Over the past month I read two news reports that I thought should be taken up and elaborated so that many of you would become proactive rather than reactive to such situations. This is for the special attention of the engineering aspirants and their near and dear. The reports are

1. The finding that there were some engineering colleges that flouted the basic norms for admissions as far as minimum marks in the board exams are concerned and

2. The findings of a governmental panel that many self financing engineering colleges are woefully short of infrastructure and for that matter even the government ones are falling short in this count.

    

Considering the fact that there cannot be smoke without fire, there is a possibility that such allegations have some basis to it if not entirely true. That being the case there is a strong argument for believing that the responsibility for the selection of colleges rest with the students and their parents only.

One thing is sure: these pieces of information reach corporate circles very fast and there is a possibility that students from these colleges will be given a cold shoulder when it comes to placements. This is also true for admission for higher studies. The general impression that the public will have on the students who study in these colleges is also likely to be of scorn rather than respect. So joining such colleges whose integrity and credentials are in doubt will deliver a body blow to your career prospects once you finish the course.

Another frightening thing is that most of these colleges have got admissions and that too in numbers. I can only pity the plight of the students studying there; so will many in our society. The scar will remain with these students for the rest of their careers.

What do these things tell you? There is not enough research being done before joining an engineering college. Most of the selection is done by hearsay or by consultation with immediate friends and neighbours. That era is over when you used to compare between colleges which had basic minimum standards. Today there is a probability that even the basic standards are not met by colleges and hence more thought process and stringent filtering need to be done by the aspirants.

Immediate neighbours or friends may not be able to give you the correct picture. Neither is the decision too simple as your future is at stake. As for the parents it is a life time wish coming true and you cannot be casual about this. So in case you are not able to find out all details and filter these colleges take professional help. The stakes are too high to make an ill informed decision.

Please start the information search now onwards so that there is enough time to make a decision. Ensure that the decision is not done in haste. And use professional help if needed. Wish you all a happy new year and suggest that you pay good heed to the matter discussed to make a lot of years happy for you and near and dear.