Perfect Fit

Out of the 1,600 students who registered for campus placement at IIT-B,over 800 received job offers in the first phase of the placement season last year. BTech, dual degree, Mtech,MSc, MDes, MPhil and PhD students participated in the placements. “This placement season has been surprisingly good. We were a bit apprehensive, given last year’s market scenario,” says Avijit Chatterjee, head of placements, IIT-B. The IITs across the country are now  gearing up for the second phase of campus recruitment, which too looks promising.

As business matures, the institutes witness the maximum hiring in new domains like operations, marketing and analytics,etc. Though the salary package remains static, companies like Microsoft, Google, Citigroup, Infosys, Mahindra, Godrej, Ernst and Young, JP Morgan and many others hire young graduates in the current placement season.

It’s not just the IITs who are experiencing this positive wave of hiring. Companies are hiring from other reputed engineering colleges as well. At Veermata Jijabai Technological Institute (VJTI),a Japanese firm Raketak hired seven students for a salary of Rs 27 lakhs per year. This is the highest salary that the students of VJTI have secured in this placement season. “We have witnessed 70 to 80 per cent hiring of IT and Mechanical graduates. Both domestic and international companies have enthusiastically hired our students,”says SM Gaonkar, training and placement officer, VJTI.  

Ashok Leyland offered the highest salary package of Rs 9.1 lakh per anum to two graduates of the College of Engineering Roorkee.  An MBA tech graduate from Mukesh Patel School of Technology Management and Engineering (MPSTME) has been hired for the highest salary of Rs 8 lakh by Barclays Siemens Financial Services.  At MPSTME, out of the 81 students who appeared for the campus interviews, 49 per cent have been recruited till date.  

MBA school graduates are also gaining from this positive trend. At IIM-A, the Boston Consulting Group was the top recruiter and picked 14 students. Tanishq Goyal, recruitment secretary, IIM-A says, “We have had recruiters from diverse sectors such as banking, financial services and insurance (BFSI), conglomerates, consulting, commerce, FMCG, global investment banks, NGOs, pharmaceuticals, start-ups and technology.”

However, though the numbers are good, experts observe that companies are cautious in their approach and are investing time in recruitment. Companies are watching the performance and awarding the offer.” Majority of them have redesigned their recruitment strategies. They have included psychometric tests, team tasks, essay writing,emphasis on team work, coordination and leadership qualities,” informs Debashis Sanyal, dean, School of Business Management(SoBM), Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies (NMIMS).

This year over a 100 students from NMIMS’s SoBM have been offered Pre-Placement Offers (PPO) andPre-Placement Interviews (PPI). “The offers indicate that companies have a long term approach and investing in talent is the motive,” adds Sanyal.  

As worldclass multinationals are descending on campuses to hire students, the latter need to be well-prepared, say experts. They should stick to the basics and focus on their interviews. “Recruiters not only want to hire those with a good academic record, but also those having aptitude, confidence and commitment,” signs off Gaonkar.

Money Matters
Google has offered an M-Tech student of the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata $100,000 this year, which is a new record for the institute in its history of 82 years

Google also offered a Delhi Technological University candidate Rs 93 lakh, which is a huge jump as compared to last year’s highest offer of Rs 58 lakh

Facebook has offered National Institute of Technology, Warangal students,  an annual package of $135,000 (Rs 84.6 lakh)

At Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management, Kolkata,Samsung, HUL and Landmark Group have made offers in the range of Rs 8 to 12 lakh respectively

SP Jain School of Global Management, Mumbai got the highest salary of $65,806 for their investment banking and wealth management graduate.