A memorandum of understanding (MOU) has been signed between the National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL) and Internshala. This tie-up will enable students from colleges who have partnered with NPTEL to facilitate as local chapters to get internships.
It is hoped that this effort will help students improve upon their soft skills, their technical competence and their employability quotient. Online workshops will be conducted in order to prepare the students for the internships. Their performance track in the respective internships secured by them will be made accessible to colleges through Internshala.
Andrew Thangaraj, the Coordinator of NPTEL at IIT Madras, stated that, “Since 2003, NPTEL has been on a mission to help students across India get access to quality educational content for free. Internships are extremely important for students as it gives them practical experience and equips them with industry-relevant skills. Through the collaboration with Internshala, we would be able to connect students with relevant opportunities.”
NPTEL is an initiative undertaken by seven Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT Bombay, Delhi, Guwahati, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Madras and Roorkee) and Indian Institute of Science (IISc) for creating engineering and science course content. It offers online certification courses, out of which, a total of 740 courses has been completed by now. In July 2018, more than 250 courses are proposed to be offered.
With respect to their joint venture, Sarvesh Agrawal, Founder and CEO, Internshala, adds “Internshala is on a mission to build a world full of opportunities closer to the youth through internships and training. We are excited to partner with NPTEL which is also the world’s most accessed library of peer-reviewed educational content. Through this collaboration, we hope to promote skill building and help the youth find better opportunities.” The students will have access to choose from more than 4.5 lakh internships listed on the website.