Economic recession hits placements in city

Hyderabad: Some of the city’s leading engineering colleges that boasted of 100 per cent placements last year could not muster 60 per cent job offers this year. Reason: The slowdown. The first phase placements of fourth year students has completed just now.

According to college managements, the number of companies which participated in placements during the first phase was only one-fourth of that of the previous year. “There was not much choice for students this year as not many companies came forward. The salaries offered are not fancy either,” a fourth year student of the Vasavi College of Engineering said.

The students said positions offered were also not lucrative.

When contacted, Vasavi college placement officer C Madhav Rao said this year only 28 companies have offered jobs till date, while last year by this time 60 firms handed out employment offers to its students.

Of 600 students, around 390 have got call letters though no joining dates have been mentioned. “We are trying to solve the problem. Perhaps more companies might come forward during the second phase of the placements,” Madhav Rao said. Some companies have not yet given joining date for appointments made the previous year. Of the 440 students who got call letters, only around 200 were given joining dates.

Authorities said students were going in for higher studies as there were not many job offers.

“Many students are planning to apply for higher studies,” CBIT principal Chenna Keshav Rao told media.

According to him, many of the 543 students who have got offer letters in the first phase are planning to go abroad as they feel appointments might be delayed.

What is weighing down on the present batch of students is the fact that their seniors have not yet got their joining dates though they passed out in May, 2008.

“This has scared the present batch,” Keshav Rao said. The appointment date of as many as 60 students has been deferred till Oct, 2009.

Courtesy: TimesOfIndia