Careers in Ceramic Engineering

If creativity is your sole dream, yet you cannot escape enrolling into an engineering course as your parents want a well-qualified and skilled engineer, this article should be your take. Combine the tactics and techniques of an engineering program with a good dose of creativity and imagination, and you have a perfect engineering degree to boast of to your parents and the world. It's called ceramic engineering. Ceramic engineering, a branch of engineering, deals with the technology of ceramic objects - their production and usage. Right from manufacturing porcelain, brick, cement glassware, and electronic components to constructing nuclear reactors and linings for blast furnaces and jet engines, a company requires a ceramic engineer. In short, the functional areas of a ceramic engineer revolve around research, product development, and production engineering. With abundant analytical abilities, problem solving skills, discovering abilities, and creativity, a ceramic engineer can do wonders in the field of ceramics.

Course Details
Ceramic engineering is offered at undergraduate, post graduate, and doctoral level by institutes of engineering and technology. The minimum eligibility criteria for undergraduate (BE/B.Tech/B.Sc) programs are 10+2 with Physics, Chemistry, and Mathematics as compulsory subjects. For postgraduate programs, candidates with BE/B.Tech/M.Sc degree in the relevant subject are eligible. Interested candidates can do research work after M.Tech in their respective fields.

Career Prospects
Ceramic engineers have a broad range of job opportunities in both public and private sectors. They can work as a researcher in a laboratory, or join ceramic ware manufacturing units like a steel refractory. Candidates, with experience in both scientific and production aspects of ceramic engineering, have better job positions to take up, such as administrators, project supervisors, sales engineers, or technical consultants in ceramic units. Nuclear fields, electronics industry, and educational institutions also offer great job prospects. To add on, starting a business and becoming an entrepreneur is always open for experienced and accomplished ceramic engineers.

Top Colleges Offering UG/PG/Other Courses
India is blessed with a number of institutes that offer undergraduate, postgraduate, doctoral level courses in ceramic engineering. Some of them are: Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) at Chennai, Delhi, Guwahati, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Mumbai, Bangalore and Roorkee; National Institutes of Technology (NIT) at 18 different locations across India; Indian Institute of Information Technology, Allahabad; Indian Institute of Information Technology & Management, Gwalior; Birla Institute of Technology, Ranchi and Pilani; Allahabad Agricultural Deemed University, Allahabad; College of Ceramic Technology, Calcutta; Indian Institute of Ceramics, Calcutta; University College of Science & Technology, Calcutta; Benaras Hindu University, Varanasi; PDA College of Engineering, Gulbarga; Anna University, Allagappa College of Technology, Chennai; Dr. D.Y. Patil College of Engineering, Pune; STE Society's College of Engineering, Pune; Indian Institute of Science, Bangalore; Yashwant Rao Chavan College of Engineering, Nagpur; JSS Academy of Technical Education, Bangalore; SJ College of Engineering, Mysore; JSS Academic of Technical Education, Noida; IEC College of Engineering Technology, Greater Noida; and Noorul Islam College of Engineering, Kanyakumari.

Remuneration
Ceramic engineers can easily earn anywhere between Rs. 12,000 and Rs. 15,000 per month at the beginning stage of their career. With relevant experience, senior engineers can receive Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 60,000 on a monthly basis. Experts at managerial level can expect even higher remuneration packages. Ceramic engineers in government sectors are bestowed with attractive incentives and perks which are purely based on performance and position.