Government jobs are always in demand. Be it for the job security it offers or social status it carries with it, students and even professionals working in the private sector are always in the lookout for an opportunity to get a government job. With the 6th and 7th pay commission giving a hike to the salaries of the government employees, it makes all the more sense to grab a government job. For engineering graduates, it is always a dream to work for the Public Sector Units (PSUs). For those interested in heavy engineering and highly technical roles in core sectors, PSUs provide the best of the opportunities. The Maharatna companies and the Navratna companies recruit engineers from electrical engineering, civil engineering, electronics and communication engineering, mechanical engineering chemical engineering, Metallurgical Engineering etc. As of July 22nd 2016, there are 6872 government job openings for engineering graduates ( http://www.govtjob.guru/jobs-by-post/engineering-jobs/).

The number of openings however is in sharp contrast to the number of engineers produced each year. Approximately 1.5 Million engineers pass out in India every year. Compared with that, the job openings are very few. So naturally the tests conducted to recruit the graduate engineers are not easy. So in order to nullify the gap between you and a government job, here the important tests you need to take-:

• GATE(Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering)
GATE is the examination most PSUs use to recruit engineers. It is an all India examination that tests the understanding of various undergraduate subjects in engineering and science. It is conducted by the IISC and the IITs. Scores obtained in the test is used by various institutes for admission to their masters program as well as by various companies including the PSUs to recruit graduate engineers. In 2016, 576611 male candidates and 242207 female candidates appeared for GATE. Various PSUs recruiting through GATE are:

1. IOCL
2. NTPC
3. BPCL
4. ONGC
5. DMRC
6. GAIL
7. SAIL

• ESE(Engineering Services Examination)
ESE is conducted by the UPSC (Union Public Service Commission) for recruitment to the Indian Engineering Services (IES). It is the most sought after careers for the engineering graduates in India. It is one of the toughest examinations in the world due to the less number of posts available and its highly technical nature. It has a selection ratio of 1/444(based on a 2014 statistics) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Indian_Engineering_Services). As this exam is one of the toughest, the IES officers are much in demand and carry high respect and status in society. So if you want to be the best of the best, this is the examination to go for.

• Indian Army
India army also recruits graduate engineers for its various posts every year. They conduct their own test. Apart from clearing the written examinations, there are various physical tests one has to go through before joining the army. For engineers, you need to take UES, TGC, SS (TECH) The pride and honor that comes from joining the Indian Army is unparallel.

• DRDO and ISRO
Defense research and development organization (DRDO) and Indian space research organization are among the most desirable places engineers love to work. The challenges involved in the work with the benefits of a government job make these two organizations very desirable. They conduct their own exams and interested candidates should keep a check on their exam notifications.

Author Bio:

Gourab , a B.TECH in Electrical Engineering, interested in a variety of work like content writing, programming, online marketing etc. He is an ardent reader and has great interest in technology, business, entertainment and other fields. He loves to write on almost anything and has a engaging and easy going tone. Gourab is currently working is a content developer and blog writer for HR CUBE.