IIT median salaries more than double in eight years, EAC-PM study finds

The median salary across 17 IITs more than doubled from ₹8.80 lakh in 2015-16 to ₹19.08 lakh in 2023-24, according to an EAC-PM study

Median salaries at the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) more than doubled between 2015-16 and 2023-24, while the number of students placed also increased, according to a working paper by the Economic Advisory Council to the Prime Minister (EAC-PM).

 

The paper, titled 'How India is Transforming Educational Capacity under the New Education Policy 2020', tracks placement outcomes and nominal salary trends across fixed panels of 17 IITs, 14 Indian Institutes of Management (IIMs) and 22 National Institutes of Technology (NITs). It finds that employment and salary outcomes improved across all three groups over the eight-year period, even as the expansion of IITs and NITs began testing the ability of their placement markets to absorb graduates at the earlier rate.

  

The working paper also points to a wider challenge for India's higher education system: expanding access to degrees has not necessarily ensured that programme quality, employer confidence and employment opportunities are distributed evenly.

 

IIT median salary rises to ₹19.08 lakh

 

The median salary across the 17 IITs in the study increased from ₹8.80 lakh in 2015-16 to ₹19.08 lakh in 2023-24, more than doubling over the period.

 

The number of students recorded as placed in these institutions also rose from 4,737 to 8,411.

 

The IIMs recorded an increase in median salary from ₹14.25 lakh to ₹25.59 lakh during the same period. The number of students placed increased from 3,776 to 5,965.

 

At the 22 NITs, median salaries more than doubled from ₹5.23 lakh in 2015-16 to ₹10.65 lakh in 2023-24. Student placements increased from 9,246 to 13,419.

 

The paper notes that these outcomes reflect the continuing market value of the capabilities, selection processes and networks associated with these institutions.

 

Expansion puts pressure on placement markets

 

While placement numbers and salaries improved over the longer period, authors of the paper flag concerns about whether the placement ecosystem can keep pace with the expansion of these institutions.

 

The study examined changes in core-programme enrolment between 2019 and 2025 across the same institutional panels.

 

Enrolment in the IITs increased 57.8 per cent, from 32,063 to 50,595 students. At the NITs, it rose 29.7 per cent, from 57,405 to 74,457. The IIMs recorded an increase of 38.9 per cent, from 8,966 to 12,456 students.

 

According to the authors, the latest expansion tested the capacity of IIT and NIT placement markets to absorb graduates at the earlier rate. This suggests that improvements in placement numbers and salaries over the longer period should be viewed alongside the growing number of students entering these institutions.

 

The comparisons cover four-year undergraduate programmes at IITs and NITs and two-year postgraduate programmes at IIMs. The placement figures relate to graduating cohorts, while enrolment figures compare student strength in 2019 and 2025.

 

Higher education expands, but outcomes remain uneven

 

The study places these findings against the wider expansion of India's higher education system.

 

Estimated higher education enrolment increased 31.5 per cent from 34.2 million in 2014-15 to 45 million in 2023-24. The number of registered colleges rose from 38,498 to 48,246, while universities and university-level institutions increased from 529 to 1,289.

 

The authors state that as higher education becomes more accessible, the quality of programmes and the transition from education to employment become increasingly important.

 

They describe this as a problem of 'qualification congestion', where students increasingly depend on degrees as the most widely recognised route to better employment, while employers differentiate between graduates based on their institution, field of study, examination performance, experience and professional networks.

 

The paper also highlights the limited reach of vocational education. Formal vocational or technical training covered only 5 per cent of people aged 15-29 in 2025, according to the Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS).

 

The authors state that India needs stronger alternatives to the conventional degree route, including recognised vocational qualifications, structured apprenticeships and opportunities to move between employment and further education. They say higher education expansion must be matched by adequate faculty, infrastructure and credible employment pathways to ensure that a larger number of graduates can make a successful transition into the workforce.