India's competitive exam coaching market set to hit $23-26 billion by FY30

New Delhi, Aug 13 (AHN) Amid huge surge in digital connectivity, winners of India's main competitive exams are largely from few institutions, and the gap could reshape India’s test preparation market projected to reach $23–26 billion by FY30, a report said on Thursday.

The growth will be supported by a larger aspirant base, deeper penetration of organised preparation and rising spend per student, the report from Redseer Strategy Consultants.

“A decade of digital expansion has put test preparation within reach of millions of Indian students, but the country’s top ranks remain concentrated among a relatively small group of institutions,” the report said.

JEE and NEET aspirants together account for nearly 70 per cent of the undergraduate entrance preparation market, with families often committing several years and significant household spend to coaching.

Success rates for the most sought‑after outcomes remain roughly 1 per cent for IIT admissions and 3 per cent for preferred government medical seats, making past performance a critical factor for serious aspirants.

Among offline aspirants, 57 per cent ranked faculty quality among their top three considerations, while 44 per cent ranked past results among their top three considerations.

Aspirants targeting ranks below 1,000 placed even greater emphasis on faculty and results where 59 per cent cited faculty quality and 51 per cent cited past results.

"This creates an opportunity to use technology much more deeply, from identifying learning gaps to improving testing and intervention. The institutes that can combine academic rigour with this intelligence at scale will be well placed to earn the trust of the next generation of aspirants," said Mukesh Kumar, Associate Partner, Redseer Strategy Consultants.

Students use peer conversations, institute data, topper interviews and other sources to examine result claims before enrolling. This scrutiny becomes complex when the same rank holder may have had different relationships with several institutes through classroom programmes, test series or shorter courses.

Credible results carry more weight for institutes when students can trace them back to sustained academic involvement.

The report said that 71 per cent of surveyed Tier 1 aspirants and 67 per cent of Tier 2+ aspirants outside major preparation hubs are unwilling to relocate.

The annual cost of studying in established hubs is estimated at Rs 2.5–2.8 lakh, compared with Rs 1.1–1.4 lakh in non-hub cities, with accommodation, food and relocation accounting for much of the difference.

—AHN

aar/pk