Dehradun, Jul 24 (INB) UPES and Hewlett Packard Enterprise (HPE) on Friday launched the HPE Networking AI-Driven Centre of Excellence (CoE) at the university’s Dehradun campus to equip students with industry-ready skills in artificial intelligence, enterprise networking, cloud infrastructure and cybersecurity.
The Centre has been established to bridge the gap between academia and industry through curriculum integration, faculty development, hands-on laboratory training, project-based learning, HPE-led bootcamps, certification programmes and research opportunities, the university said.
Students will receive training in HPE Networking technologies at the Associate and Specialist levels and gain access to internship and hiring opportunities across HPE, its partners and customers.
The inauguration coincided with a visit by HPE’s global leadership to the campus, during which senior executives and university officials held discussions on strengthening industry-academia collaboration and developing future-ready technology talent. The programme also included a keynote session on career readiness and a tour of the Bajaj Engineering Skills Training (BEST) Centre. According to the university, the initiative aligns with its AI-first strategy and seeks to prepare graduates for careers in enterprise AI, networking, cloud computing and cybersecurity through experiential learning and interdisciplinary education. The university cited a NASSCOM-Deloitte report projecting that India will require more than 1.25 million AI professionals by 2027, with an estimated shortfall of over 600,000 skilled workers, underscoring the need for industry-academia partnerships in emerging technologies. HPE officials said the collaboration would provide students with practical exposure to enterprise technologies, while UPES said the partnership would strengthen its efforts to develop innovation-driven and industry-ready graduates. The collaboration adds to UPES’ existing partnerships with global technology firms, including OpenAI, Google Cloud, Salesforce and Harvard Business Impact, the university said.
