CHENNAI: IIT Madras on Wednesday launched UDYOG (upskilling and development for young graduates), an industry-oriented finishing school aimed at equipping young graduates with practical skills required in biotechnology and biomanufacturing.
Inaugurated by IIT-M director V Kamakoti, the IITM-Biofoundry Finishing School seeks to bridge the gap between academic education and industry requirements through online learning, intensive laboratory training, pilot-scale exposure and industry internships.
Launched through SynBioME, the IIT Madras-TICEL Biofoundry, the programme is open to pre-final-year and final-year BTech, MTech and MSc students pursuing biotechnology and allied disciplines in colleges and institutes across India.
The initiative comes amid growing demand for professionals with practical expertise in industrial processes, analytical techniques, process development and regulatory practices as India’s biotechnology and biopharmaceutical sectors expand.
The three-stage programme begins with three months of online learning through the institute’s centre for outreach and digital education (CODE). This will be supplemented by lectures from industry experts and demonstration videos on industrial practices.
It will be followed by four weeks of intensive hands-on training at the IIT-M Biofoundry, offering exposure to laboratory processes and biomanufacturing workflows.