Against the backdrop of recent global corporate layoffs, the value of a college degree is undergoing a structural shift. While still essential to get through the door, graduates quickly realise that execution-heavy, rule-based roles are shrinking—replaced by data-fluent, decision-making positions that traditional college programmes rarely teach.
Entry-level jobs
While the employability gap has been around for a while, AI has accelerated it. Nikhil Barshikar, founder & CEO, Imarticus Learning, told this newspaper that in banking, finance, analytics, and consulting, the entry-level jobs of yesteryears are evaporating. “Basic financial reporting support, manual data reconciliation, first-layer data cleaning, and repetitive slide-building are now handled by enterprise automation and AI-assisted platforms,” he said. “Instead, a new breed of entry-level roles is emerging one layer higher in the value chain.”
Barshikar added that the market now demands ‘insight engineers’ and hybrid professionals. “In global capability centres (GCCs), employers are scouting for credit analysts who understand automation pipelines and risk associates capable of navigating AI-driven scoring models,” he said. “The question confronting a graduate is no longer ‘Do you know AI?’, but ‘Can you use AI to work faster, deeper, and better within your domain?’”
Day-one readiness
Despite overhauls like the National Education Policy (NEP), average Indian colleges struggle with execution. Curriculum updates remain uneven, and industry-faculty engagement is limited.
“The career mandate is moving from knowledge delivery to employability delivery,” Barshikar said. “Curriculum updates cannot happen every 4-5 years anymore. They need continuous feedback loops with employers, live projects, practitioner-led teaching, internships, and simulation-based learning that measure real capability instead of rote memorisation.”
To bridge this, Barshikar emphasises fusing domain knowledge with technical fluency. “AI fluency, data interpretation, business communication, and domain expertise need to be embedded across disciplines,” he said. “The market is asking: Can you think in your domain and use AI to work faster, deeper, and better than before?”
The ecosystem approach
Where traditional models lag, specialised ecosystems are connecting academic progression with hiring demand. Barshikar explained how this functions at the Imarticus School of Finance & Business (ISFB): “Our programmes are designed backwards from hiring demand. We work with more than 3,500 hiring partners. GenAI and AI-assisted workflows are now embedded across our finance, analytics, marketing, and management programmes.”
This role-centric preparation—bolstered by global pathways, industry mentorship, and preparation for credentials like the CFA and CPA—ensures students step into the workforce with applied capability. “ISFB is built where employability is the starting point of curriculum design,” Barshikar said. “Improving graduate employability requires moving from degree-centric education to role-centric preparation.”
Beyond the classroom
This outcome-driven discipline highlights where the future of education is heading. “From day one, our model was designed around one question: Does this learning translate into an outcome the industry actually values?” Barshikar said.
This focus on verified employment outcomes—rather than just selling content—is driving the ecosystem towards a reported Rs 1,000 crore IPO. For students, this milestone is proof that the market backs institutions prioritising actual job readiness.
“Ultimately, the IPO is a way to accelerate what is a multilayered education and employability ecosystem,” Barshikar concluded. “Higher education can no longer operate independently from industry realities. Institutions that build strong links between education and employment outcomes will define the next decade of learning in India.”