Only 9% of India's finance aspirants feel ready to compete in AI-driven job market: Study
The study found that the gap in AI readiness was the widest difference between the two groups. About 56% of Indian respondents said AI and automation were making it slightly or much harder to get their desired job. This was close to the 59% of global graduates who saw AI as a barrier of some kind.
Only 9% of India's finance aspirants feel their current skills are sufficient to compete in an AI-driven job market, according to the Finance Talent Pulse 2026 study. This contrasts sharply with 67% of global graduates who believe their skills are adequate, the study found. Indian respondents were notably less optimistic about the impact of AI and automation, with 56% stating it was making job acquisition more difficult, compared to 59% globally.
The study revealed a significant lack of practical AI usage among Indian finance aspirants. Only 7% reported regularly using AI tools for real financial analysis or modeling, while 42% had never used AI in professional finance work. Furthermore, 26% of respondents claimed their exam preparation did not teach AI application in finance, indicating a gap in practical education.
Concerns among Indians were primarily centered around a lack of hands-on experience, with 42% ranking this as their top worry, followed by 35% citing a need for better financial modeling skills and 18% expressing concern about AI tool proficiency.
Sanjay Saraf, Founder and Lead Educator at SSEI, emphasized that the 9% figure versus 67% globally highlights a broader educational mismatch. He stated that financial courses and certifications need to evolve faster to prepare students for an AI-driven job market. Saraf pointed out that while 89% of Indians valued professional certifications over postgraduate degrees, 100% believed continual skill enhancement was crucial.
This underscores the urgent need for more practical AI training, applied exercises, and real-world financial problem-solving in finance education, the study concluded.
Written by urgent.news from Economic Times Tech's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
