FIITJEE Resilient Amid Faculty Poaching Crisis in the IIT-JEE Coaching Industry

X: @ImVivekShukla

New Delhi: Education is traditionally regarded as a noble profession, where ethical conduct and student welfare take precedence. However, the coaching industry has seen the rise of unethical practices, particularly faculty poaching, which has momentarily disrupted FIITJEE—one of India’s top IIT-JEE coaching institutes.

Despite these challenges, FIITJEE, under the leadership of IIT Delhi alumnus Director D.K. Goyal, remains the preferred choice for over 2 lakh aspirants. The coaching industry itself is valued at nearly $20 billion, making it a highly competitive space. According to FIITJEE officials, rival coaching institutes have been resorting to poaching their faculty in an attempt to falsely claim credit for student successes.

FIITJEE officials allege that certain competitors have engaged in large-scale faculty poaching and student manipulation, misleading students into associating with them after the JEE Main exam. “They poach our faculty to fraudulently claim results they haven’t been able to achieve for decades,” an FIITJEE representative stated.

Unlike its competitors, FIITJEE asserts that it refrains from hiring faculty from rival coaching institutes or poaching students. IIT Delhi alumnus and physics teacher Prem Bhutani warns that such unethical practices threaten the integrity of IIT-JEE coaching and must be curbed.

Recently, at least eight FIITJEE centers in North India were abruptly shut due to mass faculty resignations caused by aggressive recruitment from rival institutes. However, the disruptions were short-lived, and all FIITJEE centers have resumed normal operations.

Since its founding, FIITJEE has been a powerhouse of success in IIT-JEE coaching. By 1997—just five years after its inception—it had already produced the national topper in IIT-JEE (now JEE Advanced) along with the highest number of selections from its long-duration classroom programs. Over the past 28 years, it has consistently dominated rankings, securing the highest number of top-10, top-20, and top-100 selections in JEE Advanced. Notably, it remains the only institute in India to achieve Rank 1, 2, and 3 simultaneously from its classroom programs—twice.

Faculty poaching—when institutions lure away professors or educators from competitors—can have significant consequences. It destabilises institutions, disrupts academic continuity, and creates uncertainty for students. Coaching institutes that engage in aggressive poaching prioritise short-term gains over genuine academic excellence.

While some argue that poaching is a natural part of competition, it often creates an imbalance where elite institutions thrive at the cost of others. The loss of experienced faculty mid-term affects students the most, forcing them to adjust to new instructors, often at critical stages of their preparation.

Despite attempts to derail its progress, FIITJEE has emerged stronger. Its centers are fully operational again, and student enrollments continue to rise. With its unwavering commitment to academic excellence and ethical practices, FIITJEE remains a leader in IIT-JEE coaching, proving that resilience and integrity ultimately triumph over unethical competition.