56% of Indian companies plan to hire more Company Secretaries, Chartered accountants: Survey

CA and CS candidates record the highest net hiring intent at +45 points. Interns follow at +20 points, while the “Others” category stands at +17. Non-engineers (+7) and diploma holders (+5) show only mildly positive hiring intent.

Lateral hiring — recruiting experienced professionals from other organisations — is evenly split, with 40 per cent of organisations planning to increase and 40 per cent planning to reduce such hiring. Engineers are slightly negative at minus 4 points, with 40 per cent of organisations planning cuts compared with 36 per cent planning increases.

MBAs are at the bottom, at minus 10. Some 44 per cent of firms plan to reduce MBA hiring, while 34 per cent plan to add. For most segments, then, plans are mixed. For CA, CS, very few firms are pulling back.

Is it only about interns?

Not really. The entry route for CA, CS is already well used.

About 91 per cent of organisations hire CA-CS interns. That is close to the 94 per cent for BTech, MTech and 93 per cent for MBA. It matches the figures for BA, BCom or BSc and MA, MCom or MSc graduates, also at 91 per cent.

The conversion of interns into full-time hires looks similar. Some 82 per cent of organisations extend pre-placement interviews or offers to CA and CS interns. MBAs are marginally ahead at 85 per cent, followed by BA, BCom or BSc at 83 per cent. BTech and MTech stand at 81 per cent.

Where will the CAs come from?

The ICAI data on the CA Final exam adds the supply side. Registrations touched 132,007 in May 2017, the highest in the period covered. By May 2025, they had fallen to 99,466, a drop of about 25 per cent. The September 2025 attempt saw 81,852 registrations, nearly 38 per cent below the 2017 peak.

The number of candidates clearing the exam has been uneven. May 2024 saw 20,446 pass, the highest for any single attempt in the table. November 2024 saw 11,500. Together, the two attempts in 2024 produced 31,946 new CAs.

The two 2025 attempts listed, May and September, produced 25,713, about 20 per cent fewer. The table has no later attempt for 2025, so this covers only those two.

Who is sitting the exam has also changed. Women accounted for about 35 per cent of registrations in May 2015 (43,488 of 123,152). By May 2025, their share was about 41 per cent (41,009 of 99,466). The September 2025 attempt was also near 41 per cent.

In other words, the overall pool has shrunk, but women make up a larger part of it than a decade ago.

What the findings mean for the hiring market

The report, at its core, is about how hiring intent differs across qualifications. CA, CS stands out as the most favoured segment, with more than half of organisations planning to hire more and few planning to cut. Engineers, MBAs and laterals see a more divided response.

It also shows that the CA, CS route is not new or experimental. Internships and pre-placement offers are as common as for the more established degrees.

Set against the ICAI figures, the picture becomes sharper. Companies plan to hire more CAs and CSs, while fewer candidates are registering for the CA Final. The number clearing the exam has swung from one attempt to the next, rising in 2024 and easing in 2025. Demand is rising, while the pool of CA aspirants is getting smaller.