The 24th edition of The Hindu EducationPlus Career Counselling Fair-2026 held at SJRC auditorium of Sri Jagadguru Renukacharya College of Science, Arts and Commerce Bengaluru on Saturday, received a massive response from students and parents.

Around 42 higher educational institutions, including medical and engineering colleges, and banks were brought under one roof to benefit around 1,000 students and parents who participated in the event.

In his inaugural address, M.C. Sudhakar, Minister for Higher Education, said, “We need to start bringing in career counselling to the students at a very young age, probably at the grade 8 itself.”

Post globalisation

He reminisced that when he was a student, there were limited career options. “We only looked at medicine, dentistry, engineering and if we did not get a seat anywhere, the last option was law. But with globalisation, a lot of Multi National Companies (MNCs) have their presence in our country,” he said, pointing to wider options.

But he cautioned that what is relevant today might not be relevant after four years. “If you choose some stream in engineering, due to the amount of disruption happening in the field of technology, by the time you graduate, it may not be relevant. Therefore, students do not need to run after Computer Science (CS)-related engineering courses thinking they are trending courses. Only 17% of engineering graduates get employed, and this number is higher for computer science,” he said.

However, Mr. Sudhakar pointed out, some private engineering colleges, trying to exploit the situation, have increase intake as they please. “There are more than 3,000 Computer Science related seats in some colleges,” he said, adding that steps have been taken to regulate seats based on the report of the S. Sadagopan Committee.

Experts speak

Speaking about engineering courses, K.R. Venugopal, former Vice-Chancellor of Bangalore University, said students can get good jobs only if they do inter-disciplinary, intra-disciplinary, cross-disciplinary, multi-disciplinary and trans-disciplinary courses.

“Since engineering graduates did not have hybrid courses, it was difficult to get a job. In this context, electronics was embedded into mechanical engineering and mechatronics was made. Computer science, artificial intelligence, robotics, machine learning, and other courses have been blended with mechanical and civil engineering. This is also creating more job opportunities. The AI and other technologies have been implemented in all disciplines,” he said.

On medical courses, Balakrishna Shetty, Vice-Chancellor of Sri Balaji Vidyapeeth, Puducherry, said, “Infrastructure like the hospital, its capacity, and the kind of patients who come to that hospital should play a key role in the selection of medical colleges. Students should select colleges which have the highest bed capacity and have a large influx of patients.”

He pointed out that almost 20 lakh people take the NEET exam, but only 11 lakh people qualify across the country for one lakh medical seats. “If you want to become a doctor, skill and practical knowledge is important,” he added.

Speaking on CET-2026 counselling, Islauddin Gadyal, Administrative Officer of Karnataka Examinations Authority (KEA), described the CET counselling procedure, which is now entirely online and important aspects to look out for.

Speaking about the career opportunities in business and management, Nitu Ghosh, professor and director in the School of Management Studies, REVA University, said, “Business and management gives you limitless opportunities in various areas of the organisations, be it finance, marketing, human resource (HR), production, supply chain, logistics, and so on.”

Speaking on the career options of Chartered Accountancy (CA), Kavitha Parmesh, CA and chairperson of ICAI, Bengaluru Branch, said, “There is a need for 10 lakh CAs across the nation, but as of now, we only have around 4 to 5 lakh CAs.”

Ameen E-Mudassar, career counsellor and CEO of CIGMA, said students must learn multiple skills, upgrade themselves, and try to acquire online knowledge. “Don’t choose your career influenced by others. At the end your graduation, you should have at least five internships.”

Event sponsors

Platinum Sponsors: The Institute Chartered Accountants of India, Presidency University, Reva University.

Gold Sponsor: CMR University, Chanakya University, East Point Group of Institutions, Hindustan Group of Institutions, Chennai, Ramaiah College of Law.

Silver Sponsorship: ACS College of Engineering, Alliance University, Adichunchanagiri University, B.G. Nagar, BLDE Association, Vijayapura, Bheemanna Khandre Institute of Technology (BKIT), Balki, Bidar, Credila, IIBS, IDP, JSS Science & Technology University, Mysuru, JSS Academy of Higher Education & Research, Mysuru, Karnataka State Open University, Mysuru, Khaja Bandanawaz University, Kammavaari Sangham Group of Institutions, Karnataka Bank, KLE Technological University, Hubballi, Nitte (Deemed to be University), Rajarajeswari College of Engineering, Shri Madhava Vadiraja Institute of Technology and Management, Soundarya Institute of Management & Science, SDM Educational Society (R), Ujire, Shanthivana Trust, Dharmasthala, Sharn Basva University, Kalaburagi, Shaheen Group of Institutions, Bidar, Vidyavardhaka College of Engineering, Mysuru, Navkis College of Engineering, Hassan.

Associate Sponsors: Hyderabad Karnataka Education Society, Kalaburagi, Azim Premji University, ICFAI Foundation for Higher Education, Mahindra University, MS College of Engineering, VTU Visveswaraya Technological University, Belagavi, Canara Engineering College, Mangaluru.

Regional Sponsors: Kristu Jayanti (Deemed to be University), Royal College of Management Studies.