Gap between Education and Workplace Skills

A few weeks ago there was an ad on television showing job misplacement; where chef is working as a barber, cricketer as a washer man. When I saw it 1^st time I started laughing, but after a little while I found that ad very near to reality. 

Just take a minute break from our hush – hush schedule and look around, we can find so many people stuck in wrong career profile, many of them even do not posses basic skills required for their jobs. We can see engineers working in finance sectors, arts graduate in marketing field and then list goes on………

It has become a common place to see people frustrated with their jobs, feeling of incompetency for job, feeling misplaced, depressed, stressed. And then question arise why so? Who is responsible? Can we change it? If yes, then How?

Today’s education system in India is majorly based on theory. When a student graduates with the degree what he or she knows about a field is all theory (many times it is also out dated), without practical exposure. There is lack of understanding of skills to become better professionals and asking for professional help is not preferred by lot of families even today. 

Many times it is seen that a student pursue education in one field but later when he/ she comes in job market to find no jobs then he/she force to take up a job where his education and skills are not in use.

Important question is who is responsible for it? List is big but important components include education system, circumstances and we ourselves. There is great a need of change required in these to bridge the gap between education and workplace skills. 

Our education system need to be more practical oriented, with a curriculum that helps in understanding and developing skills required for jobs. But we should not forget that we are the most important part of this system, it is our own responsibility to become aware of skills we need at work place and develop them. We even need to asses our inherited traits and skills and choose suitable education and career stream, to be able to choose jobs related to course work studied.

If we can bridge gap in workplace and education skills then one can enjoy job and their productivity will be high. This will certainly lead to job satisfaction.

Dr. Shreya Udare

Career Counsellor

EduGroomers Counselling