A recent RTI reply has exposed a startling truth nearly 38% of IIT students across 23 campuses remained unplaced in 2024–25, signalling a deep crisis in India’s higher education. Once considered the pinnacle of academic excellence, even IITs are now struggling to secure jobs for their graduates. Yet, public discourse continues to proudly repeat the line: “One-third of Silicon Valley’s tech workforce is Indian.” But that statistic doesn’t celebrate India’s education system; it exposes its shortcomings. Those Indians in Silicon Valley thrived despite, not because of, India’s academic ecosystem.
India’s Education System: Selective Success Abroad, Systemic Failure at Home
According to a 2024 Joint Venture Silicon Valley report, Indians make up about 23% of foreign-born tech professionals in the region. However, this elite group largely comprises top scorers, English-educated urban graduates, often trained further in the US, benefiting from migration rather than from a robust domestic framework. This reflects selective success, not systemic strength. Back home, the situation is grim: only 42.6% of Indian graduates are employable, a drop from 46.2% in 2023. India produces 1.5 million engineers every year, but offers just 300,000 tech jobs, leaving a vast majority underemployed or jobless. Even newer IITs have reported over 40% unplaced students, double the rate seen just two years ago.
One of the main causes lies in the outdated curriculum. Much of what is taught was designed for 2005, not 2025. Courses in AI, ML, cloud architecture, design, and ethics are missing from most engineering branches. Many institutions still emphasize rote memorization, obsolete tools, and paper-based exams. A 2024 curriculum review found that less than 3% of Indian computer science syllabi include AI ethics or project-based learning skills considered basic in Silicon Valley. Chronic faculty shortages, mental health issues, and lack of industry exposure compound the problem.
China’s Rise and India’s Reflection: From Global Leadership to Educational Reckoning
Meanwhile, China has surged far ahead. It boasts seven universities in the global top 100, files ten times more international patents, and dominates emerging fields like AI, robotics, and semiconductors. Around 18% of Silicon Valley’s tech workforce is Chinese-born, showing how China’s strong domestic education ecosystem is translating into global impact. unlike India’s reliance on talent migration.
Even the US, once the destination of Indian ambition, faces its own education reckoning with declining enrollment and fewer job sponsorships. India must take note. The “one-third in Silicon Valley” boast is no longer a symbol of pride but a mirror of our failure to create opportunities at home. Until India reforms its education system to build employable, future-ready graduates, Silicon Valley will continue to represent not Indian excellence, but Indian escape.
Summary:
An RTI revealed that 38% of IIT students were unplaced in 2024–25, exposing India’s education crisis. Despite claims of Indian success in Silicon Valley, most graduates face poor employability and outdated curricula. Meanwhile, China’s advanced education system and global innovation dominance highlight India’s growing reliance on migration over reform.
