Engineering Education and Industry through
Science, Technology, Economics,
Management and Fire-Fighting
Thanikachalam Vedhathiri
vthani2025@gmail.com

2. Science, Technology, Economics,
Management & Fire Fighting
Economics? Management?

3. Objectives of Research
• Assess the needs of various engineers at different career levels
• Review the initiatives taken by the MHRD to update the curricula,
resources, faculty and engineering graduate’s competencies
• Assess the technology growth of industries and their employee needs
• Review the dynamic actions taken by the institutes in narrowing the
gap between the industry and engineering programs
• Suggest a Mega Model to narrow the gaps between the Industry
and Engineering Programs through Science-Technology-Economics-
Management-Fire Fighting

4. Status of Indian Engineering Education
• India globalized its economy in 1991
• MNCs have established their design and manufacturing centers in
India by fully utilizing the human capital developed by the Indian
Technical Universities and manufactured the state of the art
technology and successfully exporting them to world markets.
• Till today no company closed its design or production center in India
for want of high performing, motivated and risk taking engineers.
• Every year around 100000 students pursue postgraduate programs in
Australia, Canada, France, Germany, UK, USA and other countries and
establish their leadership.

5. Emergence of Industry-4 and the Initiatives of
Engineering Universities
• The global industries have started upgrading their design and
manufacturing by incorporating Industry-4 processes.
• They train their employees through “learning organization” model and
“just-in-time” model.
• The accreditation of engineering programs has been accelerated to meet
the improved criteria as per National Board of Accreditation.
• Institutes vigorously implement continuous improvements in teaching
learning process to meet the challenges.
• Faculty members are also trained in many advanced areas of product
design, prototype development, testing, manufacturing, and maintenance.

6. Efforts of MHRD
• Quality improvement programs for improving the quality of engineering
faculty
• Modernization and Removal of Obsolesce (MODROB) in 25 year old
colleges
• Improving quality through World Bank assisted project Technical Quality
Improvement (TECQIP) Project
• Centers of Excellence and Innovation are being established in many
technical universities
• Industry-Institute- Government- Society-Partnership is being established
for effective collaboration between the industry and engineering institutes

7. Additional Institutes of National Importance
• Government of India further established:
• Indian Institutes of Technology-23
• National Institutes of Technology-31
• National Institute of Teacher Training and Research-4
• Indian Institutes of Information Technology and Management-10
• Indian Institute of Technology, Design and Manufacturing-4
• Indian Institute of Science Education and Research-7
• School of Planning and Architecture-3
• Institutes of Eminence

8. Desired Skills and Competencies of Entry Level
and Middle Level Engineers
• Entry level jobs: Investigation, analysis, design, prototype
development, testing, improvement, production/ manufacturing,
maintenance
• High level skills, interpersonal relationships, and innovation
• Problem solving skills, high quality analytical skills, critical thinking,
and focusing on excellence.
• Shop floor Managerial competencies
• Middle level jobs: Continuous process improvement of products,
productivity, quality, and market leadership

9. Focus of Purdue University on the Engineering
Graduates
• Create and synthesize knowledge
• Master written and oral communication skills
• Think critically and reflectively
• Demonstrate engineering skills
• Engage in the professional development
• Participate actively in professional field
• Assessment of engineering science, problem solving and design
appropriately

10. Expected Skills from the Engineering
Graduates ( Zaharim, et al. 2010)
• Ability to function as an individual and in a group with the capacity to
be a leader or manager as well as effective member
• Ability to communicate effectively, not only with engineers but also
with the community at large
• Ability to undertake problem identification, formulation and solution.
• Ability to acquire and apply knowledge of engineering fundamentals
• Having competency in engineering application and orientation
• Ability to utilize a systems approach to design and evaluate
operational performance

11. Expected Skills from the Engineering
Graduates (Zaharim et al. 2010)…
• Recognizing the need to undertake lifelong learning, and
possessing/acquiring the capacity to do so
• Ability to design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and
interpret data
• Having competency in theoretical and research engineering
• Having an in-depth technical competencies in a specific engineering
discipline
• Having social awareness, cultural, global and environmental responsibilities
and ethics of a professional engineer and the need for sustainable
development
• Having the knowledge of entrepreneurial skills

12. Desired Skills and Competencies of Senior
Level Engineers
• Overall responsibility in meeting market competition
• Market leadership
• Updating the products through in-house skills
• Continuous modernization to meet the impact of new technologies
• Global focus on the demands
• Focus on the global competition
• Innovation

13. Desired Skills and Competencies of CEOs
• Focus on new challenges
• Focus on new standards
• Focus on new products
• Focus on globalization
• Focus on expansion
• Focus on leadership
• Focus on innovation
• Focus on profit, cost reduction and quality

14. The Competencies Desired to get
Accreditation from ABET (2017)
• AN ABILITY TO:
- Apply knowledge of mathematics, science and engineering
- Design and conduct experiments, as well as to analyze and interpret data
- Design a system, components, or process to meet desired needs
- Function on multi-disciplinary teams
- Identify, formulate, and solve engineering problems
- Understand professional and ethical responsibility
- Communicate effectively
- Engage in lifelong learning

15. The Competencies Desired to get
Accreditation from ABET
• An ability to use the techniques, skills, and modern engineering tools
necessary for engineering practice

16. Initiatives taken by Industries and State
Engineering Departments
• Software Industry- Project specific training for new recruits
• Automobile Manufacturers- Offers needed training at all levels
• Highways Department: Offers training at all levels
• Indian Railways: Many training institutes specific to specialization
• Public Works Department: Many Staff Training Institutes to meet the
needs of all cadres.
• Irrigation Engineering: Multidisciplinary Irrigation Management
Training Institutes

17. Cement Industry
• Established four Regional Training Institutes (RTIs) under World Bank
DANIDA-CMA-HRD Program to train the trainers.
• RTIs started planning needed training programs for the employees of
the cement manufacturing companies

18. Training Programs by Professional Associations
• Indian Society for Training and Development: Offers Diploma in
Training, conducts monthly meetings, national seminars and
publishes journal
• Indian Society for Technical Education: Conducts summer and winter
schools, regional and national conferences, publishes a quarterly
journal
• Indian Geotechnical Society: Conducts regional and national
seminars, monthly meetings and publishes journal.
• Institution of Engineers (India): Conducts monthly meetings in various
centers, national seminars, and publishes journal.

19. SWOT Analysis
• Strength : Around 4000 Engineering Colleges
-IITs (23), IIITs(10),IISERs (7), NITs(31), NITTTRs (4), SPAs(3), State
Universities (367), Central Universities (49), Private Universities (282),
Deemed Universities (137), etc.
• Around 200000 faculty members
• Around 1000000 Graduates, Postgraduates, Doctorates in Engineering
and Technologies

20. Weaknesses
• A large number of faculty members have not undergone any
significant training in curriculum design, instructional design,
measurement and evaluation of student achievements,
interdisciplinary research, undertaking sponsored research projects,
establishing industry specific courses. Institutional development, etc.
• Most of the institutes have not established industry-institute-
government-society partnership units.
• There is no succession planning and ever increasing faculty vacancies
• Less contribution to knowledge capital
• Obsolete equipment

21. Opportunities
• Globalized and the fifth largest Indian economy needs more
competent engineers.
• More MNCs prefer India for design and manufacturing of products
and global services.
• Competent Indian engineers are preferred by Transnational
Companies which are located in many advanced countries.
• Growing government initiatives like make in India, Digital India, etc.
• Global demand for innovative products and services.

22. Threats
• Competition from fast growing Asian countries (China, Japan and
South Korea)
• More underemployment of the engineering graduates causes low
return on investments in engineering education.
• Loss of income to the engineering graduates through poor salaries
creates burden on their families
• Flooding of the design and product development by expatriates.
• Industry-4 demands for quality innovators which is not fully
recognized by educational administrators.

23. Science of Engineering Institutions to Narrow
the Gaps with Industries
• Entrepreneurs’ and Employees’ learning needs analysis
• Planning needs-based curricula
• Industry focused, outcome based, and flexible curriculum design
process
• Credit transfer from MOOCs
• Institute-industry collaboration
• Hybrid courses
• Industrial training and internship
• Capstone projects and sponsored research

24. Science of Engineering Institutions to Narrow
the Gaps with Industries…
• Art and science of reliable and valid measurements
• Accreditation of engineering programs
• Innovations in curriculum design and implementation
• Dual programs
• Learner planned courses
• Multidisciplinary programs
• Disruptions, challenges and sustainability
• Incorporations of skills and competencies due to Industry-4

25. Science of Engineering Institutions to Narrow
the Gaps with Industries…
• Finishing School programs
• Cooperative (Sandwich) learning mode
• Part-time cooperative programs
• Learn while you earn scheme
• Industry sponsored postgraduate courses

26. Technology Used to Narrow the Gaps with
Industries
• Educational Technology, Video, YouTube, Audio, Multimedia, MOOCs
• Filliped Classes
• Hybrid Program
• Digital Technology
• Podcasts and Mobile Learning
• Creative design, prototype development, testing, improvement,
manufacturing and maintenance
• Tracer studies and longitudinal studies

27. Educational Economics Adopted to Narrow the
Gaps with Industries
• Assessment of human resource needs based on the growth of
industries under Industry-4 under globalized economy
• Educational economics: Internal Revenue Generation
• Entrepreneurship and intrapreneurship development
• Establishing consultancy centers in the industrial corridors and hubs
• Expanding the return on investments on educational institutes
• Optimization of resources, capital expenditure, and maintenance
• Formation of consortium of institutes to undertake industry specific
courses among the members

28. Educational Economics Adopted to Narrow the
Gaps with Industries…
• Internal revenue generation through extramural training programs for
employees and executives of industries
• Patenting and license to use the innovations
• Software development
• Royalty through publications
• Sale of student products
• Use of spare capacity of workshops for contract manufacturing
• Crowd funding for lab and workshop development
• Bidding for global projects under International Development Agencies
• Generating funds through Conferences, seminars and workshops

29. Educational Management Practices Adopted
for Narrowing Gaps with Industries
• Decentralization of Higher education administration
• Leadership development
• Strategic Planning
• Planning Programming Budgeting System
• Improving the ROI
• Faculty development through in-house programs
• Periodical modernization of resources
• Creation of corpus funds
• Managing Vulnerability, Uncertainty, Complexity, and Ambiguity

30. Educational Management Practices Adopted
for Narrowing the Gaps with Industries
• Redefining the institutional administration through a Board of Governors
beyond the Society’s Act of 1860
• Institutional Evaluation and Development
• Academic , Administrative, Financial, and Managerial Autonomy to develop
needed high end programs
• Decentralized administration
• Empowered high performing teams
• Academic Council for planning needed programs
• Boards of Studies for each program
• Linking with global universities
• Rewarding high accomplishing faculty teams

31. Educational Management Practices Adopted
for Narrowing the Gap with Industries…
• Institute- Global University-International Development Agencies-
Partnership
• Developing high performing and motivated faculty teams
• Delegate needed administrative resources to excel in the institutional
development
• Encouraging intrapreneurship
• Redesigning the institute as per National Education Policy 2019
• Diverse Global Faculty engagement under International Development
Agencies

32. Educational Management Practices Adopted
for Narrowing the Gaps with Industries
• Creating Learning Organizations
• Continuous capacity development, quality improvement, and
efficiency improvement
• Financial efficiency and turn around mechanism whenever slippages
occur
• Impact studies
• Longitudinal studies
• Continuous feedback from stakeholders and planning to improve the
human capital and knowledge capital

33. FIRE FIGHTING MODEL for Narrowing the Gap
INDUSTRIAL GROWTH, TECHNOLOGY APPLICATION,
HUMAN RESOURCES NEEDS
INSTITUTIONAL GROWTH, TEHNOLOGY UTILIZATION,
HUMAN CAPITAL DEVELOPMENT
Impact of new technology, changing job design
(Michael Gibbs, 2017)
INTRODUCTION OF NEW COURSES ON BIG DATA,
MACHING LEARNING, ARTIFICIAL INTELLEGENCE ETC.
Jobs to meet tech age & to meet the needs of
Industry-4 (Lee Rainie and Janna Anderson, 2017)
Aligning the regulatory environment with 21st century
realities( evoLLLution.com, 2018)
DEVELOPING NEW TRAINING ECOSYSTEM
CULTIVATING 21st CENTURY SKILLS, CREATING
ABILITIES TO MEET THE INNOVATION DEMANDS
Developing a comprehensive Policy Package with skills
related policies as a cornerstone for thriving in a
digital age (OECD, 2019)
NURTURING HUMAN SKILLS THAT AI AND MACHINE
LEARNNING UNABLE TO REPLICATE.
COMBING TRADITINAL THEORIES WITH DIGITAL
TECHNOLOGY.

34. Desired Planning for Next Five Years
• Meeting the demands of future jobs in the tech age
• Cultivating 21st century skills and abilities
• Nurturing unique human skills that artificial intelligence (AI) and
machines can not replicate
• Developing skills that combine traditional theory with digital
technology
• Develop curious, imaginative, entrepreneurial graduates who will
drive subsequent technology waves
• Support continuous learning and just- in- time learning.

35. Entrepreneurial University
• Take a proactive stance in putting to use and create new knowledge
• Establish an interactive model of innovation
• Develop links, combine discrete pieces of intellectual property and
jointly exploit them
• Innovate and involve in socio-economic development.
• Follow the developments in the emerging technology
• Plan continuous improvements in the programs
• Educate organizations through entrepreneurship and incubation
programs

36. Why do we plan fire-fighting?
• For meeting the fast-changing needs of disruptions due to Industry-4,
the engineering institutes should follow “fire-fighting process” for
safeguarding the graduates through high-end skill development.
• This mega model:
“Arts and Science of Curriculum Development, use of educational
technology, adoption of educational economics, management, and
fire- fighting” could be further refined to assist the economy to grow
further.

37. Thank You
• Your Questions, Please.