Cognizant to increase campus hiring in 2026, targets up to 25,000 fresh graduates
Cognizant plans to increase campus hiring in 2026, betting that AI-driven productivity will create more space for new graduates rather than cutting entry-level roles.
Even as fears are growing that artificial intelligence could harm IT jobs, Cognizant Technology Solutions is going in a different direction. The company is preparing to hire more young engineers next year, saying AI is helping new graduates become increasingly useful on projects, rather than pushing them out.
Cognizant plans to recruit around 24,000 to 25,000 freshers in 2026, following a steady rise in campus hiring this year. The move comes at a time when many IT companies are being cautious in adding people, especially at the entry level.
In 2025, Cognizant plans to hire around 20,000 fresh graduates. Most of them are already doing customer-facing work, while a small group is still in training. The company says this quick transition from classes to actual projects has encouraged it to aim higher for next year.
The appointment plan was outlined after the company announced its latest quarterly results. Chief Financial Officer Jatin Dalal said the company expects new hires to grow by about 20 percent in 2026. “We have hired around 20,000 school graduates in 2025. For the next year we plan to increase it by around 20%. So, we will be very happy to reach around 240000-25000 for 2026,” he said.
Cognizant’s management also addressed the growing debate around AI-related job losses. The company believes that instead of cutting entry-level roles, AI tools, automation and agent-based software are making it easier to break work into smaller tasks and assign them to junior teams. This allows newcomers to contribute quicker than the old delivery model.
Chief Executive Officer Ravi Kumar said partnerships with leading AI platforms are playing a big role in this transformation. “So our thesis is that as we continue our partnerships with Anthropic, Gemini, OpenAI, Microsoft and all the AI platforms, you will see that value can be taken down, distributed, and we can have a broader pyramid,” he said.
Company data supports this view. Over the past year, revenue generated per employee increased by approximately 5 percent, while profit per employee increased by approximately 8 percent. This shows that the company is achieving more output even without adding people as before.
Through 2025, Cognizant plans to add about 14,800 employees overall, increasing its workforce by about 4 percent. However, revenues grew faster, increasing by 6.4 percent in constant currency terms. The company added 1,800 employees in the December quarter alone.
Cognizant said it will continue to hire fresh graduates in markets such as India and the US. The focus is on teaching AI skills early and combining human effort with digital tools to support future growth. The hiring surge comes after the company beat its fourth-quarter revenue guidance, giving some confidence that its heavy investments in AI are starting to pay off, even if customers remain cautious about spending.
