Observing significantly declining Master of Technology (MTech) enrollments, the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) has raised concerns. With nearly two-thirds of seats in India’s engineering colleges remaining vacant.
AICTE data shows the approved intake for postgraduate engineering and technology courses dropped from 1.81 lakh in 2018-19 to 1.30 lakh in 2023-24, reported The Indian Express.
Enrollments fell from 66,862 (63% seats vacant) in 2018-19 to just over 44,000 (66% seats vacant) in 2022-23.
The number of students receiving postgraduate scholarships also halved from 11,926 to 5,176 over the same period.
Contributing factors include students opting for jobs after BTech or pursuing higher studies abroad, impacting the availability of qualified engineering faculty.
Proposed scholarship hike to tackle issue
To address students' declining interest in MTech programmes, AICTE has proposed a 50% increase in postgraduate scholarships, with an increment in the monthly stipends from Rs 12,400 to Rs 18,600.
The proposal was first submitted to the Ministry of Education in June 2024, followed by a reminder in March 2025. It was also noted that the last scholarship revision occurred in 2015, when the amount was increased from Rs 8,000 to Rs 12,400.
Furthermore, to address this issue, an expert committee was formed in May 2024, where it was concluded that the current amount hit "rock bottom", whereas other fellowships, such as the Junior Research Fellowship (JRF) fellows, are granted an amount of Rs 37,000 and Senior Research Fellows, Rs 42,000.
Expanded scholarship
AICTE has also proposed extending postgraduate scholarships to students from AICTE-approved institutions with a CGPA of 8.5 or above, without requiring them to qualify for the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE).
Currently, the Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering (GATE) qualification is mandatory for scholarships, which are limited to students in AICTE-approved postgraduate programmes and institutions, excluding those receiving other financial aid, sponsored candidates, or those admitted through management quotas.
