The employability gap is multi-dimensional. India’s engineering curriculum has expanded rapidly in quantity but not necessarily in alignment with industry needs. Meanwhile, the nature of work in India is evolving. Employers increasingly value problem-solving ability, adaptability and digital fluency over textbook knowledge, traits that traditional academic programmes rarely prioritise.
The academic-practice mismatch creates an abrupt transition from classroom to workplace. For employers, this leads to longer onboarding, costly retraining, and slower productivity.
Consider the India Semiconductor Mission, launched in 2021 with an investment of ₹76,000 crore and the potential to generate 1 million jobs by 2026. Success depends on sectors like chip design, fabrication, and assembly, testing, marking, and packaging. Yet, reports project a shortfall of nearly 0.25 to 0.3 million skilled semiconductor professionals by 2027. The challenge is clear: While the industry demands specialised engineers and technicians, the current workforce remains unprepared.
This gap is not unique to semiconductors. Across IT, manufacturing and emerging tech, companies report that graduates often require months of additional training before becoming productive. Both TCS and Infosys operate some of the world’s largest training centres just to make fresh engineers employable, a reflection of how far education remains from industry reality.
Also Read: Reskilling and upskilling: The key to staying competitive
Closing India’s employability gap requires more than curricular reform; it demands a shift in mindset. Education must evolve from a one-time academic pursuit to a continuous, experiential journey. Apprenticeships exemplify this approach, allowing students to earn while they learn and navigate modern workplaces while staying industry-relevant. In high-growth sectors like semiconductors, renewable energy and manufacturing, apprenticeship stipends now rival, and sometimes surpass, entry-level IT salaries, reflecting the premium on applied technical expertise. Evidence shows that over 80 percent of apprentices successfully transition into formal roles, demonstrating the practical impact of these programmes. This has prompted employers to rethink strategies:
• Work-based learning and apprenticeships: Companies are investing in structured internships, co-op programmes, and degree-apprenticeship models to integrate learning with on-the-job experience.
• Industry-academia collaboration: Organisations collaborate directly with universities to co-create curricula focusing on domain-specific tools, software and methodologies.
• Campus recruitment reimagined: Hiring is no longer about grades alone. Employers assess problem-solving aptitude, collaboration skills and entrepreneurial mindset during recruitment drives.
In Germany and Switzerland, structured work-based models keep youth unemployment below 5 percent. India, by contrast, faces a 15 percent youth unemployment rate despite producing lakhs of graduates each year. The lesson is clear: Execution matters.
The author is the CEO of TeamLease Degree Apprenticeship
First Published: Nov 13, 2025, 16:35
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