Am I lagging behind (in the sense of a career) from my friends who are in IITs and I am in IET Lucknow (mechanical)?

The term career means a lot regarding your life and goals. For most of the students, their definition of success is to become a successful engineer in their respective fields. One may agree that IITs make halfway for their students to get succeeded but the rest of the halfway, students have to go themselves to become a successful engineer.

It is important to note that not all IITs have 100% placements. Some have 85-90% placements. The students who did not get placed via IITs may wish to pursue further studies and yet not become successful in their careers. Even after higher studies, the placement selection percentage is 85-95%. Thus, one can not predict that they are lagging based on IITs.

If big firms such as Google, Microsoft, Walmart do not come to the college for placements, you should try for off-campus placements as well. These companies often hire off-campus and on referrals.

For more reference, one must maintain their LinkedIn profile and mention all their data and skills.