The Preeminence of Soft Skills: Need for Sustainable Employability

Abstract

The progresses of industrialization, rapid technological developments and adaptation of sophisticated technology by industries have resulted in a mismatch between requirements of industry and the products of engineering institutions. As such the technical education has to face many challenges and the quality revolution, therefore, assumes tremendous importance in the highly competitive world. In this increasingly globalized world and the internationalized nature of the workplaces, the young engineering students of India are found short of many skills and their chief deficiencies are identified in the areas of soft skills. Over the past few years there has been a growing awareness for the need of soft skills development among the academia and the corporate. Indeed, many institutes have also introduced a component of soft skills in the curricula. But these initiatives are a proverbial drop in the ocean as the most haven't had the desired impact. One now needs to review the situation and develop strategies to overcome these problems without undermining the importance of technical skills. Thus, this paper attempts to research and identify skill sets and their right mix needed for sustainable employability of engineering graduates as the technical institutional also have to play a key role in promoting national well being and socio-economic prosperity of the country.