Wasted in Engineering: Story of India’s Youth by Prabhu Swaminathan — Book Review

• Author: Prabhu Swaminathan
• Paperback: 184 pages
• Publisher: Notion Press; 1 edition (7 November 2014)
• Language: English

We are a nation of misfits where engineering is the most hyped career option. Right? Just the last week I started reading this book and I didn’t realize when the time passed by. I was so much into the book that within two sittings, I was done with it. I presumed it to be a fictional work while it turned out to be another valuable chapter of my #nonfiction2020 challenge.

Wasted in Engineering by Prabhu Swaminathan is an interesting commentary on the education system of India with a focus on engineering. Through his personal experiences and thoughts, the author guides us in the maze of education in India. In our country, students are divided into categories on the basis of their marks, career options for them are chose basis their 10th grade performance. It is amusing to note that how a student not great at writing exams in India is kept away from his/ her desirable subject stream. On the other hand, if a student manages to score well, he is mindlessly pushed towards taking up science. Basically, only two career options seem to be respectable in society — engineering and medicine. There exists a brutal caste system in terms of subjects and arts and commerce is mostly frowned upon.

In this book, the author makes an honest attempt in literally opening our eyes to why we go ahead with studying engineering and how can we possibly bring ourselves out of the rut. The book comprises small distinct chapters to address several aspects of engineering education. The narrative does talk about the flaws in engineering education which is more about morals and internals rather than practical skills. Then the book goes on to explain how can one still rectify this blunder of studying and take stand for pursuing higher education in the desired stream.

The book also throws light on how and why one should utilize the time in hand to figure out what they’re truly passionate about. Towards the book, the author has few words for our parents and the society, in general, to realize that engineering is not the end of the world and that doing what you love is the key to success. With simple writing and facts worth pondering over, the book will definitely be relatable for each student of India, especially for the engineers.

I appreciate the author’s effort in bringing out a crucial topic and discussing it well. This unveils the conventional and utterly stupid scenario of education in India.

MY RATING: 4/ 5