“The transition from campus to careers must be seamless. Universities must become engines of employability, entrepreneurship, innovation, and leadership, and degrees must be matched by practical skills,” said Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, inaugurating the Karnataka C2C (Campus to Career) Summit in Bengaluru on Friday.

The C2C Summit will bridge the gap between academic learning and industry expectations by bringing together policymakers, industry leaders, academic institutions, and skill development organisations, he said, adding that the summit reflects Karnataka’s determination to prepare our young people not merely for the jobs of today, but for the opportunities of tomorrow.

“The State’s continued leadership in the economic sphere will depend on a strong and purposeful partnership between government, academia, and industry. These three pillars must work in unison to ensure that education remains aligned with the opportunities of a rapidly changing global economy. Therefore, our universities must go beyond awarding degrees; they must equip students with practical skills, innovative capacity, and the confidence to succeed in real-world challenges…Above all, it must create pathways to a life of dignity and economic security,” the Chief Minister said.

Minister for Higher Education M.C. Sudhakar said the Summit was organized with the vision of providing skill-based education to students in higher education, thereby enabling and creating employment opportunities. “The initiative aims to equip students in government colleges and universities with globally relevant and industry-required skills. The summit will focus on integrating industry-required skills into academic curricula and preparing students with practical exposure and technological competence,” he said.

The Karnataka State Higher Education Council (KSHEC) expanded the scope of SCOUT-Scholars for Outstanding Undergraduate Students, launched recently, to more public universities in the State. This fully funded, two-week residential programme, hosted by a selected university in the U.K., will support 30 outstanding undergraduate students. The Higher Education Department signed Memorandum of Understanding (MoUs) with several institutions regarding skill development and higher education.