Lack of skills in Indian academia? Blame the CEOs too

Indian CEOs often complain about the low skill levels among students graduating from technical institutions. They should realize they are actually part of the problem. The problem? Heavy reliance on written aptitude tests for campus recruitment. I am not sure if companies in any other major country follow this type of hiring process.
 
How is written test-based hiring the main issue? Consider an average IIT MTech student. After the coursework in the first year, the student is given one full year to work on a project. One year is sufficient to gain meaningful skills for real-life challenges. But what does the student actually do? A large percentage of the available time is spent preparing for written tests, and the project work takes a back seat. After a student is selected by a company, motivation for the project work further declines, as the student does not know how it will be helpful in the future.
 
Written aptitude tests are quite redundant. They only evaluate a candidate’s quick puzzle-solving skills, which have already been assessed by JEE or GATE. Needless to say, the campus recruitment process gives a very misleading picture of what constitutes a well-rounded personality suited to real-world challenges.
 
What can companies do? Strengthen your internship programs. Not only can you help participating students develop skills, but you can also create recruitment channels. Focus more on industry-academia collaboration. Visit academic institutions and give talks -- students should know what skills industries are actually looking for. Also, more importantly, academic institutions can play a key role in helping industries develop future technologies.