|
Master in
Computer Applications
With the boom in the
computer software industry, demand for computer professionals
has increased manifold. People in software tell of fabulous
success stories, as firms have been poaching on each other's
professionals, offering tremendous salaries. There is great
demand abroad too, and many software professionals have been
sent abroad, earning phenomenal amounts. This feature
explains why this has happened, as well as future prospects
of the career. It also explains how to get admission and
which are the institutes that offer the MCA degree.
One of the careers which has gained importance in the last
few years is the Master of Computer Applications (MCA) and
its junior cousin, the Bachelor of Computer Applications (BCA).
All over India there is a craze to get into them, the demand
being fuelled by the phenomenal growth of the software
industry. An fact, in these times of an economic slowdown,
software is one sector which has gone against trends,
registering a good growth rate.
The reasons for this growth are three: first, many foreign
companies are looking at India for trained but cheap
manpower. In Indian software engineer, for example, can be
employed at a lower salary in dollar terms. The sums may
sound huge in rupee terms, but are lower than what would have
to be paid to an American or European. Second, the
development of communications has made working from the
country feasible. An American company just needs to e-mail
its problem to its counterpart in Bangalore. Indian engineers
work on it while America sleeps and when offices there open
the next day, the Americans have the solution right on their
desktop.
Aptitude: A career in computer software requires a high level
of commitment and time-bound results. You must have very good
analytical and reasoning skills. One must have the patience
to sit for hours before a computer screen either writing
lines of programs or going through them to discover bugs.
This work can sometimes be very tedious. One may well forget
normal working hours as one chases deadlines and one may
often have to put in late hours to finish projects as per
schedule.
Where to study: The MCA can be done from universities or
engineering colleges spread all over the country. Private
institutes offer the Post Graduate Diploma in Computer
Applications (PGDCA), the most prestigious one being the one
at Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Calcutta. The MCA
and the PGDCA are two-year courses. Apart from these, private
institutes offer two or three-year courses as the GNIIT
programme, which can be done along with graduation. It is
claimed that such courses are equivalent to the MCA.
Where should one study? Evidently, an aspirant should find
out what kind of jobs the graduates are able to get. Going by
claims could be misleading. For instance, computer education
is a lucrative business and franchises of large institutes
have been set up in all corners of India. The quality of
training at these franchises is not uniform. In many towns,
young people do the courses just as time-pass'. Such centres
will not be able to provide good jobs for the students. So it
is important to assess your own needs before opting for any
institute. Make sure that adequate instructors are available
who have full knowledge about the subject.
The Department of Electronics has an accreditation scheme for
institutes, the DOEACC, but it has not been very successful
in controlling the quality of computer education in the
country. People who join computer courses usually have no
idea whether a particular course has the accreditation or
not. Even in universities, the quality of education is
doubtful, as their pay scales prevent good professionals from
becoming teachers.
Some of the universities offering the MCA programme are:
Bhopal, Rourkela, Allahabad, Delhi, Pune, JNU, Punjab,
Aligarh and Cochin. Among the engineering colleges are the
regional engineering colleges, the IITs, Thapar Institute in
Patiala and Birla Institute of Technology in Ranchi. There
are many private institutes, among them are Institute of
Management Technology, Ghaziabad and National Institute of
Management, Calcutta.
Admission Procedure: The eligibility to get admission to an
MCA degree is graduation with maths up to class 12. Some
institutes have a minimum cut-off of 50% marks in graduation.
For BCA, you have to apply after class 12. There is an
admission test, which contains questions on class 12 maths
and reasoning. Some amount of English is also asked, as well
as computer basics.
Sometimes, the entrance test for the MCA is the same as that
of MBA and the candidate has to only take an additional test
in maths. This means that one must be conversant with MBA
Entrance tests also. There is no group20discussion but an
interview is conducted. Generally speaking, the weightage is
80% for the test score and 20% for the interview.
Prospects: For some years, there has been a boom in salaries
of computer professionals. Starting salary may vary from
Rs
72,000 to Rs 3,50,000 per annum. If one gets into a foreign
company or goes abroad, the starting salary will be at the
higher end. As one becomes experienced, the salary may get
higher. This trend is expected to grow in the near future.
There are two scenarios.
First, they may face a situation
faced by finance professionals a few years back: many found
themselves jobless of downsized.
Second, even if the
reduction is not that severe, salaries will certainly see a
tapering off.
Given the fact that computers are pervading every aspect of
life, a career in software does have promise. If one takes a
well-informed decision based on one's aptitude and is able to
become good in the industry, the avenues are unlimited. Do
not, however, get carried away by stories of high salaries
and take a one-sided decision. Make a career in it only if
you like computers and working with them.
|
|
