India’s 2025 Job Story: How Freshers Fared and What the Year’s Hiring Trends Reveal

As 2025 draws to a close, India’s job market tells a story of transition one shaped by automation, global headwinds, and evolving skill demands. Career Outlook Report (HY2 2025) by TeamLease EdTech provides a data-backed look at how employers approached fresher hiring through the year, the roles and skills that stood out, and the sectors that continued to drive opportunity.

Here are four key trends that define India’s fresher workforce in 2025.

1. Hiring intent remains steady despite a marginal dip

The overall intent to hire freshers stands at 70% for July–December 2025. While this marks a 4% decline from the previous half-year, several industries continue to show strong momentum. E-commerce & Technology Start-ups (88%), Retail (87%), and Manufacturing (82%) are the top three sectors with the highest intent to hire freshers. This reflects a shift in hiring priorities rather than a slowdown, with employers focusing on growth-driven sectors and preparing for an AI-led future.

2. Soft skills emerge as critical differentiators

The report highlights that soft skills are gaining prominence as automation and AI adoption increase. Employers are placing greater emphasis on adaptability, communication, empathy, and ethical judgment to complement technical expertise.

This growing focus on human-centric abilities indicates that long-term employability will depend not only on technical knowledge but also on how well candidates can collaborate, adapt, and lead in a rapidly changing environment.

3. Employment opportunities remain concentrated in key urban hubs

The Career Outlook Report (HY2 2025) shows that Freshers hiring sentiment continues to be strongest in major cities. For freshers, Bangalore (81%), Mumbai (67%), and Chennai (59%) record the highest intent to hire. In degree apprenticeship hiring as well, Bangalore (37%), Chennai (30%), and Pune (26%) lead the charts. This indicates that India’s primary employment activity for freshers  remains centered in large urban hubs, with these cities continuing to anchor fresher and apprentice opportunities across sectors such as Manufacturing, Engineering & Infrastructure, and Information Technology.

4. Freshers continue to be vital to tech-driven roles

Despite a cautious market environment, 7 in 10 employers still plan to hire freshers in 2025. The most in-demand fresher roles include Process Automation Analyst, Jr. NLP Developer, Content Marketing Executive, and Jr. Actuarial Analyst.

This highlights that fresh graduates remain at the core of India’s innovation ecosystem, particularly in technology-led and emerging industries.

India’s 2025 job story highlights a year of adjustment and opportunity. While hiring intent for freshers has seen a slight correction, demand in key industries remains steady, apprenticeship programs are gaining traction, and soft skills have emerged as essential to employability.

TeamLease EdTech’s Career Outlook Report (HY2 2025) shows that the future of work in India isn’t shrinking, it’s shifting. For freshers, success in the year ahead will depend on building balanced skill sets that combine technical proficiency with adaptability and human-centric abilities, aligning with the changing needs of India’s evolving world of work.