Despite 90% Placements, Goa’s Graduates Are Choosing Entrepreneurship and Self-Employment

While Goa’s engineering and diploma colleges boast an impressive 90%+ placement rate, a more meaningful transformation is happening beneath the surface. A new generation of graduates is stepping beyond the boundaries of traditional employment — choosing entrepreneurship, self-employment, and reskilling as their path forward.

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This isn’t about rejecting jobs — it’s about redefining success. With over 500 students placed in on- and off-campus drives, Goa’s talent is clearly industry-ready. But over 300 others are intentionally opting for higher education, entrepreneurial ventures, or skill-building initiatives. This points to a growing mindset shift: one where skills, not just degrees, are viewed as the currency of the future.

This transformation didn’t happen overnight.

At the heart of this change is the Startup and IT Promotion Cell and the Department of Information Technology, Electronics & Communications, led by Hon’ble Minister Shri Rohan A. Khaunte. Their strategic focus has been to reimagine education not just as a route to employment, but as a platform for lifelong learning and innovation.

Under this vision, Goa is building a holistic skilling ecosystem that evolves in real time with industry trends. Through initiatives like:

• BridgeAura ’25: a forward-looking industry-academia partnership program
  
• Goa AI Mission: introducing AI-driven learning and problem-solving in institutions
  
• Startup Yatra Bootcamp and Masterclasses: that give students direct exposure to entrepreneurial tools
  
• Hackathons and real-world project challenges
  

Goa is not just producing graduates — it’s nurturing founders, builders, and future leaders.

Institutions across the state are playing their part. From TORQUE 2025 at Goa College of Engineering (GEC), led by the Mechanical Engineering Students’ Association (MESA), to IDEAS 3.0 at Padre Conceicao College of Engineering (PCCE), students are being given platforms to innovate, present ideas, collaborate in teams, and build solutions to real problems.

These events are more than academic exercises — they are incubators for startup culture and entrepreneurial confidence.

Goa is now emerging as a model for how a state can equip its youth not just for the jobs of today, but to create the opportunities of tomorrow.

This generation of students isn’t just getting hired — they’re getting ready to hire others.