Campus hiring up 24% in India, signaling job market improvement
What's the story
The Indian job market is expected to improve in 2025, as campus hiring trends show a positive shift.
According to Deloitte's Campus Workforce Trends Report 2025, there has been an average increase of 24% in pre-placement offers and conversions across all degree programs this year.
The report analyzed data from over 200 organizations and more than 500 campuses nationwide.
Financial growth
Increase in compensation across all degree programs
The report also highlights a 3.9% increase in compensation across all degree programs in FY25, compared to the previous placement cycle.
Over the last five years, there has been a 3.1% growth across all degrees.
Along with this, companies have also increased their campus hiring budgets by 15%, to ₹4.41 crore in FY25 from FY24 levels.
Sector preference
Technology remains top sector; life sciences/pharma lags behind
For the fifth consecutive year, the technology sector has emerged as the most preferred choice among students. It is followed by financial services.
The manufacturing sector recorded the highest compensation growth compared to last year, followed closely by the consumer sector.
However, life sciences/pharma ranked last in terms of growth.
Hiring hurdles
Employers still facing major skill gap while hiring freshers
Despite the positive trends in campus hiring, employers are still facing a major skill gap while hiring freshers from different streams.
The Economic Survey report 2023-24 states that only 51% of Indian graduates are considered job-ready due to a lack of vocational training and practical skills.
Neelesh Gupta, Partner at Deloitte India, told Mint that "skill-based hiring is the new pivot for organizations in the 2025 campus placement cycle."
Skill development
Universities, businesses are collaborating to tackle the skill gap
To tackle the skill gap, universities and businesses are focusing more on real-world experience, industry collaborations, and continuous learning.
These efforts are aimed at preparing students for the modern workforce.
The report also notes a surge in internship opportunities at Tier 1 (2%) and Tier 2 (4%) campuses.
However, Tier 3 institutions have seen a 3% drop in such opportunities, highlighting an access gap.