There are 9.5 candidates for every engineering job at the zero-to-three-year level.
Fresh Engineers Face Oversupply
India's engineering market faces a widening talent mismatch: Professionals with zero to three years of experience account for 45 per cent of candidates but just 28 per cent of jobs, according to a report released by foundit on Tuesday.
The supply-demand equation changes considerably with experience, said the job and talents platform in the report released on Engineers' Day 2026.
There are 9.5 candidates for every engineering job at the zero-to-three-year level, compared with roughly four to five candidates per job across all experience cohorts beyond three years.
Engineers with four to 10 years of experience account for 54 per cent of engineering jobs, despite representing about 42 per cent of the active candidate pool.
Key Points
- Engineers with zero to three years of experience make up 45% of candidates but only 28% of jobs.
- Freshers face 9.5 candidates competing for every engineering job.
- Professionals with four to 10 years of experience account for 54% of engineering jobs.
- India has 3.959 million active engineering candidates against 668,000 jobs.
- Competition varies by stream, from 1.2 candidates per job in automotive engineering to 11.5 in electronics and instrumentation.
Experience Gap Widens
Overall, the August 2026 estimated snapshot shows 3.959 million active engineering candidates against 668,000 jobs requiring an engineering background, translating to 5.9 candidates for every job.
The aggregate ratio, however, varies significantly across engineering streams, ranging from around 1.2 candidates per job in automobile or automotive engineering to 11.5 in electronics and instrumentation.
Engineering Demand Shifts
"As demand expands across technology, manufacturing, infrastructure, automotive, electronics and energy, engineers have a wider canvas to build their careers.
The opportunity is to keep evolving with where industries are headed and apply their engineering foundation across emerging areas of demand," said Tarun Sharma, chief product and technology officer, foundit.
Feature Presentation: Ashish Narsale/Rediff
