Empowering India’s workforce: The crucial role of employability skills

By  Vidushi Malhotra

Getting a good job and earning a huge income is the dream of every college student in India. However, despite a plethora of jobs in the market, only a few chosen individuals get the job of their dreams. Why this is so? It all comes down to if we are dependable or employable in the marketplace or not.
Additionally, if we do not have the necessary employability skills to get ourselves hired, we may have to settle for
something below our skills or something that doesn’t interest us at all.
Meanwhile, employers have to sift through thousands of applications in order to ensure a good fit for the role posted on their websites. If the candidate doesn’t match their standards, then their resumes see the trash can.
Therefore, getting industry-relevant skills is highly important in today’s scenario be it for whatever job the student is pursuing. Usually, this involves internships, skill development programs, and industry-academia collaborations which are a great incentive for students in India.
Additionally, students must be taught a practical curriculum in colleges that makes them ready to face the ever-changing trends in the industry. Nowadays, this step is very crucial so that every student has a fair chance to get selected for their dream jobs.
But due to a lack of such resources in India, students fall into the employability gap which is quite dangerous to their mental well-being. When they don’t get selected, students feel the immense pressure of performing well in the job industry.
Few of those who do get selected in the top companies or jobs of their choice, face the challenges of underpayment, worker cut-offs and other things. When companies suddenly start slashing employees because of not being able to pay them salaries, this gives many students a severe setback in their job life.
Therefore, we are seeing a lot of posts of Indian students who went to foreign universities and worked in foreign
companies, after facing a setback there, deciding to make a comeback to India and opening their new businesses.
India is slowly becoming a global hub for different businesses and that’s why many Indians residing in foreign countries now want to make important contributions to their homeland by coming back.
Thus, the major employability skills that a student must possess in today’s scenario are- communication, critical
thinking, problem-solving, and time management.
Therefore, today’s students must have the requisite employability skills to achieve success in the ever-demanding and competitive job market