Private universities gear up to make India win the space race

Experienced engineering talent in the Indian aerospace sector is currently over 9,500 and this talent pool of aerospace engineers in employment has grown by 30 percent over the last 12-month period, according to data put together for Moneycontrol by specialist staffing company Xpheno. (Illustration by Suneesh Kalarickal)

With the recent success of the Chandrayaan-3 mission, the chatter around India’s aerospace talent is inevitable.

The avenues for core jobs for aerospace talent have been fewer, not just in India but across the world, and getting into premier space agencies such as the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) or the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) entails cut-throat competition.

A 2022 McKinsey & Company report found that the aerospace and defence sector across the world is losing talent to consulting majors, technology firms, and financial services, among others.

To accelerate and sustain the recruitment of tech talent, the report suggested companies look beyond the “simple mechanics of hiring and formulate strategies that will create more fundamental changes.”

Talent pool in Indian aerospace sector

The supply-side is slowly improving in India. Experienced engineering talent in the Indian aerospace sector is currently over 9,500 and this talent pool of aerospace engineers in employment has grown by 30 percent over the last 12-month period, according to data put together for Moneycontrol by specialist staffing company Xpheno.

Concerning fresh graduates, Aerospace Engineers, more than 18,000 engineers have graduated over the last five years. Enrolment for the aerospace engineering stream has grown by 26 percent during the same period.

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Realising the employment potential, various private universities have started revamping their aerospace curriculum through mandatory internships, partnerships with private firms, and overhauling electives for students.

The aerospace students are currently absorbed by Aerospace, Aviation, Aeronautics, Defence and Space, Automotives, Electronic Manufacturing and other sectors, like Software and IT services. Interestingly, 50 percent of the output is absorbed by Aerospace and associated domains.

A persisting challenge

With the rise of the private sector in the space sector, job avenues have grown substantially. However, industry leaders highlight a persisting challenge: lack of deployable talent.

For instance, Hyderabad-based private aerospace manufacturer, Skyroot, faces hurdles to get “high class” talent straight out of college and ends up spending a lot of time training young scientists.

“If we can have a programme where people are trained to become space scientists right in colleges itself, India stands to gain immensely,” co-founder Pawan Kumar Chandana told Moneycontrol.

Secondly, brain drain continues to haunt India’s space dream.

“In the last 12 months, over 140 aerospace engineering specialists have migrated to the US. The UK has attracted over 100 while Germany absorbed 50 of these specialists. As we stand, India is losing more aerospace talent overseas compared to what it absorbs. In the overseas talent movement context, India is a net talent loss centre with 31 percent more exits than talent gained,” said Kamal Karanth, cofounder of Xpheno.

‘Talent landscape is bound to change’

Skyroot, which is India’s first private company to conduct a rocket launch so far, has a team of 300 people with only 10 computer scientists. Others include engineers ranging from mechanical, aerospace, electrical, and material science, which are facing a lot of placement challenges, even in premier institutes such as the Indian Institute of Technologies or IITs.

Getting into Skyroot is also not that easy as the ratio of application to selection currently stands at 2,000:1. Nevertheless, Chandana is hopeful that with India’s recent strides in the space domain, the talent landscape is bound to change.

Job portal foundit data shows that the demand in aerospace has seen an 8 percent increase, as of August 2023, and it is expected to expand further by 19 percent by the end of 2023.

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The emergence of private space companies has led to this surge in demand for aerospace engineering talent. These companies require engineers with expertise in satellite technology, propulsion systems, launch vehicle design, and other specialised areas,” said Sekhar Garisa, CEO of foundit.

Private universities getting into the game

Collaboration with educational institutions and investment in training programmes have become crucial strategies for addressing demand-supply challenges, said Garisa.

“As the private space sector continues to mature, the dynamics of talent supply and demand are evolving, creating both opportunities and challenges for companies in India,” he added.

In a more radical approach, aerospace students at GD Goenka University have to undergo a mandatory one-semester internship abroad. The motto is to offer employability skills that are recognisable worldwide.

“We also promote the concept of a stacked degree for our aerospace students, and as such, it is mandatory for our aerospace engineering students to write at least one research paper and attend at least one competition in addition to their classes to graduate,” said Dr Ugur Guven, Head of the Department of Aerospace Engineering at GD Goenka University.

With campuses in Visakhapatnam, Hyderabad and Bengaluru, Gandhi Institute of Technology and Management (GITAM, deemed to be university) has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Skyroot, where the aerospace department will train a select few Skyroot scientists in niche courses and the space startup will offer internships to GITAM students.

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In addition, the university has diversified its curriculum by taking top-notch material from Munich University and Cranfield University. “On a need-basis, GITAM students can take up small projects and choose a wide range of credit-based electives which includes non-traditional courses,” said Dr Mohammad Akhtar Khan, Assistant Professor at GITAM.

The electives include Rockets and Missiles, Space Technology, Satellite Attitude Control, and Aero Elasticity, among others.

Making the choice favourable

The major concern for taking up aerospace courses is the placement quotient. However, universities have realised that making an all-round course, which increases the chances of getting students a job in the initial duration, might help. The intention is to get them placed in non-core jobs, if a situation arises, and they will later find their way into core jobs.

The advent of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) is disrupting traditional industries, and Aerospace is no exception. To prepare its students for this new paradigm, MAHE’s Manipal Institute of Technology (MIT) offers courses in AI, ML, Numerical Modelling, and Computational Fluid Dynamics. The programme also includes topics like Design and Optimization of Aerospace Vehicles, Composite Structures, Systems Engineering, Automation, and Robotics, making its graduates industry-ready.

According to Dr Manikandan M, Assistant Professor of the Department of Aeronautical & Automobile Engineering at MIT, projects like Dronaid, AeroMIT, and Thrust MIT serve as platforms for students to gain practical experience that complements their theoretical knowledge. “This integrated approach makes MIT graduates highly employable upon graduation,” he said.

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Similarly, at Coimbatore-based Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham University, new courses and electives were introduced in response to the boom in the space sector.

Python programming, Data Science and Machine Learning have been weaved into the curriculum. Courses like Aerospace Electronics and Satellite Engineering are being introduced in the curriculum. Students are made aware of issues like atmospheric re-entry, space debris etc., during the course.

Still, professors feel more can be done on the talent front with private collaborations and government support.

“Of late, many are seeking employment in the private space market,” said Dr V Sivakumar, Professor in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at Amrita School of Engineering, suggesting, “if there were an agency which could connect the private space players with the academia, it would help the students a great deal to work on internships and hands-on projects.”