80,000 engineering seats remain vacant in TN Chennai

As many as 80,689 government quota engineering seats in Tamil Nadu have gone vacant this year. And, colleges will have to pay — it will hit the quality of the education they provide and, in some cases, cause heavy financial losses to the institutions.

Of the 2.05 lakh seats made available through the single window counselling process, which ended on Friday, only 1.24 lakh were filled. Experts said the economic slowdown had impacted engineering education to a large extent: students were making informed decisions and were willing to risk signing up for alternate courses.

District-wise data shows students believe that if it has to be engineering, it has to be in Chennai or nearby places. "Engineering has not lost its charm," said S Vaidhyasubramaniam, dean, planning and development, Sastra University, Thanjavur. "Students are only rejecting engineering education in a bad institution."



Close to 96% of seats in the seven Chennai colleges have been filled, while it is 68% for Kancheepuram and 73.44% for Tiruvallur. Colleges in Virudhunagar, which steadily churns out school toppers, have also been able to fill a good number of seats. The rate of seat allocation in 12 colleges there crossed 76%.

One reason is that the district is home to topnotch institutions like Mepco Schlenk Engineering College. "This keeps other colleges in the region on their toes to face the competition," said an 8expert.

Ariyalur, on the other hand, had the lowest rate of seats allocated. Five colleges in the district have been able to fill only 33% of seats.
When a college fails to fill even 10% of seats, as is the case with some institutions, it has far-reaching consequences. "They cannot offer sustainable quality education," said Vaidhyasubramaniam.

When rural colleges fail to fill more than 10% or 20% of seats, it will have a strong bearing on the rural economy, says C Thangaraj, former vice-chancellor of Anna University of Technology, Chennai. "The government should have insisted on quality maintenance on colleges, and encouraged edupreneurs to start engineering colleges in rural areas," he added.

The All India Council for Technical Education mandates that colleges seeking approval must have facilities commensurate with their intake and not with the number of seats filled. This means that the financial position of colleges, many of which are funded by banks, will already be in the negative. "Those without strong industry backing or without good investments will be forced to approach bigger players for a takeover," said S Alfred Devaparasad, CEO of Alpha Group of Institutions.

Those who don't come in for outright sale will try to cut losses by compromising on faculty salary and additional inputs. Devaprasad believes colleges that know that the trend will change in a few years are likely to keep investing - in faculty, infrastructure and R&D.

Source : TOI

IBM i(AS/400) Technology.PMS now provides Job Oriented Inplant Training

Placement Oriented Inplant Training / Internship Training on IBM i (AS/400) for B.E / B.Tech, MCA, M.Sc, B.Sc and BCA Candidates in Chennai:

PMS Information Systems is a leading Application Development, Maintenance & Training provider of IBM i (aka AS/400, iSeries eServer, System i, i5) & IBM Mainframe technologies with its headquarters in Chennai, India. Managed by a veteran with more than 18 years experience in IBM i technology, the PMS team consists of highly qualified consultants having experience in this technology. Professionalism and high performance combined with innovative and creative IT solutions and development is what PMS offers. PMS Information Systems now offers 100% placement oriented Inplant Training / Internship Training on IBM i (AS/400) for B.E / B.Tech, MCA, M.Sc, B.Sc and BCA Candidates

Training Schedule for Computer Science Engineering, Information Technology, MCA and M.Sc - Computer Science Candidates.

• IBM i Basic Concepts
• Introduction to IBM i File System & DDS Programming
• Introduction to Advanced Development Tools ( PDM, SDA, RLU )
• Introduction to CL Programming
• Introduction to RPG Programming

Training Schedule for Electrical, Electronics and Communication Engineering Candidates

• IBM i Architecture
• Introduction to POWER processor
• Logical Partition on IBM i
• IBM i Operating System Commands
• Overview on IPv6, FTP & TELNET


Please feel free to contact us,

PMS Information Systems,
# 50, Janani Landmarks, Mahalakshmi Street,
T.Nagar, Chennai - 600 017. India
Contact - +91 044 45528298 / +91 9600079773.

E-Mail - training@pmsinformationsystems.com

College Wise Fee Structure For B.Tech / M.Tech  (For 2013) 

B.Tech : Fee Structure (College Wise)
Capping a one-month long exercise, the Admissions and Fee Regulatory Committee (AFRC) has at last finalised its proposals of fee structure for 651 engineering colleges the academic year 2013-14.

No decision was taken on 38 institutions, 190 colleges were recommended Rs. 35, 000, 195 colleges were recommended Rs 30,000 and in 68 colleges fee has been reduced for second year of B.Tech. course. for students who have joined in 2012-13.

1) Colleges With More than Rs.35,000 Fee

2) Colleges With Rs.35,000 Fee

3) Colleges With Rs.30,000 Fee

4) Colleges for which fee has not been decided

Winter Internship in Australia - The University of Queensland Summer Research Program

It is too late to apply for the summer internships this year and we really have very less internships for the winters. But we, Indians are lucky that when we have winters in India, it is summer in the Southern Hemisphere and in countries like Australia, New Zealand and South Africa etc. So that's s why this summer research program at the University of Queensland is a winter internship for all of us.

Who can apply: Participation is open to undergraduate students, including honours, who have completed at least one year of study and Masters by coursework students. The program is open to both undergraduate students from The University of Queensland as well as students from other international or Australian universities.

That is, the UQ Summer Research Program is open to undergraduate (including honours) or masters by coursework students, who

• are currently enrolled at UQ, another Australian, or an international university;
• have completed at least one year of study;
• are studying for a degree relevant to the research discipline; have a high level of academic achievement during their undergraduate degree;
• have the potential to and an interest in undertaking postgraduate study (masters or PhD);
• are able to demonstrate a high level of English language proficiency; and
• are eligible for a visa to visit Australia if from an international university.

Available Summer Research Projects: You can check the list of projects available. Projects are available for students from almost all streams (Arts, Business, Economics, Science, Architecture, Engineering, Medical, Journalism, Science, and Social Science students).
But they have a small number of projects available for CS/IT/EE and hence the projects for CS/IT/EE are available currently to University of Queensland students only. So students from CS/IT/EE can not apply for this research internship program.
Duration: 6-10 weeks (You can choose your internship duration between November 18 to February 14)

Stipend:
Summer Research Scholarship: Scholars who qualify for a Summer Research Scholarship will receive funding equivalent to $300 per week. The period of eligibility for scholarship payments is up to 10 weeks, generally commencing in mid-November and concluding in mid-February. The funding is not normally paid during periods away from the University, such as during the Christmas break.

Summer Research Travel Grant: Non UQ enrolled (international and domestic) scholars, who are required to relocate to Brisbane to participate in the program, will automatically be considered for a Summer Research Travel Grant to assist with travel costs. The OUE will determine whether students receive this additional grant. Grants are valued at up to $1000 for International students, and up to $500 for domestic students, and will be paid as a one-off payment. To be eligible for the grant scholars will need to meet the following conditions:

• are non-UQ enrolled students;
• are required to relocate to Brisbane to participate in the program; participate in the program for a minimum of eight weeks between mid-November to mid-February; and
• work a minimum of 20 hours per week.

For more details on this internship program, go through this brochure. It explains the internship in a detailed and a better way.

Here is a link to its website

The last date to apply is August 30, 2013.

Do let us know if you have any queries by commenting. Share this post with your friends/groups who you think fit the bill.

SuryaTejaReddy

Nissan Student Brand Manager 2013

Nissan invites you to push your skills to the fifth gear and take the Student Brand Manager Challenge in full throttle. Pump in the mind-mechanism, the engineering and the fuel of creativity. Show the world you were born to take on this role. They are on a lookout for young individuals with loads of energy, passion, adrenalin and leadership skills. Someone who’s focused on the road ahead and yet has his eyes set on the rear view mirror.

It's an opportunity to play an integral role in building a global brand on your campus and in your community. The job is what you make of it. It could be setting up an auto-club or test drive days at your University. It could be spreading the word on the internet or creating exciting events to promote our brand. All the team asks for is a whole lot of creativity and your commitment to succeed in a competitive environment.

Who can participate:

• Be a legal Resident of India.
• Currently live in India at the time of application submission.
• Remain in India if selected as NSBM for 6 Months.
• Be a student of management from selected cities.

• Step 1:

• Phase 1: Online Registration

Visit the website www.nsbm.co.in and register.
A unique ID will be generated. Use this ID for any communication and login.

• Phase 2: Understand Nissan Products

Visit your nearest dealership to experience Nissan Products
Or visit their website (www.nissan.in)

• Phase 3: Tasks:

• Task 01
04 Innovative ideas(Campaign/Activity for ATL/BTL/Digital/PR for the four product categories (one each for SUV, MUV, HB & Sedan)
02 Activity ideas (One for Brand + One for Any of the four Products) within a budget of Rs 5000 to be done in the local community

Download the task format from www.nsbm.co.in

Make video (size limit 30 MB) or presentation (size: 5MB)

The last date to register is August 5, 2013.

For more and to register, visit http://goo.gl/eHJt1

SuryaTejaReddy

Slowdown effect: IT firms defer joining dates, tech grads worried 

Despite the global slowdown, campus placement season in city engineering colleges had seemed upbeat last academic year. Several students from top colleges bagged more than one offer on an average, but these attractive offers are yet to turn into reality.

1. 
   Most IT firms and IT consulting companies have deferred their joining dates by more than six months, and several students, who were to start work from the first week of August, have now been asked to join from January.
   
   This is not all. A company, which had offered an annual package of around Rs 4.5 lakh during presentation, brought the figure down to Rs 3.95 lakh along with the joining bonus when the actual offer was made. Students were offered anywhere between Rs 3.5 lakh and 7 lakh a year. Another IT firm, which had hired students from the city for its Mumbai office, is now placing them in Bengaluru and Hyderabad.
   
   Placement season in most engineering colleges starts from July, at the beginning of the final year session, and continues till November. Students who get offers are given joining dates for July or August in the next year, after they graduate.
   
   Rahul Mantri, an engineering graduate from a suburban college, who got an offer from a consultancy firm in November 2012, was to get his joining date this month. "When I got the offer, I was told that I would be joining by the first week of July.
   
   Now, the firm has informed our placement office about the delay. I have joined my family business for now. Around 10 students from my college, who were hired by this software MNC, are waiting for their joining date to come by," he said.
   
   A leading consultancy and audit firm had hired around hundreds of candidates from across the country this year. While others have started work, the joining dates for city students have been deferred to January 2014. The firm had hired 36 students from a college in the western suburbs, and 20 more from another top college.
   
   "Our joining dates have been deferred.
   
   While I have taken up an internship in a start-up firm, most of my friends are sitting at home. We cannot even join a certificate programme to enhance our job skills as we are not sure in which process we will be placed after joining," said Rakesh Mehra, a student.
   
   A few firms have not even intimated the placement offices of colleges, adding to students' anxiety.
   
   Prachi Gharpure, principal of Sardar Patel Institute of Technology, said 120 of the 200 students from the current batch are awaiting their joining dates. "Firms, which had taken limited recruits, have given joining dates, but those, which had carried out bulk hirings, have delayed the process. They might be trying to adjust all the candidates in different batches," said Gharpure.
   
   G T Thampi, principal of Thadomal Shahani College of Engineering, said most firms are affected by the slowdown. "The depreciating value of rupee is adding to their troubles."
   
   Principal J M Nair of Vivekanand Education Society's Institute of Technology said a few firms in core engineering branches have also have postponed the joining dates.
   
   "Most organisations are adjusting the onboarding process to match the tepid growth of the industry. I am sure , as has always been the case, all offers will be honoured in due course," said Hari T, chief marketing officer and global head (business consulting), Tech Mahindra.
   
   (Students' names changed; inputs by Samidha Sharma)
   
   Source : TOI

IT hiring to fall in 2013: Nasscom

HYDERABAD: The additional personnel requirement in the IT sector of the country may come down by nearly 50,000 in the current fiscal as there is a large scale backlog of recruitments last year, IT-BPO industry body Nasscom said.


"Last year we added 1.8 lakh jobs net. This year it will be 1.3 to 1.5 lakh jobs. Last year there was filling up back logs because we had shrunk our pipeline. We are still the largest employers of white collar sectors of the country which has 3 million young people at the age of 27," Nasscom President Som Mittal told reporters here.

"Secondly, our business is not linear any more. There was time where for every dollar you added so many hours. But today it is IP-led and innovation, which we don't repeat (the job) which is good for the country," he added.

Replying to a query, he said the IT industry is expected to grow at 12 to 14 per cent in dollar terms in the current fiscal.

"This year we will probably add $13 to 15 billion new business in both domestic and exports," Mittal said.

According to him, the IT industry witnessed $76 billion exports and $32 billion domestic business which includes hardware last year. In 2012-13, the industry has grown 10.2 per cent in pure dollar terms and 10.9 per cent in constant currencies and 21 to 22 per cent in rupee term.

On attrition rate of the industry, Mittal said it has come down as demand and supply adjusts.

Currently, it hovers in 13-15 per cent on the higher side. Meanwhile, as a next step to its recently launched '10,000 startups' programme, the Nasscom signed a MoU with Hyderabad Angels, TiE Incubator and IIIT Hyderabad Incubator to collaborate and support the creation of a vibrant ecosystem to foster technology entrepreneurship in India.

Mittal said that they are inviting of applications from innovative technology startups across the country for an insightful engagement with its accelerator and funding partners.

The Association has already received over 1,000 applications from various budding startups since the launch of the program and is expected to cross over 5,000 startup applications in the next eight weeks.

Source : TOI

India Inc presses layoff button; IT jobs take a hit

While fresh hiring has already taken a hit, thanks to the slowing economy, India Inc has for the first time acknowledged that large-scale layoffs are already underway and the job market is likely to get much worse if growth isn't revived fast.

"Layoffs of contractual staff have already started and this could soon move to permanent employees," Ficci president Naina Lal Kidwai has said, warning the government of "a grim employment scenario" unless growth is revived urgently.

"With the slowdown becoming more discernible, fresh hiring is already taking a hit. Unless the growth trajectory is reversed, we will be facing a grim employment scenario," Kidwai said ahead of the meeting of the Prime Minister's Council of Trade and Industry on Monday evening. Estimates indicate that about 10 million people join the workforce every year; however, there remains a yawning gap between the skills acquired by these new entrants and skill set required by the employer.

An internal note of Ficci reviewed by ET states that the job market is 'gloomy' with sectors such as auto, IT and banking seeing thousands of job losses, while most companies have imposed a hiring freeze.

"Particularly in the auto sector, which has been operating at low capacity due to weak demand, thousands of temporary staff has already been laid off and fresh hiring is on a complete freeze," Ficci said. "Job market in other sectors also reflects a slowdown. UBS recently surrendered its commercial banking licence to the RBI and had begun firing employees from its commercial banking division."

The surrender of the banking licence by UBS reflects a growing disenchantment among foreign investors about India's prospects in the near to medium term. Since procuring such an asset like an operating licence in the country entails long and complex procedures, often running into years, this indicates that it doesn't expect the Indian market to be lucrative for a while to come.

" IBM, as a part of its restructuring process, had already started laying off employees in North America and more jobs are likely to be cut in other nations like India," the FICCI note states. Headhunters said the stress in the job market is visible, though it hasn't become an across-the-board phenomenon yet.

"We are seeing a lot of CVs coming from employees in the banking and technology sectors, looking for opportunities in other sectors," said Dony Kuriakose, director of Edge Executive Search, adding that a bigger re-alignment is underway in hiring strategies.

"No one is looking at mass hiring or entry-level recruitments off campus, instead the focus is now on niche, specialised hiring," he said. This poses a serious threat for new entrants into the job market and could lead to high youth unemployment. Over 10 million young Indians join the workforce every year but a mismatch in the skills they have acquired and the skill sets industry is looking for makes it difficult for them to get formal employment.

Industry-wide surveys conducted by Assocham and Ficci show a steady decline in the number of firms that expect to hire more people, which also euphemistically implies that there are greater pressures to downsize staff numbers. For instance, FICCI's Business Confidence Survey found that just 20% respondents expect hiring to go up in the second quarter of 2013-14, down sharply from 30% of firms who indicated the same in the previous quarter.

A similar poll by Assocham found that almost three out of every four firms doesn't expect any new jobs to be created this year. Another indication of harder times in the job market is the sharp decline in margins across the services and manufacturing sectors, which is forcing companies to curb operational costs.

Data compiled by the Centre for Monitoring the Indian Economy (CMIE) shows that net sales growth in manufacturing sector eased from 9.3% in the third quarter of 2012-13 to 5.2% in the fourth quarter. The sales decline had hit sectors across the board: food and chemicals, metals, steel, cement and transport equipments.

Profit margins and operating expenses also saw a similar decline in that period, and industry believes things have got worse in the first quarter of this year, with no tangible revival in any of the core economic barometers.

Source : TOI

  Infy, TCS, Wipro see hiring fall in Q1

Hiring by TCS, Infosys and Wipro, which account for a major chunk of job opportunities in the sector, slowed down by a hefty 60% in the April-June quarter as the big three hired only around 3,400 persons.

In the April-June 2012, these three companies had hired over 8,700 persons on a net basis.

The country's largest IT company TCS added 1,390 persons in the June quarter this year, against net addition of 4,962 persons in the year ago period.

Infosys hired 575 persons during the quarter against 1,157 net additions in the same period last year.

Wipro added 1,469 people to its IT services division in June quarter compared to over 2,600 people in the year ago period.

In the January-March quarter, the three companies had hired over 16,500 persons.

While TCS and Infosys saw gross additions of 10,000 each during June 2013 quarter, net addition subtracts the number of people leaving the company from the gross additions.

Experts consider the net number as a better indicator of actual increase in staff count.

"IT companies are cautious in their hiring plans currently. They are hiring on requirement and project basis," Uday Sodhi of job portal Head Honchos said.

Hiring in the sunrise sector has been sluggish for quite a quarters as the outsourcing industry is under duress amid clients cutting back on IT spends fearing a further weakening of the economic conditions.

TCS while announcing its results this month had said that its hiring had come down due to low attrition rate. The company witnessed a low attrition rate of 9.55% for IT division and 15.77% for BPO segment.

A recent survey by IT industry body Nasscom had said that attrition rate in the IT sector has come down to around 14% in 2012-13 from 19% in 2010-11 for IT and KPO segments.

The survey, which rated TCS, Infosys and Wipro among top five IT employers, also said that hiring by companies would grow at a slower rate this year.

Moreover, there has been a change in hiring pattern by software and services companies, which may lower net additions this year, it said.

Project based 'just-in-time' hiring is the dominant way at present, it added.

Source : TOI