The same thing happens every year in thousands of small towns and big cities in India. A new graduate with a degree and big dreams walks out of college and right into a coaching center. Not for work. Not for a new business. But to get ready for a test given by the government. For a long time. For some years. This is what life is like after college in India now, and it’s a story that needs to be understood well.
The numbers are true; the scale is shocking.
Let’s start with the facts, because the numbers are really shocking.
In 2024 alone, about 13.4 lakh students took the UPSC Prelims. Of these, only 14,627 passed the Mains, and in the end, only 0.2% of all candidates passed the exam.
That means that every year, about 13 lakh people study hard for months and then go home empty-handed after taking just one test.
UPSC is only the beginning. Add SSC CGL, IBPS PO, SBI PO, RRB, State PSC exams, and hundreds of other government job openings, and the number of people who want to work for the government goes up by several crore every year. The crisis is so bad that in 2024, more than 46,000 graduates and postgraduates in Haryana applied for sanitation jobs, and 12,000 professionals in Rajasthan fought for just 18 peon jobs. In 2024, the World Bank says that 13.47% of people with higher education will be unemployed. Unemployment is almost nonexistent among people who can’t read or write. This is a painful paradox that economists call the “queuing” phenomenon. It happens when educated workers wait for formal sector jobs that match their skills and don’t want to take anything else. Middle
What Makes Graduates Choose This Path?
1. Job security like no other
In a country where people lose their jobs in the private sector overnight, a government job feels like a permanent anchor. Once you’re in, you’re in, unless something big happens. That feeling of stability is very appealing, especially in smaller cities where there aren’t many private jobs.
- Pay, benefits, and social standing
A government job doesn’t just pay you; it also provides you a housing allowance, medical benefits, a pension, and often, a place to live. In Indian culture, a “sarkari naukri” is still well-respected. It’s a source of pride for families. It’s almost gold for marriage alliances. - Getting ready makes you really smart
History, geography, economics, current events, politics, and science are all subjects that students study for the UPSC or SSC. It’s wonderful how much you learn. Many aspirants become very aware citizens, understanding governance, society, and India’s place in the world in ways that most graduates never do. - Equal Chance
Anyone can take government exams, and they are based on merit. A student from a small village in Bihar and a student from South Delhi are both taking the same test. The reservations make sure that everyone is treated fairly. For many people from underprivileged backgrounds, this is the only fair place they’ve ever been.
The Dark Side: The Bad Things That No One Talks About Enough
- Years of Life on Hold
Many people who want to become something spend three to seven years getting ready. That’s years without a job, without professional experience, and without making a career. If they don’t make it, they’ll be in their late 20s with a degree, coaching certificates, and almost no work history that employers will want to hire them for. The private sector doesn’t like this gap. - The Mental Health Toll Is Real: NCRB data from 2023 shows that 14,000 unemployed young people in India killed themselves. Even the strongest minds can break under the stress of failing repeatedly, meeting family expectations, relying on money, and watching friends get ahead. It is well known that people who want to take government exams are depressed and anxious, but the issue of their mental health is not often talked about.
- The mismatch of skills gets worse over time.
The India Skills Report 2025 shows that employability is completely unique for different degrees: 71% of MBA graduates, 60% of B.Tech graduates, and only 45% of Bachelor of Arts graduates. A medium-A student who spends five years getting ready for the UPSC instead of working in their field often finds that their technical skills are out of date and their industry knowledge is rusty if they later switch to the private sector. - There Aren’t Enough Seats UPSC usually only accepts about 1,000 applicants each year for IAS, IPS, and other related jobs. Chegg India: Millions want those thousand seats. The math is hard and unforgiving.
What Needs to Be Different?
It isn’t appropriate to tell young Indians to stop dreaming about government jobs. That dream shows that they need stability and respect. The real solution is to make more good private sector jobs available, improve campus placements, and change the exam schedule so that people don’t have to wait two years between attempts. InsightsIAS says that the average new Indian graduate makes only ₹3–4 lakh a year in the private sector, which hasn’t changed in almost ten years. This is why government jobs are still so appealing.
Indian graduates who want to take government exams aren’t lazy or unambitious. It’s a story about making smart choices in a job market that doesn’t make sense.
Are you or someone you know getting ready for a government test? What have you been through? Please share in the comments! 👇or Contact Us