Why Indian women don’t pursue engineering as a career?

In the words of James A Michener,” Scientists dream about doing great things. Engineers do them.”

India is home to some of the finest universities in the world, especially in the field of science and technology. In the field of technology an engineering, The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) is the premier choice for students from all over India. Students are eager to get through this prestigious university, but only a few exceptionally brilliant minds are able to strike gold. Engineering is one of the well-paid profession, which is why the youngsters today are increasingly taking up this career option.

But the real question is, why are girls reluctant to opt engineering as a profession?

We say that the society has an even-handed approach towards both the genders, yet the statistics representing the enrolment of women in science colleges depict a rather hypocritical approach. Women today are increasingly taking up careers in management, law and literature but the scenario in the technological industry is rather very dismaying. The role of women in the primitive India was just confined to the walls of their houses and the only talent they were supposed to master was the art of cooking and bringing up a family.

In the Indian Society, the perennial problem of  girls getting married after they gain maturity is the biggest obstacle in the path of educating the girl child. Many girls are forced to suppress their urge to study because of constant family pressures. Since engineering as a career option is expensive,  some parents stick to their orthodox thinking and believe that it’s pointless to spend on the education of a girl considering the fact that she would anyway get married someday to a person who will take care of her necessities.

Another cliché is that engineering requires a great amount of ‘physical work’. It’s partially true that engineering involves a certain amount of physical work, but it’s definitely not so intense that it becomes a stumbling block for girls to enter this profession. Also, the age old stereotype of relating technology to men still prevails and is one of the most eminent factors in bringing down the level of confidence of women to almost insignificant levels. In spite of all these issues, there are dedicated women who don’t give any heed to the societal pressures and  follow their passion. Women like Vanitha Narayanan, Managing Director of IBM India Pvt Ltd, Aruna Jayanthi, CEO of Capgemini India and Kirthiga Reddy, Head of Office, Facebook India are perfect examples of powerful women who had the calibre to stand up for themselves and are inspirational icons of today.

Young girls should be motivated enough to pursue their ambitions and work towards building an identity for themselves, rather than surrendering the decision-making power to the society. A society exists only because of the mutual interdependence of both the genders and therefore, it cannot decide the roles of one specific gender in the society, rather it should motivate women to pursue higher levels of education and achieve excellence. Your Gender cannot decide your profession and it cannot force upon you, a specific career.

Simply because she is a female, she cannot be pressurised to pursue music, dance or literature as a subject.

To deal with the insignificant number of females in engineering colleges and universities, the government of India and various college authorities have launched scholarship programs and  various women education schemes. This is an eminent step taken by the society to encourage women to take up careers in the field of science and technology. Since technological advancement is one of the most significant factors in a developing economy like India, women should take the best advantage of all possible opportunities.

Its time that rather than fighting for equal rights and equal opportunities, we  fight for the getting the much required motivation and support from our society.  Lets celebrate womanhood by having faith in our own capabilities . Just like a coconut has a strong hard shell in spite of an extremely soft inner side, a woman should also be as powerful and strong from the outside so that no matter what the society does to break her down, she still stands up with her head held high.