While the pandemic seemed to have a debilitating effect on the job market, the placement season at Delhi University’s Shri Ram College of Commerce (SRCC) witnessed a different trend. Not only did the top-ranking commerce college not experience any noticeable dip in hiring, it actually witnessed a 32 per cent rise in the average package. Its median package in the 2019-20 year rose by 25 per cent compared to 2018-19. The average package offered stood at Rs 8.4 lakh, and highest package offered during the lockdown period was of Rs 17 lakh per annum, while Rs 31 lakh per annum was the highest offer made by the time the season concluded.
The first phase of the placement drive began in December 2019, which saw 130 students getting job offers. The second phase, which was to begin in January, slowed down due to the pandemic. About 13 offers made to students in the first phase got delayed or withdrawn. However, the second phase was held despite the pandemic-related restrictions. Of the 554 students registered with the College’s placement cell, over 225 undergraduate students received offers from about 120 employers. The entire process was digitalised.
The College is working on a virtual portal for the placement drive for the year 2020-21, and is looking forward to increased participation by big names, including McKinsey and Kearney, and FTI Consulting.
As of now, about 516 students have registered with the placement cell from the 2021 batch.
However, overall, Delhi University does seem to have been hit by the pandemic, with alterations in the exam pattern, delay in exams and the restrictions on holding large-scale tests for recruitments. The university’s central placement cell managed to place only about 138 students this year, as compared to the more than 1,160 students it placed last year. At Lady Shri Ram College for Women, the highest package was Rs 30 lakh per annum this year, whereas last year it was Rs 37.8 lakh, while the average package was ?9.4 lakh per annum.
