GIFT City emerges as a new placement hub for Gujarat engineering colleges

By offering tax breaks and global-standard regulations, the smart city has emerged as a corporate hub, creating placement opportunities for local institutes that once depended on recruiters from metros such as Mumbai, Bengaluru, or Hyderabad.

Many multinational firms, including HSBC, Graviton Research Capital, Oracle, Technip Energies, Tech Mahindra, Tower Research Capital, and Fintech Global, have opened new offices in the financial centre and are actively tapping local talent pools, according to placement coordinators at local institutes.

GIFT City-based recruiters may account for a significant share of placements this year, even as the broader job market faces headwinds from technological change, global uncertainties, and tariff pressures, thanks to these institutes’ natural specialization in financial technology, said Narayanan Ramaswamy, partner and leader for education and skill development practice at consulting firm KPMG.

“While management institutes also tap into opportunities emerging from the city, the bigger beneficiaries will be engineering institutions. Over the next two to three years, as the ecosystem reaches full capacity, placement prospects for these colleges are expected to strengthen further,” he added.

The proximity boost

It helps companies if there are tier-1 and tier-2 engineering colleges nearby, said a senior executive in one of the companies mentioned above. “We are in touch with these engineering colleges for final placements and internships. Often, Gandhinagar is not necessarily the first choice for companies. However, for our Gift City campus, it helps if we get students from nearby localities,” said the executive on the condition of anonymity.

Placement committees of colleges such as the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Gandhinagar, Sardar Vallabhbhai National Institute of Technology (SVNIT) in Surat, and Dhirubhai Ambani University (formerly Dhirubhai Ambani Institute of Information and Communication Technology or DA-IICT) said they expect recruiters from the hub to participate actively in the upcoming placement season.

“GIFT City is expected to have a positive impact on our placement opportunities,” said an IIT-Gandhinagar spokesperson, adding that company registrations are still on and it is too early to estimate numbers.

The spokesperson noted that expertise in artificial intelligence is proving increasingly valuable, as several recruiters prefer such skill sets while hiring.

Placement coordinators said proximity is the main factor driving recruiter interest. “Recently, a lot of new companies have come up with new offices in the IFSC, and they are very keen on hiring freshers from our institute, given the proximity. HSBC, which established its office in GIFT City earlier this year, is one of the top recruiters for the upcoming season,” said a placement coordinator.

They estimated that up to 20% of offers could come from GIFT City firms, with packages ranging from ₹5 lakh to ₹70 lakh, depending on roles such as analysts, software developers, and product managers.

“Proximity to the hub has made nearby campuses the preferred hiring grounds, helping companies cut relocation costs while gaining access to students with strong regional familiarity,” said a senior official from one of the top engineering colleges on the condition of anonymity.

For companies, nearby colleges provide a ready bench of engineers and analysts at a lower cost compared to large metros. They also help prevent attrition among the junior workforce. Companies can attract youngsters with the promise of a work location that is already familiar to them and often even closer to home, reducing the likelihood that new joiners will leave due to relocation to an entirely new industrial area.

For students, too, the lure lies in working on global mandates while being based in Gujarat.

The placement cycle for these colleges typically begins in September, with the bulk of offers closing by January. Institutes maintained that it is too early to identify leading recruiters this year, as company registrations are still underway. “It would be premature to share any placement data as the process is still in progress,” the IIT-Gandhinagar spokesperson said, adding that invitations have already been sent to GIFT City firms.