IIM-A graduates find jobs harder to get

Accustomed to being snapped up at headline-making salaries by corporations around the world, graduates of India's premier business school, the Indian Institute of Management, Ahmedabad are now feeling the heat of the global recession, with offers slowing to a trickle.

More than two dozen students have failed to find takers in this week's job placement process, while entry-level salaries have come down sharply. This is unusual for IIM-A, which is considered one of the top 25 business schools in the world.

"No, we can't deny that we are badly hit. Some of the major companies have completely decided not to bring in any fresh blood, new recruitments due to the crisis and things are worst here now," said Amol Dhruv, president, IIM-A Alumni Association.

Every March, private companies and government enterprises battle for the best graduates, so that in ten years, the supposedly week-long placement process has never lasted beyond four days. But this year, some students are awaiting offers even after eight days.

"The placement session this year is expected to last a little longer," placement committee head at IIM-A Saral Mukherjee told reporters. However, he would not say how long the institute will keep the placement window open or how many students are waiting for offers.

"We miserably failed to understand and calculate the impact of the global meltdown, which has now led to such a grim situation; things are bleak," said Bakul Dholakia, former director of IIM-A and vice-chairman of Institute of Infrastructure Management.