On February 27, 2024, the Union Minister of Education and Skill Development and Entrepreneurship, Dharmendra Pradhan, inaugurated the ‘SWAYAM Plus’ platform, aiming to provide courses jointly developed with industry partners. These programs focus on employability and professional development and have been created in collaboration with industry leaders such as L&T, Microsoft, and CISCO.
Speaking at the inaugural event, Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan stated that significant progress is being made in achieving the vision of the National Education Policy (NEP). For the first time, prominent industrial entities will establish their academies in collaboration with the UGC, esteemed educational departments, and prestigious institutions such as IIT Madras. All of these courses will be accredited. He also stated that the platform will broaden the classroom’s reach by including 43 million higher education students and working professionals.
The ‘SWAYAM Plus’ Platform will be managed by the Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras). IIT Madras was one of the pioneering institutions involved in establishing Swayam-NPTEL and the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) platform. Both Swayam-NPTEL and MOOC offer educational avenues for learners. According to a statement from IIT Madras, SWAYAM currently boasts the largest enrollment base, which surged from 31 lakh in 2017 to over 72 lakh by the close of 2023.
The introduction of SWAYAM Plus aims to improve the employability of college students and individuals pursuing lifelong learning. Through a collaboration between academia and industry, this initiative merges the academic excellence of SWAYAM’s educational platform with the practical expertise and contemporary relevance provided by industry partners. The SWAYAM Plus platform incorporates features such as multilingual content, an AI-enabled chatbot for student assistance, and credit recognition.
The Swayam Plus platform can be accessed HERE.