The state of college hiring in India 2026

Corporates, colleges, and students are paying closer attention to one another’s priorities than before. Yet many are still working from assumptions that no longer hold.

This report looks at where their assumptions line up and where they differ. Students weigh coding scores and communication polish heavily in how they think corporates evaluate them, while corporates place similar weight on cultural fit and learning agility. Corporates assume compensation is the main factor in a student’s choice of employer, while students rate career growth almost as important.

Colleges, meanwhile, believe skills-first hiring has already taken hold industry-wide. However, only 21% of corporates say they have actually completed that shift.

Drawing on a survey of 10,000+ students, 100+ colleges, 80+ corporates, and 100+ college talent recruiters, the report provides one of the most comprehensive reads, spanning skills-first hiring, Gen-AI’s role in recruitment, virtual hiring outcomes, first-year attrition trends, and beyond.

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