Internships made mandatory for diploma and polytechnic students under new curriculum

NT Correspondent

Bengaluru: The Department of Technical Education has made internships mandatory for diploma and polytechnic students in their 6th semester starting from the 2025-26 academic year. Under the newly introduced C-25 curriculum, students must complete a 13-week internship in the industry or work on an industry- based project. Previously, internships were optional for diploma and polytechnic students. Officials emphasise that this move aims to enhance job readiness. “The C-25 curriculum was designed in collaboration with industry experts, who highlighted the importance of hands-on experience. This led to making internships compulsory,” said an official.

The department has released a draft of the C-25 curriculum and is seeking feedback from stakeholders. Karnataka has 107 government polytechnics, 43 aided, and 150 private institutions, with a total student strength exceeding 50,000. Unlike the earlier C-20 curriculum, C-25 has core subects, emphasises comuication skills, coding, etc.