IITians shun fat paychecks to start their own ventures
Are inspired by success of IIT alumni startups
"The confidence to pursue entrepreneurial ventures right out of college (or when in college) has increased owing to the successes of recent IIT startups," said Mohak Mehta, BTech student representative for IIT Bombay. "More venture capitalists interested in ideas of young engineers, a lot of entrepreneurship clubs and entrepreneurship courses now offered in colleges help in nurturing both the talent and confidence of students to convert their thoughts into successful business ventures," he said.
Take the case of Vishesh Sharma, a fourth-year ceramic engineering student at IIT-BHU (Varanasi). He, along with three juniors — Pratik Pawar, Trilok Sharma and Sourab Pareek — started Internlelo.com last year to help companies hire interns from top colleges including the IITs, NITs and BITS Pilani. Three more IITians joined them and the sevenmember team developed a software that filters resumes, and their clients include software firm Intuit and startup GetMeAShop.com.
Internlelo expects a turnover of.`27-28 lakh this fiscal and that's encouragement enough for Sharma to let go of a job opportunity.
Students like Sharma are encouraged by a thriving entrepreneurial ecosystem at IIT incubation centres, success stories of many alumni, and the option of deferred placements announced at many of the IITs this year.
A startup boom in India, with around 800 new ventures launched every year, and billions of dollars in funding from big names like Tiger Global and Softbank, are the other key factors encouraging students to take the entrepreneur plunge.
They are not afraid of failures. Rhythm Gupta, a student at IIT Delhi, dropped an academic year to quench his entrepreneurial thirst when he teamed up with some classmates to develop Cibola, an e-wallet system for electronic payments. But Reserve Bank guidelines and bank regulations forced them to shut down the startup last month.
Gupta,
21, is already working with some seniors on another startup. He is
keen to complete his computer science degree in the next academic
year, but has no plans to go for campus recruitment
Where is the fun if you don't follow your dreams?" he said.
IIT Bombay last year had just one student opting for deferred placements. This year the number has gone up to 11 and the college expects 5-10 more to start their own ventures right after college.
Where is the fun if you don't follow your dreams?" he said.
IIT Bombay last year had just one student opting for deferred placements. This year the number has gone up to 11 and the college expects 5-10 more to start their own ventures right after college.
For
IIT Kanpur, the number has shot up to 14 in batch 2015 from five in
batch 2014, while 5-6 students at IIT Guwahati have shunned campus
hiring this time compared to three last year.
Not all IITs keep track of students who opt out of placements to start their own ventures, but they all unanimously agree that the number has never been this high.
IIT Delhi has at least 100 students opting out of placements this year (including those pursuing higher studies) but has no records of how many have decided to pursue the startup path. The institute stated that there has been a 'significant increase' in students opting for their own ventures.
Not all IITs keep track of students who opt out of placements to start their own ventures, but they all unanimously agree that the number has never been this high.
IIT Delhi has at least 100 students opting out of placements this year (including those pursuing higher studies) but has no records of how many have decided to pursue the startup path. The institute stated that there has been a 'significant increase' in students opting for their own ventures.
Many
middle class families without any business background, too, are
increasingly supporting their children's entrepreneurial
ambition.
Kunal Kumar Rakesh of IIT Kanpur is one such student. He is now working with his batch mates Manoranjan Dev and Wasim Akram Sheikh to develop an app and website to solve logistical problems faced by tourists.
Kunal Kumar Rakesh of IIT Kanpur is one such student. He is now working with his batch mates Manoranjan Dev and Wasim Akram Sheikh to develop an app and website to solve logistical problems faced by tourists.
There
are also many students who are yet to make up their mind on whether
to accept a good job offer or try build their startups.
Abhishek S (name changed) has received a highly luring offer from an Indian firm but he is also tempted to continue with his venture incubated a year ago. His three classmates and co-owners of the startup too have received job offers from top paymasters and all are in two-minds. "We will discuss the scalability of our business and take a call," Abhishek said. "Parents will not be very happy but we have the IIT -Delhi pedigree."
One tempting factor for students could be the increasing presence of startups — many formed by IIT alumni — in campus recruitments. A few days ago ET reported that around 1,000-1,200 offers are expected to come in from startups and ecommerce companies for IIT students graduating next year.
Abhishek S (name changed) has received a highly luring offer from an Indian firm but he is also tempted to continue with his venture incubated a year ago. His three classmates and co-owners of the startup too have received job offers from top paymasters and all are in two-minds. "We will discuss the scalability of our business and take a call," Abhishek said. "Parents will not be very happy but we have the IIT -Delhi pedigree."
One tempting factor for students could be the increasing presence of startups — many formed by IIT alumni — in campus recruitments. A few days ago ET reported that around 1,000-1,200 offers are expected to come in from startups and ecommerce companies for IIT students graduating next year.
By
Sreeradha D Basu & Devina Sengupta, ET | 6 Dec, 2014
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