IIT Placements 2025-26: BTech students pick work-life balance, ‘hustle culture’, better packages over PPOs

A fourth-year BTech chemical engineering student at Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi secured a pre-placement offer from a major tech company but has turned it down. “The role that was offered was in a remote location focussing on the core sector, which is not considered a great career trajectory. Despite a good salary package – Rs 20-25 lakh per annum – I didn't want [the] job,” he said. He hopes for a better offer in the first phase of IIT placements 2025-2026, starting on December 1.

Last week, Careers360 reported how the IITs are seeing an uptick in PPOs this year as well as an increase in rejections. The IIT Delhi student wants a “job which provides work-life balance in a city”. Others are holding out for higher salaries, roles in fields offering potential for long-term growth, or specific types of work-culture, such as the “hustle” at a startup.

Another fourth-year BTech student, from the engineering science department of IIT Hyderabad, rejected an offer from an IT product company, also citing work-life balance. “I want to work in a Japanese company or in an MNC rather than a startup, as that offers a better work life balance,” he said.

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Since all students who have turned down PPOs are participating in the upcoming job drive, they asked not to be named and have been granted anonymity.

IIT BTech Jobs: Higher packages over PPOs

A student member of IIT Hyderabad’s placement team pointed out that the increased rejections show that students are more confident about securing offers in the final placements.

“Broadly, students reject their PPOs because either they didn't like the sector they interned in and want to change the path, which is easier to do in college and gets difficult once you start off your career post college, or are not satisfied with the salary package they were offered. Many students this time felt that they will get a better CTC during final placements than what the companies are offering for PPOs,” he explained.

He, too, rejected an offer in the range of Rs 18-25 lakh per year made to him by a healthcare and pharmaceuticals company. He did not find the role enticing enough and felt the prospects for growth were limited.

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Fresher Jobs: Seeking the ‘hustle culture’

While one section emphasises work-life balance, another actively seeks out the furious pace and agility of startups.

A chemical engineering student at IIT Roorkee rejected his PPO – a software developer role in a banking company – because it won’t be challenging enough.

“I have heard that for techies and seniors, it is not a great choice as the work-load is low,” he said. “I have been told that banking-software roles don't offer a hustle culture, rather a slow-pace workflow which doesn't help in learning new tools and concepts quickly.” Instead, he wants to join a startup where the learning curve is steeper. He had been offered Rs 17 lakh per annum.

He wasn’t alone in rejecting a tech job in a financial institution. A BTech Computer Science Engineering student at IIT Delhi turned down a PPO from a Mumbai-based finance company. They offered him Rs 20 lakh and he felt that was too low. “I felt I could secure a better package during the first phase of placement in December for the same role. I expect more from myself in terms of salary and work,” he said.

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Engineering Jobs: Off-campus placements

The IIT placement drive and PPOs are not the only options available. Students are increasingly alive to the possibility of having to look for opportunities off-campus, as many had to do during the slump last year and year before.

“Phase I and PPOs are not the only target. In case, I don't get in Phase 1, I can also go off-campus. My seniors have got jobs from either Phase I or through off-campus placements,” said the IIT Roorkee student.

However, students across IITs look for lucrative options and roles that provide them an edge over others in the market after they graduate. A student from IIT Hyderabad sitting for placement this season added, “At IITs before graduation, students want to attain enough work experience that creates a meaningful portfolio. Hence, students try multiple sectors and not limit themselves to only one.”