Stigma, Anxiety, and English Proficiency: Engineering ESL Students’ Self-Perception and Career Prospects

Abstract

This mixed-methods study explores the anxieties, stigma, and self-perceptions experienced by first-year engineering students at Chandigarh Engineering College, CGC-Landran, as non-native English speakers. It examined how multilingual backgrounds and mixed-ability classrooms shape students’ confidence, participation, and concerns about future employment. A sample of 170 students from different engineering streams participated through a structured questionnaire incorporating the Foreign Language Classroom Anxiety Scale (FLCAS) by Horwitz, Horwitz, and Cope (1986), the Language Attitude Questionnaire by Orwig (1995), and a career mindset survey adapted from Gardner (1985). Students also completed ranking tasks on employability skills. Quantitative data were analysed using aggregate scores, means, and standard deviations, while open-ended responses were examined through Braun and Clarke’s (2006) six-phase thematic analysis framework to identify links between language proficiency, academic performance, and career anxiety. Five overarching themes emerged: Anxiety of the Margins, English as Career Capital, Stigma in the Classroom, Digital Self-Learning, and Multilingual Pride and Pragmatic Use. The study suggests the need for more inclusive and supportive ESL learning environments in Indian engineering institutions.