Another batch of B.Tech. students is about to graduate soon. While most of the students are set to step into the world of jobs, many others are going for post-graduation that is, pursue an M.Tech. degree. Lacs of engineering students appeared for the recently conducted annual GATE examination (GATE – 2019). The question is, why are the students going for M.Tech. when they are fairly able to bag jobs after the successful completion of their B.Tech.? There can be two reasons, either they want to make a career in education and research or they aspire to specialize in the subject to get better jobs. In both the cases, the major concern is to decide on the field to specialize in. Now, why exactly are we calling it a major concern? Reason being, the fact that whatever field you decide you might end up working in the same for a long span of time, which is why it is highly important for you to take a fairly informed and well thought of decision.
How exactly can you make an informed decision while deciding on the speciality in M.Tech.? Before taking admission to an M.Tech. programme, it is important to research well about all the specialisations you can do as per your B.Tech. or B.E. One way to go about it is by reading books and browsing the internet. However, as we are all aware that one of the best ways to learn about a specific field is by actually working in it.
Internships can help you achieve the same as it allows you to explore your options so that you can take an informed decision and go further about it. For instance, if you have done your B.Tech. in mechanical engineering, and want to go for M.Tech. with a specialisation in automobile engineering, then you can do an internship in an automobile industry and understand if that is your true calling or not. To help you better understand, here’s a list of reasons why doing an internship before your M.Tech. is a smart way to go:
- Real-time experience in the field: An internship is evidently the best option to choose when you want to earn some real time work experience before actually entering the world of jobs. You can join a company and work on live projects or intern with esteemed professors and publish research papers or even better, do internships with foreign universities and broaden your horizon. Doing either of these internships can truly help you in understanding your interests and aptitude for a certain field, which will ultimately help you decide on what you really want to study in your M.Tech.
- A better understanding of the subject: Conventionally, you just learn theories in the classroom but an internship will give you the practical experience as it not only helps you implement those theories but also lets you work on the latest technologies and tools. This helps you gain insights into different aspects of your field of interest thus giving you an added advantage and later helping you with your academics as it would be easier for you to understand the in-depth details of the subjects and technologies.
- Competitive advantage during M.Tech. interviews: After clearing GATE, for admissions in many of the top institutions offering M.Tech., you’ll have to sit for an interview where your subject knowledge will be tested. In addition to subject knowledge, having an internship experience will put you at an advantage over other candidates as you’ll be having a better understanding of professional etiquettes, honed soft skills, a clear perspective about the branch and certainly more structured career aspirations.
- Will help you land your dream job after M.Tech: A meaningful internship experience goes a long way. Having an internship experience on resume, be it on live projects or research work or both, puts an exceptional impression on the employers and may eventually help you land your dream job.
Getting an internship experience gives you a clarity of thought before your M.Tech. admissions and put you a step ahead of the other aspirants in terms of both knowledge and experience. And in the end, opens up a variety of great opportunities for you when you decide to step into the world of jobs and careers.
Courtesy: Sarvesh Agrawal is the founder & CEO of Internshala, and internships and trainings platform (internshala.com)
