RTI for campus placement data — company-wise offer records

Ananya, a Class-12 pass-out from Nagpur district in Maharashtra, is staring at two admission letters. Both are for B.E. Computer Science at AICTE-approved engineering colleges. College A's glossy brochure shouts “100% placement, highest package Rs.42 LPA, average Rs.14 LPA.” College B publishes no placement data at all, only a fee schedule asking for Rs.1.2 lakh as the first-semester instalment. Her father, a government schoolteacher, has saved for years. He wants to know one thing before he writes the cheque: is the number on the brochure the number on the register?

This is the question thousands of Indian families ask every admission season, and almost none can answer. The brochure is a marketing document. The placement register, maintained by the Training and Placement Officer (TPO), is an official record of the institute. The gap between the two is where careers and savings disappear. A college that claims “average Rs.14 LPA” may be reporting the mean of a handful of dream offers while half the batch sits unplaced. A “100% placement” figure may count a one-month internship as a job.

The Right to Information Act, 2005 gives Ananya a way to close that gap. She can ask the public authority that holds the register, or the regulator that collects the data, for the actual numbers. This guide shows her exactly how, using only verified facts about the law, the regulators and the ranking framework as they stand in 2026.

Campus placement data is the set of records an institute keeps about what happened to its graduating batch: how many students registered for placements, how many were placed, how many were not, which companies came, how many offers each company made, and what the salary figures looked like. The register is maintained by the TPO and signed off by the head of the institute.

Three layers of public authority hold this data, and knowing which layer to approach is the key to a successful RTI.

Layer 1 — The institute itself, when it is a public authority. Institutions of national importance and centrally-funded technical institutions qualify as “public authorities” under Section 2(h) of the RTI Act, 2005 because they are bodies established by an Act of Parliament and substantially financed by the Government of India. This covers the 23 IITs, 31 NITs, 20 IIMs, the IIITs, AIIMS and the Central Universities. For these, the CPIO of the institute is the right addressee, and the application goes through the Central portal rtionline.gov.in (verified live on 4 July 2026).

Layer 2 — AICTE, for the data private colleges submit to it. The All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) is a statutory body established under the AICTE Act, 1987, and sits under the Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education, Government of India. Its headquarters are at Nelson Mandela Marg, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi-110070. A private AICTE-approved college is not a public authority in its own right, but the placement data it must file with AICTE every year is held by AICTE, which is. That is the route.

Layer 3 — The affiliating State public university. Where a private college is a constituent or grant-in-aid unit of a State public university, the university itself is a public authority under the relevant State RTI Act, and its State SPIO can be asked for the placement records of its affiliated units.

The 2025 Indian Express investigation that filed RTI applications with all 23 IITs for BTech placement figures for 2024-25, and got 19 IITs to furnish data, is the clearest proof that this route works in practice. The replies showed placements rose at 14 IITs in 2024-25 but remained below the 2021-22 peak. If the IITs disclose under RTI, so should every other public-funded institute.

To ask a sharp question, you need to know what the institute is already supposed to report. Two regulatory machines collect placement data every year, and both create records you can ask for.

The AICTE Mandatory Disclosure. Under the AICTE Approval Process Handbook 2024-27 (the three-year handbook that governs the 2026-27 approval cycle, there being no separate 2026 handbook), every AICTE-approved institution must publish on its website, under Annexure-18, clause 18.16, the “enrolment and placement details of students in the last 3 years.” The disclosure must be freely accessible, and the onus of authenticity is on the institution. This is the statutory hook that makes even a private AICTE-approved college's placement numbers disclosable, because the college must file the same data with AICTE.

The NIRF Graduation Outcomes return. The National Institutional Ranking Framework (NIRF), run by the Ministry of Education, ranks institutions partly on placement data. For the Engineering category, the Graduation Outcomes (GO) parameter carries 100 marks, which is 20% of the overall weight. It has two placement sub-metrics. GPH (Placement and Higher Studies, 40 marks) measures Np, the percentage of graduating students placed over the previous three years. GMS (Median Salary, 25 marks) measures MS, the median salary of placed graduates over the previous three years. Crucially, institutions must provide company names, the number of students recruited by each company, and the maximum, minimum and median salary per company. For the Colleges category, GO carries 25% weight, with GMS worth 20 marks.

This means the company-wise, salary-wise data most families want already exists in a structured form in the institute's NIRF return. Asking the CPIO for “the placement data submitted to NIRF for the last three academic years, including the company-wise GMS sheet” is a precise, hard-to-refuse request.

The most recent officially published NIRF framework is the 2025 framework, which carries into the 2026 ranking cycle. The metrics above, GPH and GMS with company-wise salary breakdowns, are the current basis. Do not assume a “NIRF 2026 framework” has introduced new sub-metrics unless and until the 2026 PDF is published on nirfindia.org. The 2025 framework PDFs at nirfindia.org/nirfpdfcdn/2025/framework/Engineering.pdf and …/Colleges.pdf are the verifiable source.

On the AICTE side, the Approval Process Handbook 2024-27 remains the governing document for the 2026-27 approval cycle. The Mandatory Disclosure obligation under Annexure-18, clause 18.16 is live and enforceable for the current cycle. If an institute's website does not show three years of placement details in a freely accessible page, that is itself a Section 4 proactive-disclosure failure you can cite in your RTI.

The bigger 2026 reality is the placement market itself. The Indian Express RTI replies from 19 IITs confirmed that 2024-25 placements rose at 14 IITs but stayed below the 2021-22 peak. That means brochures quoting 2021-22 highs as if they were current are misleading, and an RTI asking for the last three years of branch-wise data will surface the trend, not just a snapshot.

Step 1 — Identify the right public authority.

1. If the institute is an IIT, NIT, IIM, IIIT, AIIMS or Central University, file to its CPIO through the Central RTI portal rtionline.gov.in. The institute's own RTI page lists the CPIO's name and address.
2. If the institute is a private AICTE-approved college, file to CPIO, AICTE, Nelson Mandela Marg, Vasant Kunj, New Delhi-110070, through rtionline.gov.in, asking for the placement data the college submitted to AICTE in its Mandatory Disclosure and NIRF return.
3. If the institute is a State university or its affiliated college, file to the State SPIO under your State RTI Act through the State RTI portal.
4. If the college is a constituent or grant-in-aid unit of a State public university, file a parallel application to that university's SPIO.

Step 2 — Prepare your questions. Ask for specific, dated records, not vague “placement details.” Six strong questions:

1. “Furnish the branch-wise and programme-wise count of students registered for campus placements, placed (on-campus plus off-campus), and unplaced, for each of the last three academic years [YYYY-YY, YYYY-YY, YYYY-YY].”
2. “Furnish the company-wise list of offers made in Academic Year [YYYY-YY], with role designation and CTC band (max, min and median) per company, anonymised at the candidate level.”
3. “Furnish the median, mean and mode CTC of placed students, separately for on-campus and off-campus offers, for each of the last three academic years.”
4. “Furnish the internship-to-PPO (Pre-Placement Offer) conversion count and rate for Academic Year [YYYY-YY].”
5. “Furnish the certified copy of the Placement Policy adopted by the institute, including the definition of 'dream offer' and 'second offer'.”
6. “Furnish the placement data submitted to NIRF under the Graduation Outcomes parameter (GPH and GMS sheets, company-wise) and to AICTE under Annexure-18 clause 18.16 of the Approval Process Handbook 2024-27, for the last three academic years.”

Step 3 — Use the right form and fee.

1. For Central public authorities (IITs, NITs, IIMs, AICTE), use the standard RTI application format under Section 6(1) of the RTI Act, 2005. The fee is Rs.10, payable online through the Central RTI portal rtionline.gov.in by debit or credit card, or by Indian Postal Order. BPL applicants are exempt on production of a valid BPL certificate under the Central RTI Rules, 2012.
2. For State universities, the fee and format vary by State RTI Rules; most States charge Rs.10 as well. Check your State's RTI Rules before filing.

Step 4 — Submit and keep proof. File online and save the registration number, or send by registered post and keep the acknowledgement. Proof of submission is your protection if the reply is delayed.

Step 5 — Wait 30 days. The CPIO must reply within 30 days of receiving your application under Section 7(1), extendable to 45 days under Section 7(2) only where third-party consultation is required. Campus placement aggregates do not normally attract the 45-day extension because the data is the institute's own record.

If you need help drafting the application, the free tool at https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/ai-rti-draft-app.html will turn your plain-language description into a ready-to-file Section 6(1) application with your name and address pre-filled.

RTI is powerful because it has a built-in ladder. If the CPIO ignores you, denies the data citing “commercial confidence,” or gives a vague reply, you do not stop there.

1. First appeal: If no reply comes within 30 days, or the reply is unsatisfactory, file a First Appeal under Section 19(1) with the First Appellate Authority (FAA) named in the institute's RTI page. Do this within 30 days of the expiry of the reply period. The FAA must decide within 30 days, extendable to 45.
2. Second appeal: If the FAA also fails you, file a Second Appeal under Section 19(3) with the Central Information Commission (for IITs, NITs, AICTE) or your State Information Commission (for State universities), within 90 days. There is no fee for a second appeal to the CIC.
3. Complaint under Section 18: You can also file a direct complaint to the Information Commission if the CPIO never replied at all or refused to accept your application.

The most common denial is under Section 8(1)(d) (commercial confidence, trade secrets). This exemption applies only where disclosure would harm a third party's competitive position. Company-level CTC figures that are publicly announced in offer letters and press releases do not attract this exemption, because they are already in the public domain. An appeal should say so. Named candidate-level data is protected under Section 8(1)(j), but aggregate and company-wise statistics are not personal information. The free tool at https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/first-appeal-app.html will draft the First Appeal for you.

1. A photocopy of your identity proof (Aadhaar, Voter ID, PAN or Passport) — required only for offline filings; the online portal validates identity digitally.
2. The BPL certificate, if you are claiming the fee waiver.
3. The Indian Postal Order or receipt for Rs.10, if filing offline by post.
4. A printout of the institute's brochure or website screenshot claiming “100% placement” or a specific average package, if you want the CPIO to compare the claim with the register.
5. The admission offer letter or fee receipt, if you are an admitted student asking about your own batch.

1. Filing to a private college's TPO directly. A private AICTE-approved college is not a public authority under Section 2(h). File to AICTE for the data the college submitted, or to the affiliating State university. The Check college affiliation — RTI to the university Registrar guide explains the affiliating-university route in detail.
2. Asking for individual student names. Named candidate-level data is personal information protected under Section 8(1)(j). Ask for company-wise and aggregate data instead, which is disclosable.
3. Not distinguishing 'offer' from 'joined'. A company may make 50 offers and have only 30 students join. Ask for both the offer count and the joined count.
4. Asking vague questions. “Give me placement details” gets you a brochure. Ask for named records with dates — the NIRF GMS sheet, the AICTE Annexure-18 disclosure, the company-wise offer register.
5. Forgetting the NIRF and AICTE returns. The institute's own placement register may be disorganised, but the structured data it filed with NIRF and AICTE is clean and comparable. Always ask for “the data submitted to NIRF and AICTE.”
6. Missing the internship-to-PPO metric. Some brochures count internships as placements. Asking for the internship-to-PPO conversion rate separates real jobs from summer stints.

To,
The Central Public Information Officer,
All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE),
Nelson Mandela Marg, Vasant Kunj,
New Delhi - 110070.

Subject: Application under Section 6(1) of the RTI Act, 2005, seeking
campus placement records of [College Name], [City, State], an AICTE-approved
institution, for the last three academic years.

Sir/Madam,

I, [Full Name], Indian citizen, residing at [Full Address], hereby
submit the following application under Section 6(1) of the Right to
Information Act, 2005.

Particulars of the information sought:

Institution: [College Name], [City, State]
AICTE Approval ID: [if known]
Programme: B.E. / B.Tech [Branch]
Academic years: [YYYY-YY], [YYYY-YY], [YYYY-YY]

Please furnish:

1. The branch-wise and programme-wise count of students registered
   for campus placements, placed (on-campus plus off-campus), and
   unplaced, for each of the last three academic years.

2. The company-wise list of offers made in each of the last three
   academic years, with role designation and the maximum, minimum and
   median CTC per company, anonymised at the candidate level.

3. The median, mean and mode CTC of placed students, separately for
   on-campus and off-campus offers, for each of the last three
   academic years.

4. The internship-to-PPO conversion count and rate for each of the
   last three academic years.

5. The placement data the institution submitted to AICTE under
   Annexure-18, clause 18.16 of the Approval Process Handbook 2024-27,
   for the last three academic years.

6. The placement data the institution submitted to NIRF under the
   Graduation Outcomes parameter (GPH and GMS sheets, company-wise)
   for the last three academic years.

7. The certified copy of the Placement Policy adopted by the
   institution, including the definitions of 'dream offer' and
   'second offer'.

8. The name and designation of the First Appellate Authority under
   Section 19(1) of the RTI Act, 2005.

I state that the information sought does not attract the exemptions
under Section 8(1)(d) or 8(1)(j), as company-wise CTC figures are
already publicly announced in offer letters and press releases, and
the request is for aggregate and company-wise statistics, not named
candidate-level data.

I have paid the application fee of Rs.10 through the online RTI
portal (transaction reference No. __________).

I declare that I am a citizen of India.

Yours faithfully,
[Signature]
[Name]
[Date]
[Place]

For offline filings, replace the online transaction reference with “I enclose Indian Postal Order No. __ for Rs.10.” The free tool at https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/ai-rti-draft-app.html generates this letter with your details pre-filled, and https://righttoinformation.wiki/tools/pio-reply-checker-app.html checks the CPIO's reply against the Act when it arrives.

A private AICTE-approved college is not a public authority under Section 2(h) of the RTI Act, so it can refuse an RTI filed to it directly. But the placement data it submitted to AICTE under the Mandatory Disclosure, and to NIRF under the Graduation Outcomes parameter, is held by AICTE, which is a public authority. File to CPIO, AICTE, and you will get the data the college itself reported.

No. Named candidate-level data is personal information protected under Section 8(1)(j) of the RTI Act. You are entitled to aggregate and company-wise statistics, branch-wise counts, and salary bands, but not the names of individual students or their personal offer letters.

Section 8(1)(d) exempts commercial confidence and trade secrets, but only where disclosure would harm a third party's competitive position. Company-level CTC figures that are publicly announced in offer letters, campus placement press releases or company statements are already in the public domain and do not attract this exemption. If denied, appeal under Section 19(1) on this ground.

An offer is a commitment a company makes to a student during the placement process. 'Joined' means the student actually joined the company after accepting. Some companies make offers that are later withdrawn or not taken up. Always ask for both the offer count and the joined count to avoid overcounting.

A dream offer is a top-tier offer above a CTC threshold set by the institute's Placement Policy, usually allowing a student who already has one offer to sit for a higher-paying company. The exact definition varies by institute, which is why you should ask for the certified copy of the Placement Policy.

No. Any Indian citizen can file an RTI to any public authority for any reason. You do not need to be a student, parent or alumnus. Admission aspirants, journalists, researchers and concerned citizens all have the same right.

The CPIO must reply within 30 days under Section 7(1). Where third-party consultation is required under Section 7(2), the period extends to 45 days. Campus placement aggregates held in the institute's own register or its NIRF return do not normally attract the 45-day extension.

That is itself a violation. An AICTE-approved institute must maintain placement records to file its Mandatory Disclosure under Annexure-18, clause 18.16, and its NIRF Graduation Outcomes return. If the CPIO claims no register exists, file a First Appeal under Section 19(1) and a complaint under Section 18, because the institute is then in breach of its AICTE and NIRF obligations as well as the RTI Act.

Yes. Ask the CPIO for the on-campus and off-campus split separately, and for the verification mechanism the institute uses to verify off-campus offers. Some institutes count off-campus offers as 'placed' without verifying, which inflates the number.

Most States charge Rs.10, but a few differ. Check your State's RTI Rules before filing to a State university. The Central Rs.10 fee and the BPL waiver apply uniformly to IITs, NITs, IIMs, IIITs, AIIMS, Central Universities and AICTE under the Central RTI Rules, 2012.

1. Right to Information Act, 2005 — Sections 2(h), 4(1)(b), 6(1), 7(1), 7(2), 8(1)(d), 8(1)(j), 10, 19(1), 19(3): [rtionline.gov.in](https://rtionline.gov.in)
2. Central RTI Rules, 2012 (fee schedule, BPL waiver): [cic.gov.in](https://cic.gov.in)
3. AICTE — All India Council for Technical Education, statutory body under the AICTE Act, 1987, Department of Higher Education, Ministry of Education: [aicte-india.org](https://www.aicte-india.org) and [education.gov.in](https://www.education.gov.in/en/all-india-council-technical-education-aicte)
4. AICTE Approval Process Handbook 2024-27 — Mandatory Disclosure, Annexure-18, clause 18.16 (enrolment and placement details of students in the last 3 years): [aicte-india.org](https://www.aicte-india.org/bureaus/approval/approval-process-2024-25)
5. NIRF Engineering Framework 2025 — Graduation Outcomes, GPH and GMS sub-metrics: [nirfindia.org](https://www.nirfindia.org/nirfpdfcdn/2025/framework/Engineering.pdf)
6. NIRF Colleges Framework 2025 — Graduation Outcomes: [nirfindia.org](https://www.nirfindia.org/nirfpdfcdn/2025/framework/Colleges.pdf)
7. The Indian Express — “14 IITs report increase in BTech placements for 2024-25, yet figures remain below 2021-22 peak: RTI” (RTI to all 23 IITs, 19 furnished data): [indianexpress.com](https://indianexpress.com/article/education/iit-btech-placements-rise-in-2024-25-but-still-below-pre-slump-2021-22-levels-jeemain-2026-advanced-10382635/)
8. IIT Hyderabad RTI reply (17 May 2023) referencing company-wise placement data: [iith.ac.in](https://iith.ac.in/assets/files/pdf/rti/2023/30.Reply.pdf)
9. Central RTI online portal: [rtionline.gov.in](https://rtionline.gov.in)

1. RTI for AICTE approval status
2. RTI for college affiliation
3. RTI for college admission rejection
4. RTI for degree verification
5. RTI for hostel fees breakdown
6. RTI for students and youth
7. Campus placement offer withdrawn after acceptance

Last reviewed: 5 July 2026.