BANGALORE, KARNATAKA - 18 Jun 2018: The National Programme on Technology Enhanced Learning (NPTEL) has announced it is collaborating with IBM to offer a 12-week online course focused on blockchain architecture, design and use cases. Available on the NPTEL website from July 2018, this first-of-its-kind blockchain course in India will prepare students for the demand for blockchain skills by covering both conceptual and application aspects of blockchain technology. The course curriculum has been co-developed by Prof. Sandip Chakraborty, IIT Kharagpur and Dr. Praveen Jayachandran, IBM Research, India and will train students in key blockchain topics like crypto primitives, consensus, permissioned blockchain and used cases as well as research aspects. 

According to the Upwork Skills Index for Q1 2018, blockchain skills have become the most in-demand skill set in the technology industry. The report findings predict blockchain skills growth to exceeded 2000% for three quarters in a row on Upwork.com, and is the fastest growing skillset out of more than 5000 skills on the site.

“The popularity of blockchain has moved from cryptocurrency to business applications across many industries such as insurance, finance, supply chain logistics, digital identity, healthcare and public sector. IBM’s collaboration with India’s leading academic minds to create a blockchain curriculum is a reflection of our commitment to enabling the technology to realize its full potential, while also addressing the increased demand for adequate skills for students and developers,” said Dr. Praveen Jayachandran, Senior Technical Staff Member & Manager – Blockchain and Smart Contracts, IBM Research - India.

NPTEL recently introduced an initiative called NPTEL Industry Associate to bridge the industry-academia gap. By co-offering courses with industry leaders, NPTEL is leveraging industry expertise by conducting workshops for NPTEL certified students in niche domains, offering internships, etc.

NPTEL coordinator Prof. Andrew Thangaraj said “Content contribution by technology leaders to a course in cutting edge technology areas provides learners a better insight into its practical implementation. The blockchain course with IBM is the first in this genre and will encourage more companies to come forward to do the same.”

The course, co-certified by IBM, includes the fundamental design and architectural primitives of Blockchain, the system and the security aspects, along with various use cases from different application domains (https://onlinecourses.nptel.ac.in/noc18_cs47/preview).