Mumbai: The Director of IIT Bombay has raised questions over the methods employed in collecting data and making inferences by Global IIT Alumni Support Group, which claimed that nearly 36 percent of students of the institute have not secured jobs this year.

Speaking to The Indian Express, Prof Subhasis Chaudhuri, Director, IIT Bombay, said, “The data can be interpreted in different ways and the placement process is still on.” Though he did not provide the actual placement numbers as per the institute’s records, he added, “The second phase of placements will continue till June-end and close to 40 companies are yet to visit the campus, so we may end up giving more placements than last year.”

The IIT director too admitted that the current environment poses challenges and market conditions keep changing depending on various factors, the report said.

“During Covid placements were less, but the situation changed. It improved subsequently because immediately after pandemic people started hiring. Maybe some people over-hired and then automatically there will be market correction,” said Prof Chaudhuri, adding, “Second phase is going on in full swing.”

The institute also posted on X, reacting to the report.  "Lately there has been news that over 30% of IITB students do not get jobs! An exit survey among graduating students in 2022-23 says only 6.1% are still looking for jobs. Here is the survey result for you to decide..." IIT Bombay posted on X (formerly Twitter).

According to the data shared by IIT Bombay, 57.1% of the students from the 2022-23 batch at IIT Bombay obtained employment through the college's placement process.

Among the remaining students, 12.2% pursued further education, 10.3% secured jobs off-campus outside of IIT Bombay, 8.3% opted for public services, and 1.6% joined startups. Additionally, 4.3% of students haven't finalized their plans yet, while 6.1% are still actively seeking employment.

However, the study by the Global IIT Alumni Support Group came to light after Dheeraj Singh, a graduate of IIT and the founder of the group, started receiving inquiries from students who were anxious about their job prospects, the report said.

“Many are anxious about their future after having no job at hand despite having nearly completed their course,” Singh, who had been involved in mentoring the students, told Indian Express

Singh further explained that following the students' concerns, he conducted research by accessing publicly available information from the institute's website, including placement reports, convocation details, and data shared by the institute with the National Institute Ranking Framework (NIRF).

“Calculations based on the number of students graduating and those who are placed, after cancelling those who went for higher education, show that close to 33 percent students remained unplaced last year and about 36 percent are yet to be placed this year,” Singh said.

As per a placement report published by the IIT Bombay in January, a total of 1,340 job offers were offered, leading to 1,188 students securing placements by the conclusion of the initial phase of placements in December.