Why Tech Courses Better Than Management Courses?

According to Deloitte's Campus Workforce Trends 2024 Study, the starting salaries for MBA and B.Tech graduates in India have converged considerably. This trend might deter B.Tech. graduates from pursuing costly MBA programs. The pay gap, which was 102% in 2021, has now decreased to 57% in 2024.

"This does not even take into account the investment of time and money," said Neelesh Gupta, a partner at Deloitte.

In 2022, the median annual salary for a B.Tech graduate from India’s Top 10 Colleges was ₹15.8 lakh. By 2024, this could rise to ₹19–21 lakh, depending on performance. Meanwhile, an MBA course typically costs ₹14–24 lakh, with graduates earning an average salary of ₹20–24 lakh per year, the study shows. Experts attribute the shrinking pay gap to the high demand for tech talent in emerging technologies.

Despite the high cost of an MBA, the salary difference between MBA and B.Tech. graduates is minimal. Additionally, many MBA students already hold B.Tech. degrees.

Gupta noted that the reduced pay differential could make an MBA less attractive for B.Tech graduates from top colleges in the future, especially considering the significant investment in time and money.

Efforts to Retain Tech Talent:

"This convergence of pay is an emerging trend in certain industries like IT product companies and consulting, which offer a premium to selected B.Tech students," said Shweta Srivastava, Chief Human Resources Officer at Azure Power.

However, she pointed out that this trend is not yet evident in the renewable energy sector.

Experts say that the salary convergence between B.Tech. and MBA graduates is largely due to the scarcity of talent with specialised skills.

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‍"Expertise in areas like big data analytics, cyber security, and healthcare has been in short supply, leading to exponential salary growth," Srivastava explained.

The extent of pay convergence varies by sector,

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‍"In IT, we have seen better pay convergence than the manufacturing industry. In the natural resources sector, specific disciplines like B.Tech. in Mining are also seeing a gradual bridging of the pay gap due to their core tech value," noted Praveen Purohit, Deputy Group CHRO at Vedanta. he said.

According to Deloitte, the rapid growth in demand for tech and engineering talent compared to management talent drives higher salaries for tech roles.

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