Dear Mayank,
I have been without a job since a year due to the pandemic. A few months ago, I started working for a family friend.
We did not discuss salary since we have a personal relationship.
They look after my stay, food and expenses, but they have not paid me a salary yet.
When I ask, they change the topic.
This is only my second job. I feel I should leave but I am afraid it will affect our family relationship.
I have been trying but I don’t have another job at hand.
What do you suggest I do?
Name withheld on request.

Ans: IIST Trivandrum’s newly launched B.Tech in Computer Science & Engineering (Data Science) benefits from the institute’s Institute of National Importance status, rigorous JEE Advanced-based admission, and direct ISRO absorption for high-CGPA graduates (over 60% of B.Tech students of some branches with CGPA ≥7.5 join ISRO but subject to change every year due to its Recruitment Policy and other Eligiblity Criteria), while external placements remain nascent given this branch’s first cohort. IIT Roorkee’s B.Tech in Chemical Science offers a strong core-science foundation and world-class research laboratories, with roughly 76% placement consistency and average packages around ?19–18 LPA over the past three years, alongside global R&D and industry roles in energy, pharma, and materials. NSUT East Campus’s CSE (IoT) stream, under the aegis of a NAAC A+ government institute, features specialized IoT and sensor labs, practice-school internships and 85–90% branch-wise placement consistency, supported by recruiters like Google, Microsoft and Samsung. USICT (IPU Delhi) CSE delivers a government-funded environment with NAAC A++ accreditation, one-student-one-job policy, extensive soft-skills training, hackathons and consistently above-90% placement rates with offers from Amazon, Adobe and TCS. Considering accreditation, infrastructure, faculty expertise, industry linkages, outcome consistency and future relevance, CSE-IoT at NSUT offers immediate, robust placements in both core and emerging domains. USICT provides broad governmental support and strong campus recruitment, while IIST’s Data Science branch holds immense future scope in AI/ML and space-data analytics but carries placement uncertainty for the inaugural batch. IIT Roorkee Chemical Science remains ideal for research-oriented careers and high R&D placement rates in specialized sectors.

Recommendation: Prioritize CSE (IoT) at NSUT East Campus for its balanced mix of emerging-tech focus, specialized labs, and proven 85–90% placement consistency; next, choose CSE at USICT (IPU) Delhi for its government accreditation, one-student-one-job ethos, and >90% placements; pursue CSE (Data Science) at IIST Trivandrum as a strong future-oriented choice in AI/ML with ISRO pathways (subject to certain limitations mentioned above) despite initial placement ambiguity; and consider IIT Roorkee Chemical Science for core research excellence and stable R&D placement networks. All the BEST for Admission & a Prosperous Future!

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