Math, physics or prompt engineering? What Indian students are really choosing
It began not with a clash, but with a quiet ripple.On an otherwise uneventful July evening, Telegram’s famously elusive founder Pavel Durov took to X and issued a piece of advice to students that was equal parts old-school and visionary:“If you’re a student choosing what to focus on, pick MATH. It will teach you to relentlessly rely on your own brain… That’s the core skill you’ll need to build companies and manage projects.”A few hours later, Elon Musk added his voice — not to debate, but to refine: “Physics (with math).”It was not a duel, but a duet — an exchange between two of the world’s most high-functioning minds, gently reminding a generation swimming in AI-generated content that real intelligence still has prerequisites. Namely: numbers, patterns, and logic.And yet, while this Twitter symposium played out, Indian students had already made up their minds. They weren’t picking math. Nor physics. Their new obsession? Prompt Engineering.
GenAI nation: India’s AI learning boom
According to the Coursera Global Skills Report 2025, India now leads the world in GenAI course enrollments, clocking in over 1.3 million learners in 2024 alone. That’s more than the entire number of learners in Europe. But here’s the catch: India’s global rank in skill proficiency is a sobering 89. In AI-specific skills, we stand at 46. Our performance in data (88) and tech (86) isn’t winning any medals either.We’re sprinting into the AI era — with shoelaces untied.
Math replaced by ‘hacks’
The paradox couldn’t be starker. While Durov extols math for its discipline, and Musk praises physics for its depth, the Indian learner appears focussed on something else entirely: Speed. Speed to certification. Speed to skill-badges. Speed to job-readiness.And so, Prompt Engineering for ChatGPT becomes India’s top trending course (the Corsera Report reveals) — a skill that involves coaxing the right answers out of a language model without necessarily knowing the math or logic that powers it.It’s not a dismissal of STEM. It’s an attempt to bypass the staircase and take the elevator — in a building where the foundation is still under construction.
The shortcut economy
There’s no denying that AI is changing everything. The Coursera Job Skills Report 2025 reveals the fastest-growing workplace skills:• Prompt Engineering• AI Ethics• Cybersecurity Risk Management• Python for Data Analysis• Cloud InfrastructureIt’s a thrilling list — and also a terrifying one, if you read between the lines.All of these skills depend on foundational literacy in logic, computation, and critical thinking. And yet, the Coursera report also shows India struggling with all three.Indian learners are picking tools, but not the thinking behind them. This is not just a skills gap — it’s a learning sequence mismatch.
Big brands, small depth
India’s top learner skills in 2025, as per Coursera, include:• DevOps Tools• Web Development• Application Lifecycle Management• ContainerisationAll are useful. None require a rigorous understanding of math or physics. Meanwhile, AI engineering and advanced data science — the real engines behind today’s most transformative technologies — remain out of reach for most learners without a strong STEM base.It’s like training to be a pilot by memorising the in-flight safety demo.
The real test
This moment — with a billion Indians chasing GenAI and two tech titans gently pointing us back to first principles — is a test.Not of intelligence, but of patience. Not of aptitude, but of appetite — for deep learning, not just fast learning.Because in 2025, math is still hard. Physics is still complicated. And real AI is still built by people who understand both.Indian students may be earning certificates at breakneck speed. But the real question is: Are we building creators, or just credentialed consumers?Until we answer that, Durov’s quiet math lesson — and Musk’s elegantly worded nudge — may remain unread footnotes in India’s rush to download the future.TOI Education is on WhatsApp now. Follow us here.