Quest Alliance and J.P. Morgan Launch Advanced Skills Program for ITI and Polytechnic Students

BENGALURU, May 3, 2018/PRNewswire/ --

- The program will equip 5,000 women with life, work and career skills 

- 500 polytechnic students from Delhi have successfully graduated under this program

J.P. Morgan and Quest Alliance have signed an agreement to launch My Quest: ITI Development - a skills development program focussed on building stronger career paths for women studying in technical institutions.

The program, funded by J.P. Morgan, will provide advanced skills development courses to 5,000 young women who are pursuing professional technical education in 15 government-run Industrial Training Institutes (ITIs) and polytechnics across Delhi-NCR region and Rajasthan. Critical job-specific soft-skills of communication, professional etiquettes, digital literacy and life-skills will be embedded in the training curriculum. Already, 500 polytechnic students from Delhi have successfully graduated from this initiative and will be entering the world of work or pursuing higher education over the next few months.

"While India has 12,000 ITIs that impart affordable, domain-specific technical training to young people, only 20-30% of those who graduate from these institutes find gainful employment. There is, therefore, a need to upgrade the skills of these students to improve their opportunities in the labour market. We are establishing a strong partnership with the government so we can make Quest Alliance toolkits, approach and technology stacks more widely available and incentivizing the training institutes to continue the programme by demonstrating success gained through industry engagement and placement connects," said Aakash Sethi, Executive Director, Quest Alliance.

Eleven all-women ITIs in Delhi-NCR region and four ITIs in Rajasthan have been selected for this program and 100 hours of content will be delivered as part of the program. Quest will work with the institutes to build a team of faculty, introduce low-cost technology integration and self-learning tools into the ITI ecosystem to ensure that these modules are embedded in the curriculum.

"J.P. Morgan believes that helping the disadvantaged develop the skills they need to compete for today's jobs can transform lives and strengthen economies. Embedding employment readiness within educational institutions helps nurture tomorrow's leaders at the beginning of their careers. Our collaboration with Quest Alliance not only embodies our commitment towards the transition from education to employment but also does so with a special focus on women," said Kalpana Morparia, CEO, South and South East Asia, J.P. Morgan.

The program will also run unique career connect activities such as market scans, industry guest sessions, and help students build professional digital identities using platforms like LinkedIn and connect with advisors and employers in a virtual or face-to-face environment.

Additionally, larger gender notions such as social pressures, class-room challenges and gender biases at the workplace will also be integrated into these modules. As little is known about the aspirations of young women and the impact of skill training on them, the program will also have an embedded learning agenda which will collect data and information on these markers.  

About J.P. Morgan India: 

J.P. Morgan is a leading global financial services player, with a presence in India since 1922. Today, India is a key market for J.P. Morgan and the firm has consistently invested in the India business, which has been growing steadily. J.P. Morgan provides a comprehensive range of Corporate & Investment Banking, Commercial Banking, Asset & Wealth Management, and corporate functions services and solutions to our clients. J.P. Morgan is among the country's leading players in almost all of its businesses and primarily caters to the firm's global clients with business interests in India and local multinationals growing their footprint internationally. India is also home to the Global Service Centre, which services J.P. Morgan's businesses around the world in the areas of operations, technology and research.

About Quest Alliance:

Founded in 2005, Quest Alliance is uniquely positioned to address the challenges of 21st century learning and jobs. Quest is fuelled by research, strengthened by partnerships and driven by innovation and technology. We enable learners with the freedom to drive their learning experience in a fun and impactful manner using our signature blended learning curriculum that develops 21st century life, work and digital skills for children & youth. We work closely with teachers and educators to bring about a mind-shift from teaching to facilitation through peer learning & data driven decision-making systems. We bring together diverse stakeholders. Over the last 10 years our work has demonstrated significant improvements in learning outcomes leveraging strengths of the non-profit, corporate sector & development agencies. 

Quest Alliance is a registered charitable trust under the Indian Trusts Act and are registered under 12A, 80G and FCRA. Our latest annual report can be viewed here: http://questalliance.net/annual-report-2017/

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