IITs Face Severe Job Placement Crisis in 2024: A Deep Dive
The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are experiencing an unprecedented job placement crisis in 2024, with 38% of students unplaced. This article explores the alarming trends, impacts on student mental health, and the urgent need for solutions.
The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs), revered as the top engineering institutions in India, are currently facing a severe job placement crisis. According to data obtained through Right to Information (RTI) applications filed by IIT Kanpur alumnus Dheeraj Singh, around 8,000 (38%) of IIT students across 23 campuses remain unplaced this year.
In 2024, out of 21,500 students who registered for placements, only 13,410 secured jobs, leaving 38% still in search of employment. This is a sharp increase compared to two years ago when 3,400 (19%) students were unplaced.
The older nine IITs are particularly affected, with 16,400 students registering for placements this year, and 6,050 (37%) yet to find jobs. The newer 14 IITs face a slightly worse situation, with 2,040 (40%) of 5,100 registered students unplaced.
Dheeraj Singh, a consultant and IIT Kanpur alumnus, highlighted the issue on LinkedIn, noting, “33% of students in IIT Kharagpur did not find jobs via placements last year. Unplaced students are dealing with stress, anxiety, and hopelessness due to poor job placement scenarios.”
IIT Delhi has also been significantly impacted, with 22% of its students unplaced over the last five years and 40% still jobless in 2024. “As per the RTI reply, 600 students were unplaced in IIT Delhi in the last two years,” Mr. Singh noted.
The data shows a troubling trend: from 2022 to 2024, the number of registered students at the older nine IITs increased by 1.2 times, while the number of unplaced students rose by 2.1 times. In the newer 14 IITs, registered student numbers grew by 1.3 times, but the number of unplaced students surged by 3.8 times.
This placement crisis is also severely affecting students’ mental health. Six IIT students have died by suicide this year, highlighting the extreme stress and anxiety faced by many.
“The doubling of unplaced students points to a precarious state of affairs in the best engineering colleges of the country. Around 61% of the postgraduates are still unplaced. This is an unprecedented job crisis our premier colleges and our young graduates are facing,” Mr. Singh emphasized.
As IITs navigate these challenging times, addressing the job placement crisis remains a critical issue that requires urgent solutions and interventions.