75% of higher education institutions not industry-ready: TeamLease EdTech

A TeamLease EdTech report said 75% of higher education institutions remain unprepared for industry needs, with weak curriculum alignment and limited internships hurting employability

Around 75 per cent of higher education institutions in India remain unprepared for industry needs, despite a growing focus on employability, according to a new TeamLease EdTech report released on Thursday. 

The study, titled From Degree Factories to Employability Hubs, highlighted structural gaps in curriculum design, industry engagement and practical training. The report is based on inputs from 1,071 institutions across public, private and deemed universities, as well as autonomous and affiliated colleges, TeamLease EdTech said.

 

Key findings from the report:

• Industry readiness: 75 per cent of institutions are not industry-ready.
• Placement outcomes: Only 16.67 per cent of institutions achieve placement rates of 76–100 per cent within six months of graduation.
• Curriculum alignment: Just 8.6 per cent report full industry alignment across programmes. 16.9 per cent report partial alignment in select courses.
• Experiential learning: Only 9.68 per cent use live industry projects, while 37.8 per cent have no internship integration.
• Alumni engagement: Merely 5.44 per cent of institutions report highly active alumni networks.
• Industry in classrooms: Only 7.56 per cent integrate ‘professors of practice’ across multiple programmes. 15.46 per cent of institutions limit this to a few departments.

 

“What stands out in this report is the clear gap between aspiration and execution. While employability remains a central objective, a significant number of institutions are yet to fully align their curricula with industry needs, build strong employer partnerships, or integrate recognised industry certifications into their programmes,” said TeamLease EdTech founder and chief executive officer Shantanu Rooj.

 

 

The report further highlighted that curriculum alignment with industry needs is underway, yet remains uneven, with most institutions implementing changes at the departmental or programme level rather than through institution-wide redesign.

 

Why curriculum gaps hurt graduate employability

It stated that weak alignment limits students’ exposure to real-world work environments, reducing opportunities to build practical, job-relevant skills before entering the job market. It also pointed to poor internship structures and limited use of live projects as key barriers to job readiness.

 

Alumni networks, often seen as a bridge to employers, remain underused. According to the report, low engagement weakens access to informal hiring channels, mentorship and referrals that are crucial in early career stages.

 

“At its core, this is a system design challenge. If employability is truly the goal, curriculum co-creation with industry, mandatory internships, applied learning through live projects, and formal employer partnerships must become fundamental to how institutions function and are evaluated, not optional add-ons,” Rooj said.