The IITs - Indian Institutes of Technology

Indian Institutes of Technology

Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are institutions of national importance established through Acts of Parliament for fostering excellence in education. Over the years, IITs have created a world class educational platform that is dynamically sustained through quality teaching and internationally acclaimed research with excellent infrastructure and the best available minds. The faculty and alumni of IITs occupy key positions in academia and industry throughout the world and continue to make considerable impact on all sections of the society. At present, there are twenty-three IITs across the country.

The primary objectives of IITs are as follows:

• To create an environment that encourages freedom of thought and pursuit of excellence and inculcate the necessary vision and self-discipline to achieve excellence.
• To build a solid foundation of scientific and technical knowledge and to prepare competent and motivated engineers and scientists.
• To kindle an entrepreneurial spirit among the students.
• To prepare the students to become outstanding professionals and contribute to nation building.

ZONES, NAMES, LOCATIONS, AND ABBREVIATIONS OF THE TWENTY-THREE IITs

Zone	Institute	City	Abbreviation
East Zone	Indian Institute of Technology Bhubaneswar	Bhubaneswar	IITBBS*
	Indian Institute of Technology Kharagpur	Kharagpur	IITKGP
	Indian Institute of Technology (ISM) Dhanbad	Dhanbad	IIT(ISM)
	Indian Institute of Technology Bhilai	Bhilai	IITBH
South Zone	Indian Institute of Technology Madras	Chennai	IITM*
	Indian Institute of Technology Hyderabad	Hyderabad	IITH
	Indian Institute of Technology Palakkad	Palakkad	IITPKD
West Zone	Indian Institute of Technology Bombay	Mumbai	IITB*
	Indian Institute of Technology Dharwad	Dharwad	IITDh
	Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar	Gandhinagar	IITGN
	Indian Institute of Technology Goa	Goa	IITGOA
North-East Zone	Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati	Guwahati	IITG*
	Indian Institute of Technology Patna	Patna	IITP
	North-Central Zone	Indian Institute of Technology Delhi	New Delhi	IITD*
Indian Institute of Technology Jammu		Jammu	IITJMU
Indian Institute of Technology Jodhpur		Jodhpur	IITJ
Central Zone	Indian Institute of Technology Kanpur	Kanpur	IITK*
	Indian Institute of Technology (BHU) Varanasi	Varanasi	IIT(BHU)
	Indian Institute of Technology Indore	Indore	IITI
North Zone	Indian Institute of Technology Roorkee	Roorkee	IITR*
	Indian Institute of Technology Mandi	Mandi	IIT Mandi
	Indian Institute of Technology Ropar	Ropar	IITRPR

Academic Programs

Through JEE (Advanced), IITs offer admission into undergraduate courses leading to a Bachelors, Integrated Masters, Bachelor-Master Dual Degree in Engineering, Sciences, or Architecture. Both Bachelors and Masters degrees are awarded to candidates enrolled in the dual degree programs upon successful completion of the course curriculum requirements. In some of the IITs, students enrolled into the 4-year Bachelors program have the option to pursue B.Tech.(Honors) and/or B.Tech. with Minors. Dual Degree students may also pursue a Minor. Further, in some IITs, B.Tech. students also have the option to pursue Interdisciplinary Dual Degree, with Bachelors in the parent Department and Masters in some other Department. All the above options require fulfilment of certain academic performance related criteria as prescribed by the concerned institute. The types of academic programs offered at IITs and their minimum duration are given below

 

Program	Degree	Duration
B.Tech.	Bachelor of Technology	4 years
B.S.	Bachelor of Science	4 years
B.Arch.	Bachelor of Architecture	5 years
Dual Degree B.Tech.-M.Tech.	Dual Degree Bachelor of Technology and Master of Technology	5 years
Dual Degree B.S.-M.S.	Dual Degree Bachelor of Science and Master of Science	5 years
Integrated M.Tech.	Integrated Master of Technology	5 years
Integrated M.Sc.	Integrated Master of Science	5 years

*Only those academic programs for which admission is based on JEE (Advanced) examination are shown here. These Institutes also have other academic programs, viz., B.Des., M.Tech., M.Sc., Joint M.Sc.-Ph.D., Joint M.Tech.-Ph.D., M.Des., Ph.D., etc. with different admission procedure and criteria not falling under the purview of JEE (Advanced).
 

However, not all the listed programs and courses are available in all the institutes. The relevant programs and courses offered in the academic year 2025-26 are given in Annexure-III (COURSES OFFERED IN THE ACADEMIC YEAR). The programs that will be offered in the academic year 2025-26 wille announced by JoSAA 2026 during seat allocation (i.e. at the stage of filling in of choices for admission). An academic year usually starts in the month of July and ends in the month of June of the next year.

The programs are credit-based and thus offer the flexibility to progress at one’s own pace. A minimum level of performance is essential for satisfactory progress. The medium of instruction is English in all the programs.

All Indian nationals who satisfy the eligibility criteria [see Clause 11: ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA FOR INDIAN NATIONALS FOR APPEARING FOR JEE (ADVANCED) 2026] can appear for JEE (Advanced) 2026. The successful candidates meeting the Class XII (or equivalent) performance criterion [see Clause 26] are eligible for admission into IITs. While allotting seats, policies as per Government of India rules are followed, depending on candidates’ merit, category, and/or nationality. Foreign national candidates as also Overseas Citizen of India/Person of Indian Origin (OCI/PIO) candidates may appear for JEE (Advanced) 2026. The details of the eligibility criteria for them are available at https://jeeadv.ac.in/foreign.html

Reservation of Seats

Indian nationals belonging to certain categories are admitted under the seats reserved for them in accordance with the rules prescribed by the Government of India. The categories and the extent of reservation are as follows:

• General category candidates belonging to Economically Weaker Section (GEN-EWS) – 10% of seats in every course. The benefit of reservation will be given only to those General category candidates who satisfy the conditions given in the OM No. 20013/01/2018-BC-II dated January 17, 2019 issued by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment.
  • The criteria for GEN-EWS will be as per the prevailing norms and/or notifications of the Government of India.
• Other Backward Classes (OBC) candidates belonging to the Non-Creamy Layer (OBC-NCL) – 27% of seats in every course.
  • OBCs should be listed in the current updated central list of OBCs(http://www.ncbc.nic.in).
  • OBCs present in the state list but not covered in the central list of OBCs (as per the list in http://www.ncbc.nic.in) are NOT eligible to claim the reservation.
  • The criteria for Non-Creamy Layer (OBC-NCL) will be as per the notification of Government of India.
• Candidates belonging to the creamy layer of OBC are NOT entitled for reservation. Such candidates are treated as belonging to the general (GEN), i.e. unreserved category, and they will be eligible only for the OPEN seats – the seats for which all candidates are eligible.
• Scheduled Caste (SC) – 15% of seats in every course.
• Scheduled Tribe (ST) – 7.5% of seats in every course.
  • The benefit of reservation will be given only to those castes and tribes that are mentioned in the respective central list of corresponding states published by the Government of India (websites: https://socialjustice.gov.in) and https://ncst.nic.in).
  • Persons with Disability (PwD) with at least 40% impairment – 5% seats in each of OPEN, GEN-EWS, OBC-NCL, SC, and ST category seats. (https://lddashboard.legislative.gov.in/sites/default/files/A2016- 49_1.pdf)
  • Candidates with at least 40% impairment irrespective of the type of disability i.e. locomotor, visual or SEVERE dyslexic shall be eligible for the benefits of PwD sub-category.
  • Leprosy-cured candidates who are otherwise fit to pursue the courses are also included in PwD sub-category.
• Candidates belonging to the GEN-EWS, OBC-NCL, SC, ST, and PwD categories/sub-categories will be declared as qualified on the basis of a relaxed criterion

 

The category of a candidate as entered in the database, which will be made available by the JEE Apex Board [which conducts the JEE (Main) 2026 examination], will be final and shall remain the same in JEE (Advanced) 2026 examination. Requests for change of category will NOT be entertained.

Candidates must note that the benefit of reservation will be given to them subject to verification of documents (and an additional physical verification at one of the IITs for candidates belonging to PwD category). If it is discovered at any stage that a candidate has used a false / fake / incorrect document, or has furnished false, incorrect or incomplete information, in order to avail the benefit of reservation, then such a candidate shall be excluded from all admission processes. In case such a candidate has already been given admission, the admission shall stand cancelled

 

Defence Service Candidates

Defence Service (DS) candidates are children of defence/paramilitary personnel killed or permanently disabled in action during war or peacetime operations1 Two seats are available for preferential allotment in each Institute for DS candidates. To avail this preferential allotment, a DS candidate must be in the Common Rank List of JEE (Advanced) 2026

 

Supernumerary Seats for Female Candidates

Following the directions of the Ministry of Education, Government of India2, and the decision taken by the IIT Council, supernumerary seats have been created for female candidates for improving the gender balance in the undergraduate programs in IITs. These supernumerary seats will be offered (a) to only those female candidates (Indian nationals and OCI/PIO candidates who have secured the OCI/PIO card before 04.03.2021) who are declared qualified in JEE (Advanced) 2026, and, (b) strictly based on the performance in JEE (Advanced) 2026.

The number of supernumerary seats in various programs will be decided by individual IITs ensuring that every institute has at least 20% female enrolment in undergraduate program(s). The detailed procedure for implementation of the above shall be set out in the Business Rules of JoSAA 2026 (which will be made available subsequently on https://josaa.nic.in)

Foreign Nationals and OCI/PIO Candidates

Foreign Nationals

Candidates who are NOT citizens of India (by birth or naturalized) (but not OCI/PIO candidates who have secured OCI/PIO card on or after 04.03.2021) shall be considered as foreign nationals. Seats allotted to such foreign national candidates are supernumerary with a cap of 10% of total number of seats in every course. These candidates are outside the ambit of reservation of seats under the GEN-EWS, OBC-NCL, SC, ST, and PwD categories/sub-categories, as specified herein. There are no separate supernumerary seats or sub-category for females in the foreign national supernumerary seats.

The foreign national candidates, at the time of registering for JEE (Advanced) 2026 are NOT required to write JEE (Main) 2026 and may register for JEE (Advanced) 2026 directly subject to fulfilment of other eligibility criteria (for details foreign candidates may refer to https://jeeadv.ac.in/foreign.html)

 

OCI/PIO Candidates

As per the decision dated February 03, 2023 passed by the Hon'ble Supreme Court of India in Writ Petition (Civil) 891 / 20213, the OCI/PIO candidates who have secured OCI/PIO card before 04.03.2021 shall be considered as Indian nationals.

At the time of seat allocation, the OCI/PIO candidates who have secured OCI/PIO card before 04.03.2021 shall be considered for the seats in the OPEN category3 . These OCI/PIO candidates shall be included in the Common Rank List (CRL), and/or CRL-PwD list as also for the Female Supernumerary seats, as applicable, subject to qualifying the JEE (Advanced) 2024 [see Clause 22: Rank List]. These OCI/PIO candidates are NOT entitled to the benefit of reservation under the GEN-EWS, OBC-NCL, SC or ST categories for the allocation of seats.

Other Institutes admitting using JEE (Advanced) rank

Some centrally funded institutes (listed below) have used JEE (Advanced) ranks in the past. These include:

• Indian Institute of Science, Bengaluru
• Indian Institutes of Science Education and Research (IISERs) located in Berhampur, Bhopal, Kolkata, Mohali, Pune, Thiruvananthapuram, and Tirupati
• Indian Institute of Space Science and Technology (IIST), Thiruvananthapuram
• Rajiv Gandhi Institute of Petroleum Technology (RGIPT), Rae Bareli
• Indian Institute of Petroleum & Energy (IIPE), Visakhapatnam

Candidates should contact these institutes directly for additional information regarding admission.
 

FAQs on IITs (Indian Institutes of Technology):

 
1. What are IITs?
The Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) are autonomous public technical and research universities in India, known for world-class engineering, technology, and management education.
 
2. How many IITs are there in India?
As of 2025, there are 23 IITs spread across India, including IIT Bombay, IIT Delhi, IIT Madras, IIT Kanpur, and newer ones like IIT Bhilai and IIT Goa.
 
3. How can I get admission into an IIT?
Admission to IITs is mainly through the JEE (Joint Entrance Examination):

• JEE Main (preliminary exam, conducted by NTA).
• JEE Advanced (conducted by one of the IITs, required for final admission).

 
4. What are the popular courses offered at IITs?
IITs offer a variety of programs such as:

• B.Tech (Bachelor of Technology)
• M.Tech (Master of Technology)
• Dual Degree (B.Tech + M.Tech)
• MBA (through CAT in some IITs)
• PhD and Research programs

 
5. Which is the best IIT in India?
The top IITs as per NIRF rankings usually include IIT Madras, IIT Delhi, IIT Bombay, IIT Kanpur, and IIT Kharagpur.
 
6. What is the difficulty level of JEE Advanced?
JEE Advanced is considered one of the toughest entrance exams in the world due to its high competition and the analytical level of questions.
 
7. What is the campus life like at IITs?
Campus life at IITs is vibrant with world-class facilities, technical and cultural fests (like IIT Bombay’s Mood Indigo), sports, innovation hubs, and entrepreneurship cells.
 
8. Do IITs provide good placement opportunities?
Yes. IITs are famous for excellent placements. Top recruiters include Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Goldman Sachs, Tata, Reliance, and many global companies offering high salary packages.
 
9. Are IITs only for engineering students?
While IITs are mainly known for engineering, they also offer science, design, management, and humanities programs (like BS in Economics, MSc, MBA, and PhD).
 
10. What is the global recognition of IITs?
IITs are globally recognized, with alumni excelling in top universities, multinational companies, research labs, and even as CEOs of companies like Google (Sundar Pichai) and Adobe (Shantanu Narayen).