IIT Placements: After Rise In International Offers In Phase 1, Phase 2 To Target More Recruiters – News18

Last Updated:January 10, 2025, 13:47 IST

The 2024-25 placements season opened much better across IITs with a higher number of international offers and higher pay packages in the first phase that ended in December compared to the previous year

With major hiring done in the first phase, which saw an uptick in international offers, Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are targeting more and a wider range of recruiters ahead of the second phase placements set to begin mid-January.

The 2024-25 placements season opened much better across IITs with a higher number of international offers and higher pay packages in the first phase that ended in December compared to the previous year.

UPTICK IN GLOBAL OFFERS

In the first phase, IIT-Delhi had more than 50 international offers made by over 15 firms based across global regions, including Japan, the Netherlands, South Korea, Taiwan, UAE, the United Kingdom (UK), and the United States (US).

IIT-Kanpur, another older IIT, saw a major spike in international offers with 28 being made in the first phase itself, which is a 27% increase compared to the previous year. The institute also recorded a significant rise in placements within core industries and PSUs.

IIT-Kharagpur received 13 international offers.

While IIT-BHU did not reveal the figures for international offers, it contributed to a good number of the total 1,010 offers received in the first phase.

IIT-Madras and IIT-Bombay have not released placement statistics yet for this year.

Placement executives at IIT-Patna, a second-generation IIT, said they have received 12 international offers in the first phase, all of which were made by four Japanese firms.

The first phase of hiring for older IITs begins December 1 and goes on for a fortnight or so, while the second phase for most institutes opens from mid-January and goes on till the end of the semester in April.

While phase one is when most companies are expected across campuses, the second phase is more staggered. “The first phase wrapped up quite well with a good number of offers, both domestic and international. We are all geared up for the second phase where we have reached out to an expanded base of recruiters, a large chunk of which are consulting, manufacturing, and core companies,” said a placement executive at one of the older IITs, who didn’t wish to be named.

TARGETING MORE FIRMS, ALUMNI

The All IITs Placements Committee (AIPC), a group of heads of placement and training cells of all 23 IITs, that met last November, decided on three major steps for better hiring this year – targeting a greater number of companies, reaching out to a wider circle of alumni and bridging the industry-academia gap.

“The recruiter base must be widened across IITs. Moreover, alumni are the strength for any institute. Reaching out to them more effectively is important. Also, constant exchange with industry is crucial. Last year, some global firms that made offers had delayed the joining, which was also raised, and companies were told to follow the recruiter guidelines,” said one of the placement cell heads who participated in the meet, not wishing to be named.

Last year, the placements across IITs, including older and well-established institutes, were hit by a global economic slowdown in the IT industry, the effects of which now seem to be weaning off to an extent, although not fully. Some top software firms are still limited in hiring and are likely to come down in the second phase, the impact of which is being felt by the newer IITs, said placement cell executives at some of these institutes.

Compared to 2022, post-pandemic, when there was mass hiring across IITs, the number of recruiters and in some cases the median offered have somewhat reduced.

“While placements are better this year than last year, we are still taking extra measures to reach out to a wider range of over 100 recruiters in the second phase, including start-ups, core companies and consulting firms. A lot of semi-conductor companies are also coming in this year. The hiring by software firms since last year is specific and limited. Some of the top recruiters in IT have just not hired yet because of the impact of the slowdown, which is still being felt in this sector,” said a senior placement cell executive at IIT-Patna.

To ensure better and a higher number of offers, the institute has changed its methodology, including more training of students and placement teams.

From the 2024-25 academic session, the institute has made it mandatory for all students registered for placements to sit for at least five mock assessments. “These measures have got us some good outcomes in the first phase. We are preparing for the second phase and are expecting some top recruiters who have so far stayed away to come to the campus,” the executive said.