Microsoft launched a “Future Ready Talent” collaborative internship program in India for students in their second year of college and upward. It aims to impact more than 150,000 higher education students who will join the workforce between 2022 and 2024.

Registration for the internship program began this week.

Microsoft will provide learning modules and certifications through its Microsoft Learn platform. Topics will include cloud computing, data and artificial intelligence, and cybersecurity.

“Empowering this talent with the right skills to be self-reliant will be foundational to our long-term growth,” said Anant Maheshwari, president of Microsoft India.

Several large firms will join Microsoft in the internship program. Staffing firm Quess Corp. (QUESS:NSI) will manage the learner experience and host a virtual career fair for participations.

“Nurturing the skills of the youth of the country is an important national priority,” said Sekhar Garisa, president, emerging businesses and chief of strategy, Quess. “The post-pandemic era will be a digital first economy and right investment on developing talent at scale and empowering them with job-ready skills is critical to fully leverage the opportunities of the future.”

Others taking part include the All India Council for Technical Education, FutureSkills Prime — a NASSCOM and Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology digital skilling initiative, Ernst & Young and GigHub.