For India’s Social Students, the Default is Digital

Mumbai, May 20, 2015: The Indian school students are rapidly adopting and adapting to a Digital lifestyle to succeed in a global economy where the Default is Digital. This was the clear trend established by the TCS GenY Study 2014-15, conducted by Tata Consultancy Services, (TCS), (BSE: 532540, NSE: TCS) a leading IT services, consulting and business solutions organization across 14 cities in India.

Today’s high school students lead gadget-rich lifestyles; are heavy internet users; and are active on social media channels to stay well-informed with current affairs and keep in touch with family and friends, revealed the study. There are not many variations in choices or usage patterns when it comes to gender of the student.

Ajoy Mukherjee, EVP & Head of Global HR said, “The need to be constantly aware, always connected and make informed choices is in the basic DNA of the post-millennial students. The TCS GenY Survey findings provide us with essential information to prepare ourselves to provide them with exciting career opportunities.”

The findings of TCS GenY Study 2014-15, India’s largest survey of over 12,365 high school students across 14 Indian cities, reveal that the ‘post-millennial’ population is very social by nature and over 75% spend an hour online every day.

However, today’s youngsters still consider face-to-face or in-person communication as the most preferred way of communication with friends (36%), though 46% of the respondents said they digitally stayed in touch using video chat. When it comes to Instant messaging, WhatsApp is by far the most popular instant messaging platform (58%) followed by SMS (20%). Desktops/home PC and laptops are the most popular mode of accessing the internet (55%), followed by smart phones (30%).

TCS GenY Survey 2014-15 Highlights:

Gadgets
- 72% own Smartphones; most preferred gadget for 4 out of 10 surveyed
- Over 50% access internet through Home PCs, Laptops
Positive Outlook on Social Media though not for studies
- 7 of 10 say it makes them more aware of the current events and helps them keep in touch with friends and family
- 9 out of 10 have Facebook accounts; 52% are part of at least one community on FB
- 65% have Google+ accounts; 6 of 10 use WhatsApp
- 4 of 10 use Twitter - Sports personalities (66%), celebrities (55%) and film stars (54%) are most followed by students surveyed
- Social media is not considered useful for studies. Considered more useful for keeping in touch with friends and family and staying abreast with current affairs
Online Habits: Ready to Ping!
- 3 in 10 respond to notifications within 5 minutes; about 4 in 10 respond once a day
- 76% spend an average time of up to 60 minutes on social media every day
- Writing posts (29%); chatting (25%); posting photos (14%) were Top 3 social activities
- 46% of the respondents used FaceTime/ Skype/ Google Hangout
Shopping and e-commerce
- Two-thirds surveyed shop online primarily for gadgets
- Top items bought: Electronics (66%), Books (61%); Movies (41%); Travel (39%); Clothes (36%)
Safety First! Parental Controls active
- 52% of the respondents said their online activities were monitored by parents
- Of those whose parents monitored their online activities, more than half gave password access to online accounts
Learning and Careers
- Online sources like Wikipedia used the most (63%), followed by PDFs (51%) and online videos (44%) for learning
- TV and newspapers were most used to consume news (76%); online sources (53%); and links from friends/ family (36%)
- IT and Engineering were the most sought after career options, especially among the boys (59% each; girls: 42% each)

TCS GenY Survey Primer:

WHAT: The GenY Survey 2014-15 conducted by Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) (BSE: 532540, NSE: TCS) the leading IT services, consulting and business solutions firm, India’s largest IT solutions provider, is among the largest youth surveys of its kind in India. The survey was conducted across 14 Indian cities - Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Bhubaneswar, Chennai, Coimbatore, Delhi, Hyderabad, Indore, Kochi, Kolkata, Lucknow, Mumbai, Nagpur and Pune, with a total base of 12,365 high school students in the age group of 12-18 years. The primary data was collected from the participants by means of a questionnaire at each of the locations. TCS carried out this survey amongst these school students to capture trends, pulse and adaptation of these youth to changing digital technology.

WHEN: TCS GenY Survey 2014-15 was undertaken from July to November 2014 during the nationwide TCS IT Wiz program, to get a pulse of the digital habits of school students from class 8-12 to capture the changing trends of the youth across the Nation with a focus on technology. The objective was to comprehend and compare the difference between school students in the major metros and mini metros of India. The TCS GenY Survey 2014-15 is one of the most comprehensive school level studies of this scale, in India, to capture information access trends, social networking preferences, career interests etc.

HOW: The surveys questionnaire comprised sections such as:

Gadgets – Ownership, usage, preference and brands used
Communication – Preferred mode
Social Networking
- Usage of networking sites and Twitter
- Monitoring online activities and Online shopping
- Use of Skype, Google Hangout and Video Chat
- Instant Messaging Platforms
- Using online resources- E books, pdfs and news.
Education and Career Aspirations

ABOUT TATA CONSULTANCY SERVICES (TCS)

Tata Consultancy Services is an IT services, consulting and business solutions organization that has been partnering with many of the world’s largest businesses in their transformation journeys for over 56 years. Its consulting-led, cognitive powered, portfolio of business, technology and engineering services and solutions is delivered through its unique Location Independent Agile™ delivery model, recognized as a benchmark of excellence in software development.

A part of the Tata group, India's largest multinational business group, TCS has over 601,000 of the world’s best-trained consultants in 55 countries. The company generated consolidated revenues of US $29 billion in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2024, and is listed on the BSE and the NSE in India. TCS' proactive stance on climate change and award-winning work with communities across the world have earned it a place in leading sustainability indices such as the MSCI Global Sustainability Index and the FTSE4Good Emerging Index. For more information, visit www.tcs.com.

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