IIITs

IIITs, or Indian Institutes of Information Technology, are a network of higher education and research institutes in India focused on information technology and its applications. They were established by central and state governments, often with industry involvement, to expand IT education, research, and manpower. IIITs operate as autonomous bodies or state universities and award degrees in their own name, with recognition from national education authorities and approvals from AICTE where applicable.

Programs offered by IIITs typically include undergraduate B.Tech or B.E. programs in information technology and computer science, along with postgraduate M.Tech or MS and doctoral programs in IT and related fields. Many IIITs emphasize interdisciplinary studies such as data science, artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and software engineering, and they place emphasis on industry-linked projects, internships, and applied research.

Admissions for undergraduate programs are generally through national or state engineering entrance examinations, with seat allocation commonly conducted through centralized systems that use JEE Main results. Some IIITs run their own admissions tests or rely on state-level entries, depending on the institute and its governance.

The first IIIT was established in Hyderabad in 1998, and the network expanded in subsequent years through public-private partnerships and state-government initiatives. Today, there are several IIITs across India, with IIIT Delhi and other institutes playing prominent roles in IT education and research.

IIITs form part of India's higher education landscape, complementing IITs and NITs by focusing on information technology, computer science, and applied research through strong industry collaboration.