Either Go to Good Engineering College or Don’t Go at All

– Mohit Chaudhary, Service Manager at Mahindra Service

Centre
JULY 1, 2018

Insights
 1. The biggest challenge in this job is dealing with customers. Many of
them become violent. It becomes really difficult to handle rowdy
customers.
2. The best part of this job is that I am always surrounded by cars. I like to
get into technical aspects of repairing the cars.
3. In case you don’t get into a good college, don’t be stupid enough to go
to an underrated college as then your degree would have no value and
you risk being unemployed. We are already experiencing very high
unemployment among engineers.
4. Work-life balance in this job is fantastic. Work culture is great and
co-workers are friendly.

Personal Details

Name — Mohit Chaudhary

Profession — Service Manager at Mahindra (Mechanical engineer)

Age — 29 years

Gender — Male

Industry — ​Automobiles

City — Greater Noida

Where have you been born and raised?

I was born and raised in Bulandshahr. My family is in politics, especially my
father. Mother is a homemaker. I have one sister.

Who had the most influence on you and how?

My mother was the most influential person in my life. From my studies to my

personal growth, she ensured everything went right in my upbringing.

Please give a summary of your career as a mechanical

engineer.

After my 12th, I pursued B.Tech. in Mechanical engineering. I then had a 6

months training in ​Maruti​, Gurgaon. After that, I started working as a Service
Adviser in ​Mahindra​ Service Centre and stayed so for 4 years. Then I became
Service manager and continue to be for the last 2 years.

Which institutes are best for the training/education of

engineering?

I completed my B.Tech. from ​IP college of Bulandshahr​. So I highly

recommend it. Except that, there are many options like ​IITs​ and ​NITs​ which
provide first-class education and training to aspiring engineers. ​IIT Kharagpur
is famous for mechanical engineering.
What are the costs associated with the training/education of
engineering?

Cost of engineering education is expensive in private colleges. It cost me

around 2 lakhs INR per year in the 4 years course. Thus, the cost is about 8
lakhs INR for the whole course.

What are the typical entry-level jobs in this profession?

You have to be a PCM (Physics, Chemistry & Maths) student in your 12th to
be eligible for the engineering education. The decision is thus made when one
has given tenth boards.

After that, you’ve two options — ​Diploma in engineering​ or B.Tech. The

eligibility for applying for Diploma, which is a 3-year course, 10th. While for
BTech, it is 12th boards.

One then appears for various entrance exams like ​JEE​, State-wise CETs,
Institute-wise CETs etc.

B.Tech. is 4 years academic program divided into 8 semesters, with each

semester lasting for a period of 6 months. It consists of internal tests, external
exams, vivas, project work and industrial training sessions.

After course completion, you may take up a job or go for higher studies.
Higher education courses include — M.E. or M.Tech., M.Sc., MBA, PG
Diploma programs etc. Generally people interested in teaching and research
work go for higher education.
After B.Tech. in Mechanical Engineering, one can get placement in any of the
several manufacturing and automobile companies. Usually, you need to
undergo training. In my case, I got 6 months training in Maruti, Gurgaon
before getting a job in Mahindra.

What is the range of remuneration one can expect as a

mechanical engineer in your line of career & industry?

It varies from company to company and position to position. I’d like to mention
average salary in my line of work.

Starting out — 4 lakhs INR per annum

5 years’ experience — 9 lakhs INR per annum

10 years’ experience — 12 lakhs INR per annum

15 years’ experience — 18 lakhs INR per annum

20+ years’ experience — 25 lakhs INR per annum

Please describe your work as a mechanical engineer.

The work differs according to the role/designation one has been placed in.
As a service adviser, my most important duty was customer service. The work
was to advise customers at car service centers about the maintenance and
service work of their vehicles.

It involved handling their concerns and their requirements and then preparing
work orders that described the problem, the potential fixes needed, the time it
will take to complete the repair and the estimated cost, broken down by labor
and parts.

For customers who couldn’t afford or did not want the recommended repairs, I
offered alternatives and explained the consequences of those options.

Finally, I used to handle any complaints the customer might have and made
sure s/he is satisfied with the service.

Now, as service manager, my work involves managing Service Advisors and

handling critical customer complaints. I make sure that the needs of all of our
customers are being satisfied. The aim is to provide excellent customer
service and to promote this idea throughout the organization.

I work from 10 AM to usually 5 PM. Thus, I work for at least 7 hours

(sometimes 9 hours during busy days) for 6 days a week. I get Sunday as a
holiday.

What are some of the positives which would encourage

someone to consider mechanical engineer as a profession?

1. The foremost benefit of this job is the amazing work-life balance. My

profession gives me enough time to relax and spend time with my
family.
 2. The work environment is comfortable, and the work-culture is pretty
great too. The people are friendly and cooperative.
3. As the car can develop any kind of fault, therefore, it is an intellectually
challenging career and you never risk getting bored.
4. Salary is good, and chances of promotion are high if you do your work
efficiently.
5. Though mine is a private organization, still, I have good job security as
private companies value efficient and hard-workers.
6. There are other perks like paid holidays, free medical insurance and
substantial PF, which would ensure my pension once I retire from the
job.

What are some of the challenges that you would want someone
to be aware of when considering mechanical engineer as a
profession?

1. For me, the only challenge is dealing with the clients. Some of them are
rowdy and can cause a lot of chaos. Dissatisfied clients often tend to act
rudely and even turn violent. It’s not easy to make them understand and
settle things down. That requires great convincing skills and lot of
patience.
2. Engineers, in general, across the country are experiencing very few
‘good’ job opportunities. This is happening as we have a higher number
of engineers graduating each year. Getting a good job in a good
company is very difficult.
3. Though I am fortunate that I work in an office setting. However, there
are many mechanical engineers who have to work in very tough
conditions, which lead to stress.
What are the relevant skills/technologies/trends that are
commanding a premium in your job profile?

One must have communication skills, problem-solving skills, ability to resolve

technical issues, in-depth technical knowledge, convincing power, computer
operating skills etc.

What kind of a person would be happy as a mechanical

engineer?

An extrovert person who has a passion for cars and the technology
associated with it along with a very extrovert attitude would be really happy in
this profession. They should have a technical mindset.

Given another choice, what would you do differently as far as

your professional selections are concerned?

Well, though I’ve no plans to leave this job and do something else, my family
background of politics makes me wonder if I would someday enter politics.

What would be your advice to students or professionals who

are just starting their journey on a path like yours?

I’d only like to tell them that the engineering studies aren’t difficult at all. The
real challenge starts when you get a job. It’s not easy to get proper success in
this profession without uncountable hard work. It would take a lot of effort to
progress in the job.

Pursue engineering from a very good college. In case you don’t get into a
good college, don’t be stupid enough to go to an underrated college as then
your degree would have no value and you risk being unemployed.

If you liked this article, you may also like to check out ​our conversation with
Mr. Niraj Gupta​ (Engineering Assistant at Adisseo Animal Nutrition).

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