The Department of Higher Education, Government of Karnataka, in collaboration with Elets Technomedia, convened the Karnataka Campus to Career Summit at The LaLit Ashok, Bengaluru on 15-16 May 2026. A high level platform bringing together policymakers, university leaders, and industry to address the structural gap between higher education and employment. The summit was presided over by the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Karnataka, Shri Siddaramaiah, Dr. M.C. Sudhakar, Hon’ble Minister for Higher Education; Dr. Sharanaprakash Rudrappa Patil, Hon’ble Minister for Skill Development; and Shri Priyank Kharge, Hon’ble Minister for Information Technology, Biotechnology and Science and Technology, along with senior officials of the Department of Higher Education and the Department of Collegiate Education.
The summit’s centrepiece was a formal MoU signing ceremony in which the Government of Karnataka formalized six agreements with the British Council, the Head Held High Foundation, the 1M1B Foundation, Shiksha Setu AI, Timbuckdo, and the National Stock Exchange of India. The agreements span international academic exchange, artificial intelligence and green skills, immersive digital learning, student internship infrastructure, and financial literacy, and together commit to reaching over five lakh students across Karnataka over the next three years, with a deliberate focus on Tier 2, Tier 3, and rural communities.
Partnerships Formalised
KSHEC x British Council
SCOUT 2.0 – International Residential Programme for Outstanding Undergraduates
The Karnataka State Higher Education Council, in partnership with the British Council and six Karnataka public universities, has launched SCOUT – Scholars for Outstanding Undergraduate Talent, a fully funded two-week residential programme at a selected UK university for 30 outstanding undergraduate students. The programme focuses on Sustainability, Climate, Gender, and Communication Skills, providing Karnataka’s most promising graduates with global academic exposure and cross-cultural competence. SCOUT 2.0 builds on the foundation of the first cohort and represents a deepening of the Karnataka-UK higher education partnership.
Department of Collegiate Education x Head Held High Foundation
AI and Emerging Technology Training in Raichur District Government Institutions
The Department of Collegiate Education has signed an agreement with the Head Held High Foundation (HHHF) to deliver AI and emerging technology training across Government Colleges, Polytechnics, and Engineering Colleges in Raichur District. The 30 to 40 hour programme, supported by Kyndryl, is offered free of cost and covers hands-on applications of artificial intelligence, digital productivity tools, and emerging technologies. The initiative is a direct intervention in one of Karnataka’s underserved districts, prioritising access to future-skills training for students who may otherwise have limited exposure to industry-relevant technology education.
Department of Higher Education x 1M1B Foundation
Statewide Skilling for 5 Lakh Students – Green Skills, AI, and Industry Mentorship
In a landmark statewide agreement, the Department of Higher Education has partnered with the 1M1B Foundation, One Million for One Billion, a UN-accredited organisation to deliver job readiness, AI and digital skilling, green skills, internships, placements, and industry mentorship to five lakh students over three years. The programme carries an explicit mandate of inclusion: rural youth, women, first-generation learners, and students from underserved communities are the primary target beneficiaries. This is among the largest structured student skilling commitments announced at the Summit, and signals the Government of Karnataka’s intent to scale skills infrastructure beyond Bengaluru and into every corner of the state.
Department of Higher Education x Shiksha Setu AI
Integrated Digital Education Suite Across Six Government Institutions
The Shiksha Setu AI digital education platform will be deployed across three Government Colleges and three Government Polytechnics under this agreement. The suite integrates a Learning Management System, Virtual Labs, employability skill courses, immersive 3D, AR and VR learning capability, an ERP system, and a Digital Library within a single institutional infrastructure. The deployment directly addresses the digital learning gap in government institutions and establishes a model for technology-enabled education that can be scaled across Karnataka’s public higher education ecosystem.
Department of Higher Education x Timbuckdo
Student Internship and Gig Platform for Practical Industry Exposure
The agreement with Timbuckdo, a student-focused platform offering part-time employment, internships, and gig opportunities, enables enrolled students to gain practical industry exposure while completing their degrees. The initiative directly addresses the experience gap that disadvantages fresh graduates at the point of campus placement, building financial independence alongside employability. By integrating industry engagement into the academic period rather than deferring it to post-graduation, the partnership reflects the core Campus to Career philosophy of concurrent learning and earning.
Department of Higher Education x National Stock Exchange of India
Financial Literacy and Securities Markets Skilling for Higher Education Students
The National Stock Exchange of India has signed a Student Skilling Programme agreement with the Department of Higher Education to enhance financial literacy, knowledge of securities markets and mutual funds, and pathways to self-employment in the financial sector. As India’s BFSI sector accounts for approximately 40 percent of IT-enabled services employment and the sector is projected to add five lakh new jobs by 2030, equipping students with foundational financial domain knowledge is both an employability and an economic sovereignty imperative. The programme directly complements the broader BFSI talent pipeline discussion that anchored the Summit’s industry track.
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About the Karnataka Campus to Career Summit
The Karnataka Campus to Career Summit (C2C Summit), a flagship initiative of the Department of Higher Education, Government of Karnataka, organised in collaboration with Elets Technomedia. The summit brought together policymakers, academic institutions, Global Capability Centres, industry leaders, and civil society to accelerate the transition of Karnataka’s graduates from campus to career. It focused on outcome-based education, industry-aligned curriculum, AI and digital skilling, and structural partnerships between government, academia, and industry. For further information, visit campustocareersummit.com.
