On Tuesday, Union Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan launched the SWAYAM Plus platform, operated by IIT-Madras, to provide programs in collaboration with industry partners, focusing on employability and professional development.
“Utilizing the SWAYAM platform, working professionals will engage and leverage the multiple-entry-multiple-exit system introduced by NEP 2020,” stated Pradhan. “This initiative will broaden the educational landscape, incorporating 43 million higher education students and professionals.”
SWAYAM, the Massive Open Online Course (MOOC) platform launched by the Union Ministry of Education in 2017, has garnered an enrollment of 72 lakh learners by the end of 2023.
Aligned with the objectives of the National Education Policy (NEP) 2020, the SWAYAM Plus platform will now offer courses tailored to meet industry demands, thereby enhancing learners’ employability.
Developed in collaboration with industry leaders such as L&T, Microsoft, CISCO, and others, SWAYAM Plus introduces innovative features including multilingual content, AI-enabled guidance, credit recognition, and pathways to employment.
Pradhan emphasized that SWAYAM Plus is primarily dedicated to establishing an inclusive ecosystem for all stakeholders involved in professional and career development, including learners, course providers, industry, academia, and strategic partners.
He stated, “The platform’s additional objectives encompass facilitating a mechanism for recognizing credits earned through high-quality certifications and courses offered by leading industry and academic partners. It aims to reach a vast learner base across the country, with particular emphasis on engaging learners from tier 2 and 3 towns as well as rural areas. Moreover, it aims to offer employment-focused courses tailored to learner requirements across various disciplines, with options for learning through resources in vernacular languages.”
“SWAYAM Plus also envisions incorporating features such as access to mentorship, scholarships, and job placements as value-added services over time, thereby establishing a digital ecosystem for learners to pursue upskilling and re-skilling at all levels, be it certificate, diploma, or degree,” he added.
K Sanjay Murthy, the Higher Education Secretary, called for increased involvement from industry leaders and subject matter experts from universities and institutions to contribute courses across different verticals, with certification provided by IIT-Madras.
