Studying in an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) is usually considered aspirational for students studying in colleges of Tier-2 or Tier-3 towns. Five IITs — Ropar, Guwahati, Mandi, Patna and Kanpur — are now set to change this notion.
For the academic year 2024-25, students studying in Tier-2 or Tier-3 town colleges can also get an IIT tag by opting for a minor specialisation, a diploma, a bachelor’s or a master’s degree, which will be offered in partnership with the National Skill Development Corporation (NSDC) and the aforementioned IITs, NSDC CEO Ved Mani Tiwari told The Hindu.
“IITs have opened their doors to those who want to pursue a short-term skilling programme through Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas schemes or an Industrial Training Institute (ITI) student who will like to pursue a certificate or diploma programme from IITs. All the skilling programs will be facilitated via Skill India Digital platform,” Mr. Tiwari said.
The courses will work on credit-based system, where a minor specialisation from IIT will entail taking 10 to 18 credits. “While the core degree will be awarded by the instituting university to which the college is affiliated, there will be a mention of minor specialisation from IIT,” he further said.
In a four-year undergraduate degree, a total of 160 credits would be required to receive a Bachelor of Science degree from an IIT. “Out of total 160 credits, it is proposed to deliver skill component of 18 credits through Skill India Digital (SID) via a strategic delivery partner,” Mr. Tiwari added.
Also, for garnering an executive MTech, the student will have to complete 62 credits, out of which 12 credits of skill component are proposed to be delivered on the SID portal of NSDC through its strategic delivery partner.
For instance, in the tripartite partnership between IIT-Patna, NSDC and Teamlease, they have collaborated for a three-year degree programme — Bachelor of Computer Application (BCA). It is a 155-credit programme of which 146 academic credits shall be provided by IIT-Patna, and nine credits (3 credits per year) shall be covered through the skill-based programmes offered in collaboration between NSDC and Teamlease.
As per provisions of the National Education Policy (NEP), all programmes have been designed with provision of multiple entry and exit options. “Any student enrolled under four-year online UG programme will have the option to exit with a Foundational Certificate after first year, Diploma in the second year, Bachelor’s Degree in third year and Honours degree in fourth year,” Mr. Tiwari said.
For the two-year executive MTech, he said that students who enrol in a 12-month PG Diploma programme can further extend the course to obtain the master’s degree from the IIT after completion of the PG Diploma.
In addition, candidates will have an option to take up the 12-month PG Diploma and opt out without going for the MTech course. The students choosing to opt out after the first semester of PG Diploma will have an option to exit with a PG certification.
“Since these courses are to be offered in online mode, there is no capping on the admission intake but the admission has to take place through an online entrance examination,” Mr. Tiwari said.
