DXC Technology and NASSCOM Foundation to Skill 7,500 Students in Artificial Intelligence, IoT and other Technologies

DXC Technology and NASSCOM Foundation jointly launched the Employability Skills Program to train 7,500 underserved students, in ‘New-Age Technologies’. A social initiative of DXC Technology, the program will train students from 35-plus tier II and tier III technical and non-technical colleges from the states of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Odisha, Madhya Pradesh, and Maharashtra, on Artificial Intelligence, Data Science, Internet of Things, UI-UX design and Cybersecurity.

NASSCOM Foundation and DXC Technology have identified TMI as the training partner, and the NASSCOM and Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology’s ‘Future Skills Prime’ as the training platform for this program. The program has already onboarded 2,500 candidates and plans to enroll approximately 5,000 more students by the end of August 2021.

This unique social collaboration by DXC Technology will engage students through 80 hours of blended learning-based curriculum, divided into three levels. The first level will be common for all where the students will undertake a 14-hour ‘Digital 101’ course through Future Skills Prime. The curriculum for the second and the third levels will be tailored to the technology specialization chosen by the students.

The program will also make the students industry ready for employment opportunities through soft skills training. They will learn to face interviews, sharpen communications skills, and become acquainted with a typical office environment. NASSCOM Foundation will also involve leaders and subject matter experts from across the industry to conduct role model sessions for the students.

Speaking at the program launch event, Lokendra Sethi, head of HR India, DXC Technology, said: “We are immensely proud to collaborate with NASSCOM for this skilling program of students across India.  It has been DXC’s focus to build a stronger future for society by enabling the youth of our country. With access to the right skills and education, these students will become future innovators and leaders. We look forward to welcoming several of these young aspiring professionals to intern with us at the end of the program.”

NASSCOM Foundation is the convener for the program. It has designed the program and brought all the partners together. The Foundation is also responsible for its monitoring and evaluation.  Addressing her vision for the program and its alignment with the Skill India movement, Nidhi Bhasin, CEO, NASSCOM Foundation, said,“If India has to take her rightful place in the top pecking order of global economies, training India’s young talent in the technologies of the future is no longer an option. It is an urgent need. Through blended learning models with Future Skills Prime as the platform, we are trying to provide underserved students high-quality training right at their desktops. We thank DXC for supporting this unique initiative. Initiatives like these will encourage corporations to use their CSR funds towards skilling for the future, which in turn will make India a hub for future ready skilled resources."

Throughout the program, the Future Skills Prime portal will also facilitate co-learning through quizzes and forums, encouraging students to share their experiences. At the conclusion of this training, the program will place students with various companies across the industry for a full month to gain hands-on technology project exposure. Separately, student winners of the ‘ideation workshop’ will be provided with an opportunity to intern with DXC Technology for six months.