Every March in Gujarat, the same story unfolds – a student steps out from the exam hall, where their board exams have been held, their parents waiting outside, questioning "kitna aayu?" (how much did you score?). Here's the harsh reality that people don't want to admit in the tuition classes: skills over marks 2026 isn't just a slogan but is the actual way the recruiters in India are screening resumes today. A student scoring 90 percent marks without the practical knowledge to resolve a problem is slowly being overlooked in favor of a student scoring 65 percent marks and who can do the job.
The Shift to Skills Over Marks in 2026: What the Data Actually Shows
This is no mere gut instinct; this is starting to reflect in recruitment statistics. According to the HirePro State of College Hiring in India 2026, only 21% of companies are using the skills-based approach for their recruitment purposes. However, this statistic is only half the truth because 42% of the companies are in transition from the use of CGPA in shortlisting and 51% consider CGPA when making decisions, which means marks have finally joined other criteria in the same room.
Consider how the recruiters themselves spend their time. In Unstop's 2026 survey about the campus hiring process, 64% of HR managers have mentioned that "they now consider the abilities related to AI/ML, data, and cloud skills" instead of a degree to be "the definition of top talent," and when they were asked what they look for, problem-solving (49%), AI/ML (39%), and emotional intelligence (30%) topped the list; "marks" is not there in the list.
Now comes the part which should bother any parent who worries about rankings: the demand for freshers is not the issue. According to 73% of companies, they would recruit freshers during the first six months of 2026 – but simultaneously 84% of students were not placed. This difference is what really matters. The companies need candidates; they simply do not need those candidates with a mark sheet as their only qualification.
The figures on employability even at the wider level confirm this fact. The report ‘India Skills Report 2026’ shows that overall graduate employability had gone up to around 56.35%, which was nearly a 10% increase in four years, but this was not due to better CGPA but to the skills gained.
CGPA vs Skills Hiring: Why Gujarat's Engineering Obsession Is Losing Its Grip
The state of Gujarat has one of the most rigorous engineering admission funnels with GUJCET, ACPC counseling, and the age-old culture of believing that having a B.Tech is equivalent to having a "settled life." Yet, what is happening to this funnel across the nation? Even in the counselling for the year 2025 for Karnataka, more than 17,190 engineering seats remain vacant despite several rounds of admission, with conventional streams such as Civil and Mechanical Engineering losing out whereas new age fields like Artificial Intelligence and Data Science remaining popular. In Goa, one government-run engineering institution could not even fill 25% of its total seats despite easy eligibility criteria, resulting in the comment that "students are unwilling to spend years and money for a degree that may lead nowhere."
Here lies the issue of skills versus CGPA in action in the actual admissions halls rather than in LinkedIn statuses. The youth of Gujarat are beginning to ask the question that should always have been asked: what next? Getting into the lecture hall is one thing – getting through the interview room in 2026 will require proof of your skills.
However, this does not imply that engineering and academics cease to be relevant fields. The Computer Science and IT graduates continue to rank among the most employable graduates in India. However, even in these technical streams, the important criterion shifts from how good your marks were to what you have accomplished.
Employability Skills India Actually Rewards in 2026
If not CGPA, then what? Based on the actual criteria used by recruiters this year, there are four skills worth considering:
- Practical problem solving – real life problems, not just textbook exercises, without a single solution. The most common criterion named first in the Unstop survey by 49% of HR executives.
- Competence with AI and ML tools – "I can use AI" instead of "I heard about ChatGPT". Now, knowledge of artificial intelligence and machine learning tools is mentioned in 60-70% of job ads for freshers, both technical and non-technical.
- Emotional intelligence and communication – how a candidate works with uncertainties, feedback, and cooperation – tested increasingly through group tasks.
- Practical proof of work – internships, case studies, portfolios, and achievements that prove that a candidate is ready to take responsibilities right away.
It is exactly for this reason that career guidance programs and organizations such as Expert Educare have started moving from “achieve a top percentile” to “create a portfolio that will be visible to a recruiter by your parents and you.” An interesting way to look at it using psychology: marks indicate your performance based on certain criteria during an examination conducted once a year. Skills indicate your behavior when you have no answer key – just as it is in any job.
What Employers Look For 2026: The Practical Shift for Students
For all students (and parents reading this over your kids' shoulders):
- Stop regarding internships as something that can be skipped: In light of internships being the key means of hiring, and only 16% of organizations managing to hire more than 80% of interns on a full-time basis, an internship cannot merely be seen as a resume filler; it is often the real interview.
- Make one good project that people can see, rather than several poor unfinished projects: One completed project application, analysis of data, or problem solved by means of a spreadsheet is worth far more than any additional percentage point.
- Know how to work with AI tools strategically: Recruiters do not ask you if you have "ever heard about AI."
- Practice getting yourself evaluated in real-time, not just in writing: More group discussions, cases, and skill evaluations will soon take the place of straight resume shortlisting, particularly at GCCs and startups.
- Be honest about your weaknesses yourself: Students who progress the quickest are those who actually know what specific skills they lack, not just that they need to "study harder."
None of this is to say that marks do not matter. A good academic track record remains essential as an initial qualifier and for setting campus recruitment cut-offs. However, in 2026, it is your marks sheet that gets you consideration. It is your skill that gets you the job.
Conclusion
It's not that CGPA is your arch nemesis. It was just never the complete solution. With 2026 on the horizon, recruiters from all companies in India, even from the recruiters in Gujarat's own campuses, will be looking for what a candidate really does rather than the marks. It's good news actually. If a student scored badly in their board exams but made something meaningful through a project, an internship, or mastered working with AI, they have something to show for themselves – perhaps even more than that topper, who never proved their worth other than by scoring.
The real message in 2026 therefore isn't "don't study." It is "don't stop with your studies." Use your mark sheet as the ticket to the party and devote the time you would have otherwise used to get that last percent somewhere else.
Want to get hired in 2026 but confused how? Register here for a one on one session with Expert Educare today! Let's us help you in turning skills into real asset.