Date:29/04/2007 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2007/04/29/stories/2007042902780300.htm

Karnataka - Bangalore

IT finishing school coming up in Mysore

Staff Reporter

BANGALORE: While the Centre is yet to implement reservation for Other Backward Classes in elite educational institutions, the State Government has initiated a new experiment to train engineering and science graduates, including those from socially backward sections, in the tier-II and tier-III cities.

Facilitated by the Department of Information Technology, Bio-Technology and Science and Technology, the Raman International Institute of Information Technology (RiiiT) has launched the country's first ever IT Finishing School in Mysore.

The school, affiliated to the University of Mysore, will be inaugurated by Chief Minister H.D. Kumaraswamy next month. MeritTrac, one of India's largest skills assessment company, will assess the quality of students during the course.

The school will offer a one-year post graduate diploma in software programming to help software professionals acquire corporate soft-skills, technical skills and industry culture.

Announcing the establishment of the school, Information Technology Secretary M.N. Vidyashankar, RiiiT Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director S.V. Venkatesh and MeritTrac Director Madan Padaki told presspersons that 5,000 students would take up diploma in next one year. A significant number of students from the tier-II and tier-III cities belonged to backward classes and they would get the skills required by the IT industry, they said.

The IT-Finishing School, according to Mr. Venkatesh, would conduct a 15-day bridge programme for students who could not clear the entrance test.

He said that a fee of Rs. 75,000 had been fixed, but the students would get educational loan from the Syndicate Bank on favourable terms.

Mr. Vidyashankar said that the department was only an enabler and did not play any role in the management of the school.

The all India announcement for admissions would be made on May 6 and prospectus would be available in the select branches of Syndicate Bank.

The date of receipt of applications is May 20 and the seats would be finalised on May 27.

The schedule will be finalised by last week of June.