India’s higher education sector has recorded substantial growth in the number of institutions and students. However, around 34% of sanctioned teaching positions across centrally funded higher education institutions remain vacant, according to an analysis by SBI Research. The shortage is particularly significant at the professor level, highlighting a gap between the expansion of higher education infrastructure and the availability of experienced faculty.

The findings come as enrolment and institutional capacity continue to increase. SBI Research's assessment points to the need for higher public investment, faster faculty recruitment and stronger research and industry linkages as India seeks to expand access to higher education.

Higher Education Has Expanded Rapidly

The scale of India's higher education expansion is evident in the growth of institutions over the past decade. The number of universities increased from 723 in FY14 to 1,289 in FY24, while the number of colleges rose from 36,634 to 48,246. Standalone higher education institutions also increased from 11,664 to 15,221 during the period.

Student enrolment crossed 4.5 crore in FY24, with men and women accounting for nearly equal shares. Students from Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes and Other Backward Classes together represented about 62% of total enrolment.

Official All India Survey on Higher Education data similarly shows that total higher education enrolment reached around 4.50 crore in 2023-24, up from 3.42 crore in 2014-15. The number of teachers increased to 17.32 lakh during the same period, with women accounting for nearly 45% of the teaching workforce.

Faculty Shortage Remains A Major Concern

Despite the rise in the number of teachers, the SBI Research report identifies vacancies as a major challenge in centrally funded institutions.

Around one-third of sanctioned teaching posts remain vacant, with shortages particularly pronounced among professors. The issue is important because expanding student intake without a corresponding increase in faculty can place additional pressure on teaching, mentoring, research and institutional administration.

Data cited by PRS India shows that, as of December 2024, centrally funded institutions had 14,042 vacant positions out of 41,351 sanctioned teaching posts, equivalent to about 34%. IITs recorded a vacancy rate of around 39%, while IIITs had 54% and NITs 29%.

The government has also been pursuing recruitment drives. According to the Ministry of Education, more than 18,757 faculty positions had been filled across centrally funded higher education institutions through mission-mode recruitment up to May 23, 2026.

Research And Public Investment Also Need Attention

Faculty recruitment is only one part of the challenge identified by SBI Research. The report also highlighted the need for greater investment in research, stronger industry-academia connections and expanded vocational training.

The report noted that higher education's share of total government expenditure has remained around 1% in recent years, compared with 1.6% in FY18. SBI Research has suggested increasing this share to 1.5% while also addressing vacant teaching positions.

The concerns come against a broader push to make Indian universities more research-oriented and internationally competitive. Strengthening faculty capacity is therefore relevant not only to classroom teaching but also to research output, innovation and postgraduate education.

What Comes Next

SBI Research has proposed several broader reforms alongside addressing faculty vacancies. These include strengthening the National Testing Agency through statutory status, improving examination systems, reducing regional disparities in student-teacher ratios and expanding vocational education.

The report also noted that only 30.7% of Indians aged 15–29 had received or were receiving vocational training in 2025, although the figure had increased from 7.1% in 2018.

For India's higher education system, the central challenge is increasingly one of capacity as well as access. The expansion in universities, colleges and enrolment has created a larger education ecosystem, but sustaining its quality will depend partly on whether institutions can recruit and retain enough qualified faculty.