IIT And IIM Graduates Earning Way More Than Their Peers, Studies Confirmed

The research is based on the responses collected from 114 engineering colleges across India during the first six months of 2018.

According to a report, “IIT’s penchant for quality intake, top-notch infrastructure, and fine faculty is what draws the employers towards them.” Not just the top Indian companies but even international behemoths like Apple and Microsoft, too, come to IITs for recruitment.

The salary offers at the new IITs, formed in and after 2008, are far lower as compared to the older IITs – Mumbai, Delhi, Chennai, Kharagpur, Roorkee, and Kanpur – which are deemed “top.”

Computer Science or Information Technology are the most lucrative among the various streams of engineering. On average, IT engineers make Rs 6.7 lakh a year, while those pursuing electrical, mechanical or civil engineering earn far lesser. Machine learning offers the most rewarding jobs with an average annual pay upwards of Rs 18 lakh among computer science and IT roles.

At the master’s level, too, there’s a clear leader. Commended as the world’s toughest B-schools to get into, the Indian Institutes of Management (IIM) far exceeds other management colleges in terms of pay scales.

Graduates from the top IIMs like Ahmedabad or Bangalore earn Rs 20.6 lakh per annum at the entry level, which is 121% higher than the Rs 9.3 lakh graduates get on average in India, Mettl’s survey of 80 MBA colleges revealed.

However, unlike the IITs, the IIMs are not beating the rest by a mile.

Students from the country’s top private colleges, such as Management Development Institute, Gurugram, and Mumbai-based SP Jain Institute of Management and Research, make nearly as much as those from IIMs.

Ideal for candidates who have both, an MBA and a B Tech degree, roles like IT consultant, product head, and chief technology officer, have the most attractive pay packages, Mettl found.

While they face criticism for the high-pressure and sometimes uninspiring learning environment, the resources and networks available to students of the IITs and IIMs are priceless and securing a job or funding comes easier to them. Higher pay scales are add-ons.

Muskan Sharma

BW Reporters Muskan is a Journalism Undergrad Student and Currently an Intern at BW Businessworld.