India Churns Out Unprepared College Grads

So few of India’s college graduates enter the workforce with the skills they studied to acquire that experts fear the country’s underperforming education system will undermine its fast-growing economy, The Wall Street Journal reports.

In fields ranging from engineering to English-language customer call service, Indian graduates are being turned away from jobs in increasing numbers as they emerge from school with degrees but glaring deficiencies even in basics such as reading and language.

Critics say a decrepit and sometimes corrupt educational system is to blame. India’s low tuition, mandated by law, broadens access to college but makes it difficult to retain top teachers with competitive salaries and pay raises.

A relaxed attitude toward cutting class and a culture of cheating that has become almost institutional also permeates India’s higher education system, critics say.

One result is that Indian companies are spending heavily on crash-training programs for the graduates they do hire.