IIT Madras launches finishing school to develop industry-ready biotechnology professionals
A finishing school has been launched by Indian Institute of Technology Madras (IIT Madras) for biotechnology and biomanufacturing students to prepare them for the industry. Academic education and industry requirements will be covered in the UDYOG programme. The first class will commence on January 18, 2027.
UDYOG (Upskilling and Development for Young Graduates) is open to pre-final year and final year students pursuing BTech, MTech and MSC degrees in biotechnology and allied streams in colleges and institutes across India. On October 21, 2026, IIT Madras director V. Kamakoti launched the initiative.
UDYOG finishing school
SynBioME, the IIT Madras-TICEL Biofoundry, launched the UDYOG finishing school. It is being organised by Guhan Jayaraman, Professor, Department of Biotechnology, IIT Madras.
Addressing the launch, Kamakoti highlighted “AI also means Academia-Industry. It is becoming an absolute necessity that every discipline of Science and Engineering must look at this AI with care to make themselves relevant to the modern world. UDYOG is yet another effort taken by IIT Madras in this direction”.
Jayaraman said “India’s biotechnology and biopharmaceutical sectors are expanding at a rapid place”. And because of this there is a “growing demand for professionals with practical expertise in industrial processes, analytical techniques, process development and regulatory practices”, he added.
Three-stage training process
The Centre for Outreach and Digital Education (CODE) at IIT Madras offers three months of online instruction during the first phase. Such online instruction will include lectures on industrial processes given by subject-matter experts and demonstration videos.
On successful completion of the online learning programme, the candidates will be evaluated for a four weeks intensive hands on training programme at the IIT Madras Biofoundry. Participants will be exposed to biomanufacturing workflows and laboratory techniques through hands-on experience in this course.
Successful completion of the training programme may provide opportunities for working with the industry partners and long term internships. The programme will help students transition from classroom learning to workplace experience.