Why Your Engineering Degree Means Nothing in 2024
My dad's B.Tech from 1995 got him 5 job offers. My B.Tech from 2022 got me 500 rejections. Here's what changed -- and why your degree is now worth less than the paper it's printed on.
When B.Tech meant something
1990s India. Engineers were gods. Four years of engineering meant guaranteed middle-class life. Companies would come to campus with offer letters ready. Starting salary: 3-4 times what your parents made after 20 years.
My uncle graduated in 1994. TCS hired him on spot. No leetcode. No 5 rounds. Just "Can you write a for loop?" Boom. Job.
That world doesn't exist anymore.
15 lakh engineers, 2 lakh jobs
Let me break down the math that colleges won't tell you:
- *India produces 15 lakh engineering graduates every year
- *IT companies hire 2-3 lakh freshers (in good years)
- *Core engineering jobs: Maybe 50,000
- *That's 12 lakh engineers with zero relevant jobs
Your degree isn't special. You're not special. You're one in 15 lakh. That's why it means nothing.
Every gully has an engineering college
2000: India had 500 engineering colleges
2024: India has 6000+ engineering colleges
Every politician opened a college. Every businessman saw easy money. Quality? Who cares. Teachers? YouTube exists. Labs? One computer for 60 students.
They're not colleges. They're degree printing shops. Pay 4-8 lakhs, waste 4 years, get a certificate. That's the business model.
"But you have a degree!" my relatives say. Yeah, so does my Uber driver, my delivery guy, and the call center employee trying to sell me a credit card.
Skills matter, degree doesn't
Google removed degree requirements. So did Apple, IBM, Tesla. They realized what we haven't -- a 16-year-old who can code beats a 22-year-old with a degree who can't.
My friend dropped out in 2nd year. Learned React. Makes 12 LPA. I completed my degree. Can't get an interview for 3 LPA.
Companies want proof of work, not proof of attendance. GitHub profile beats CGPA. Personal projects beat University projects. Internships beat Certificates.
We studied technology from 1980
Fourth year computer science. We learned COBOL. COBOL! In 2022. A language from the 1960s.
Companies use React, we studied HTML tables. They want Docker, we learned about floppy disks. They need AWS, we drew OSI model diagrams.
The syllabus hasn't changed since my dad studied. Same books. Same programs. Same useless theory. Meanwhile, technology changes every 6 months.
B.Tech is the new 12th pass
1990: 10th pass got you a job
2000: 12th pass got you a job
2010: Graduation got you a job
2024: B.Tech doesn't get you anything
Now they want M.Tech. Then MBA. Then certifications. Then experience. The goalpost keeps moving. The degree keeps losing value.
Your parents were sold a dream
"Engineer banja, life set hai." The biggest lie sold to Indian parents. They took loans, sold jewelry, sacrificed everything. For what? So you could join the unemployment queue with a fancy degree?
The education mafia made money. Politicians made money. College owners made money. You got debt and depression.
Your degree doesn't mean nothing because you're not smart. It means nothing because everyone has one. Supply and demand. Basic economics they didn't teach in engineering.
Forget the degree, build skills
Stop crying about your worthless degree. It's done. You can't get a refund. But you can stop believing that piece of paper will save you.
Learn what companies actually use. Build things. Show your work. Create value. That's the only currency that matters now.
Your degree is dead. Your career doesn't have to be.
To every college still selling the "100% placement" dream -- you're criminals in suits. To every parent still believing "B.Tech = success" -- wake up, it's 2024, not 1995. To every student holding that degree -- it's not your golden ticket, it's your participation trophy.
Your degree failed you. Don't let your career fail too
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