Rapid digital transformation is precipitating the need for young Indian professionals to upgrade and advance their human and digital skills to thrive in the new economy. Coursera’s latest Global Skills Report (GSR) 2022 reveals that in terms of overall skills proficiency, India has slipped 4 places to be ranked at the 68th position globally. In Asia, India stands at the 19th position. The report also shows an increase in India’s technology proficiency levels from 38% to 46%, with the country strengthening its position by six spots. On the other hand, proficiency in data science has dipped from 38% in 2021 to 26% in 2022, leading to a 12-rank drop.
The Global Skills Report draws data from 100 million learners in more than 100 countries who have used Coursera to develop a new skill during the past year. The report benchmarks three of the most in-demand skill areas driving employment in the digital economy – business, technology, and data science. For the first time, this year’s report also highlights changes in ranking for each country, and state-specific data for the U.S. and India, where regional variations are notable. According to the GSR 2022, Indian learners in southern states perform better than those in states in the north across all the three domains.
“The Great Resignation and automation are mandating stronger investments in human capital, as institutions must prioritize developing the high-demand digital and human skills required to build a competitive and equitable workforce,” said Jeff Maggioncalda, Coursera CEO. “Our data shows these skills are not equally distributed, and students and low-wage workers need access to flexible, affordable, and fast-tracked pathways to entry-level digital jobs that offer a foundation for a stronger and more inclusive economy.”
Key India insights from the report include:
- Indian learners are focusing on building technology skills. With strong proficiency in key tech skills like cloud computing, theoretical computer science, and web development, India now ranks 56th globally in the domain compared to the 66th rank last year. Cloud Computing is India’s strongest technology skill with 74% proficiency.
- Indian learners continue to lag in data science skills. Slipping by 12 ranks, India scores low on foundational and specialized data science skills — Data Visualization (10%), Statistical Programming (14%), Data Management (22%) among others. The strongest skill in the domain for India continues to be Machine Learning (41%).
- Learners in India are concentrating on financial skills. The government, along with online learning platforms, fin-techs and experts in the financial sector, have been emphasizing the need for new-age financial skills. According to the GSR, learners in India are over-indexed in skills such as investment management (1.38x), blockchain (1.33x) and risk management (1.22x).
- West Bengal leads the Indian states in terms of skills proficiency. West Bengal is ranked the #1 state across the three domains. The state showed the highest levels of digital skills proficiency in the country, outpacing Karnataka (#4 in technology and #6 in data science), the state where India’s Silicon Valley – Bengaluru is situated. Learners in West Bengal also earned a perfect 100% proficiency in more than 10 skills, across the three domains, such as leadership & management, human resources, cloud computing, computer programming, ML, and data analysis.
- Andhra Pradesh is one of the top 3 performing states with high proficiency in business and technology skills. The government’s coordinated approach to skill development, public-private partnerships, and synergy through institutions like Andhra Pradesh State Skill Development Corporation (APSSDC), has created a robust pool of skilled workers. The state learners have 100% proficiency in security engineering, operating systems, and computer networking.
“Industry reports estimate that 28 million new technology jobs will be created in India by 2025. This year’s GSR signals a significant need for Indian learners to bridge the critical skills gap, especially in data science, to ensure this digital potential does not turn into a lost opportunity,” said Raghav Gupta, Managing Director, India and APAC, Coursera. “Strong industry-academia-government collaboration that focuses on the rapid deployment of high-quality digital and human skills training would be key to ensuring that the Indian workforce remains resilient and competitive amid rapid technological transformation.”
Global trends in the report include:
- There is a strong correlation between skills proficiency, GDP, and broadband access. Wealthier countries scored higher in overall skills proficiency, matched by those with high levels of internet access
- Developed countries saw more learners acquiring human skills including change management and resilience. Learners in developing countries were more focused on digital skills through courses like supply chain systems and mobile architecture
- The most popular business and technology skills globally in the last year were leadership and management, probability and statistics, and theoretical computer science. For the second year in a row, Switzerland had the highest-skilled learners followed by Denmark, Indonesia, and Belgium.
- Learners also focused on courses that develop the skills needed to understand the COVID-19 pandemic. Enrollment in courses that cover epidemiology and risk management is now four times higher than it was prior to the pandemic.
With over 100 million learners, 7,000+ institutions, and more than 5,000 courses from 250 of the world’s leading universities and industry educators, Coursera has one of the largest data sets for identifying and measuring skill trends. In the Global Skills Report, over 100 countries are ranked against one another, with percentile rankings attributed to each skill proficiency. A country that shows 100% skills proficiency ranks at the top of the 100+ countries, and a country at 0% is at the bottom.
