News from the world of Education: July 3, 2026

Hack Core 2026

ANNAM.AI — India’s first Centre of Excellence (CoE) for Artificial Intelligence in Agriculture, hosted at IIT-Ropar under the Ministry of Education, Government of India — has launched HACK CORE 2026, a national AI hackathon in collaboration with Syngenta and Google. It invites students, researchers, developers and others from across India to develop AI-driven solutions for crop health, pest management, soil intelligence, climate-resilient farming, and the wider adoption of biological products across India. Deadline to register is July 21. For more details, visit https://www.annam.ai/hack-core

The IC3 Movement’s 10th Annual Conference and Expo 2026 will be on the theme Looking Deeply: From Information to Insight. The edition will explore five core sub-themes: counselling and admissions practices for a dynamic generation; trust, transparency, and integrity in education; school–university partnerships; consciousness and well-being; and aligning counselling with the future world of work. The two-day programme will also feature the IC3 Expo, a five-session Inner Child Workshop, and the Annual IC3 Awards. The IC3 Host School Student And Parent Conference will extend the conversation directly to students and families. The latest editions of the IC3 Institute’s Student Suicides Aversion Report and the Student Quest Report will also be released. Open to delegates from schools, higher education institutions and organisations working in the education sector.

Dates: August 19 and 20

Venue: Jio World Convention Centre, Mumbai.

More details at www.ic3movement.com/annual-ic3-conference-expo

Admissions and scholarships

Sona Star Innovation, in partnership with the University of West Alabama, the U.S., has launched the SonaUWA 1+1 International Pathway Programme through which students can pursue the second year of MS in Data Science programme at the UWA campus in Alabama, after completing their first year at Sona Centre for Advanced Learning and Entrepreneurship, Bengaluru.

Eligibility: B.Tech or B.E. students from CSE, IT, AI & ML, Data Science, ECE, or related branches

Deadline: September 5.

Details at https://scaleindia.in/sona-uwa

The World University of Design has launched a four-year Bachelor of Performing Arts (Honours) in Theatre (BPA Hons.) and a two-year Master of Performing Arts (MPA) in Theatre.

Eligibility: For BPA, minimum 50% in class 12; for MPA, graduation with minimum 50% marks; scores in aptitude test and interview

Deadline: July 20

Details at and https://shorturl.at/CUNUS

Ramaiah Institute of Science and Management, Bengaluru, invites applications for its 2026 programmes in B.Tech Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence; B.Tech Electrical Sciences; B.Tech Aerospace Engineering; BBA, and MBA. Top 20% students across the programmes will be eligible for 80% scholarship on the tuition fee. For details on the courses, eligibility, application, and more, visit https://rism.org.in/

Ravensbourne University London, the U.K., in partnership with Oxford International Education Group, has opened applications for its September 2026 intake of UG and PG programmes. A key highlight is the PG Industry Year pathway for MBA, M.Sc. Project Management, M.Sc. Accounting and Finance, M.Sc. Strategic Marketing and Analytics, M.Sc. International Finance, M.Sc. Events Management, and M.Sc. Engineering Management. Apart from this, the institute also offers one-year Master’s programmes such as M.Sc. Cyber Security, M.Sc. Software Engineering among others. UG programmes in fashion, architecture, business, digital media, design and technology are also available. For more information on course details, eligibility, scholarships, and admissions, visit https://www.oxfordinternational.com/partner/ravensbourne-university/

TVS Cheema Scholarship Foundation (TVSCSF) offers interest-free education loans for higher education to deserving students from economically disadvantaged backgrounds in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka. Students seeking admission to engineering courses must have secured minimum 60% in Class 10 or Class 12 examinations and belong to families with an annual income of up to Rs. 800,000. Students pursuing diploma and nursing courses must have secured minimum 60% and belong to families with an annual income of up to Rs. 500,000. No collateral security is required. Repayment can commence two years after completion of the course and employment through instalments. Deadline to apply is 31 August 2026. For more details visit www.tvscsf.org

Institute of Bakery & Culinary Arts (IBCA) has announced scholarships to support more than 400 deserving students who wish to pursue various diploma and certification courses in bakery and culinary arts. The scholarship amounts range from ₹25,000 to ₹100,000, depending on the course structure and eligibility. Last date to apply is July 15. For details of courses visit https://www.chefibpa.com/

Dnyaan Prasad Global University (DPGU), Pune, invites applications for its UG and PG programmes across Engineering, Management, Pharmacy, Hospitality and Tourism, Psychology, Liberal Arts, and allied disciplines for the academic year 2026-2027. For programme details, eligibility criteria and other information, visit https://dpgu.edu.in

Events

IICT and Wacom India joined hands to conduct a Manga masterclass with Akiko-San from Japan for students and the general public. This was part of a broader India–Japan engagement focused on expanding opportunities in Anime, Manga and creative technology education.

Anita Nene and Rohit Ghadge, researchers from the Department of Mechanical Engineering, MIT World Peace University, have developed a solar thermal energy storage system that enables hot water availability even after sunset by storing solar heat in a phase change material-based thermal battery.

T A Pai Management Institute held an induction programme for students of its MBA programmes in Banking and Financial Services, Human Resources, Marketing, International Business, AI and DS, and Integrated Programme in Management. Vinod Easwaran, MD and CEO, Jio Payments Bank, was the chief guest and Arpita Khadria, Founder and CEO, Barefoot Consultancy, was the guest of honour.

Azim Premji University has released Realising Rights: A Handbook of Welfare in India, developed by the Centre for the Study of the Indian Economy. It brings together 27 authors across 18 chapters and offers a rights-based analysis of India’s welfare policies and public systems and can be accessed at https://shorturl.at/6t4Sd

XLRI appointed Fr. Antony R. Uvari, SJ as the Director of XLRI Delhi–NCR. He has served as faculty at Xavier Institute of Management, Bhubaneswar and at XLRI where he also held administrative positions including Dean of Administration, Associate Dean, Chairperson of Admissions, and Professor.

ITM Institute of Design & Media (IDM) has integrated AI into the curriculum across all five of its Bachelor of Design programmes: Animation & VFX, UX Design, Visual Communication, Fashion Design and Interior Design to equip students with the skills required to work in an increasingly technology-driven creative industry.

IIIT-Delhi has been selected as one of the 20 Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) across India to host and participate in the launch of the EU–India Student Ambassadors Network, an initiative under the European Union’s Public and Cultural Diplomacy Programme in India.

Noida International Institute of Medical Sciences (NIIMS) organised a successful Blood Donation Camp on campus to support life-saving healthcare services and promote awareness around voluntary blood donation.

KLH Global Business School hosted the AI Leadership Summit 2026, in collaboration with the IIT Kharagpur Alumni Association, Hyderabad Chapter, and Astravion AI. Participants from Deloitte Consulting, TCS, Bank of America, Thoughtworks, Novartis, JP Morgan Chase, Survey of India, BHEL, KITS Warangal, University of Hyderabad, JNTU Hyderabad, among others explored the rapidly evolving landscape of Artificial Intelligence and AI Governance across FinTech, InsurTech, Retail Technology.

The Department of Ophthalmology at NIIMS Medical College conducted a Hands-on Wet Lab on Phacoemulsification in association with Alcon to enhance surgical proficiency in modern cataract surgery techniques among postgraduate students, senior residents, and faculty members.

A study by researchers from the University of Warwick, the U.K., suggests that gorillas, bonobos, chimpanzees and humans, shared a basic rhythmic laughing structure through a common shared ancestor 15 million years ago that has been conserved in all living great apes and humans. But humans gradually developed greater control over the timing of their vocalisations, including laughter – showing a fundamental building block of speech. The study was published in Communications Biology. Another team of researchers from the University of Warwick, the U.K., and Monash University, Australia, has discovered how bacteria naturally create multiple versions of powerful cancer therapies. This understanding could accelerate development of new treatments for hard-to-treat cancers.

NIPS Institute of Hotel Management, Kolkata organised a month-long expert series that brought senior hospitality professionals from IHCL/Taj, ITC Hotels, Fairfield by Marriott Kolkata, Pride Plaza Hotel Kolkata, The LaLiT Great Eastern Kolkata and Taj SATS Kolkata to give students exposure to how the hospitality industry works beyond classrooms, textbooks and examinations and practical guidance on recruitment readiness, management trainee opportunities, mock interviews, group discussions, grooming, communication, culinary fundamentals, internship learning, service values, leadership and professional discipline.

Justice Rajesh Bindal, former Judge of the Supreme Court of India and former Chief Justice of the Allahabad High Court, has accepted the role of Honorary Distinguished Jurist at the School of Law, Galgotias University. He will provide students and faculty with opportunities to engage directly with decades of judicial experience, constitutional thought, and legal scholarship through mentoring, distinguished lectures, masterclasses, moot court initiatives, research collaboration, and curriculum enrichment.

Researchers led by Prasoon Kumar, Assistant Professor, Department of Biotechnology and Medical Engineering at NIT-Rourkela have developed a smart wound dressing that prevents infections, minimises pain during removal, and promotes faster healing. The findings were published in Emergent Materials.

Scientists at IIT-Mandi have discovered that plants cellular world respond to anaesthesia through a remarkably synchronized manner and follow a hierarchical cascade mechanism for precise and sequential shutdown of intra-cellular components under anaesthetic stress, even though the plants do not possess either a brain or nervous system. The findings were published in Advanced Biology and Chemical & Biomedical Imaging.

Imarticus Learning has announced a major revamp of its FinTech programme, relaunching it as the Certified FinTech Operations Professional (CFOP) programme, a no-code, placement-focused certification now built around three pillars: FinTech operations, AI, and Business Analytics. The programme will run as three-month weekday track for fresh graduates.

SP Jain School of Global Management announced the placement outcomes for its Master of Global Business (MGB) program for the period of May 2025 to May 2026. Nearly two thirds of graduates are starting their careers outside India, with 65.26% securing international placements and 84.36% completing international internships. Recruiters included Apple, Deloitte, Grant Thornton, Siemens Healthineers, Frost & Sullivan, Puma, Singapore Indian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Honeywell, Dabur, Himalaya Wellness, Henkel, Swiggy, Nothing Technology, and Urban Company, among others.

Acharya Bangalore B School (ABBS) organised Startup Garage 2026, an entrepreneurship event to foster innovation and entrepreneurial thinking among students. Alina Alam, Founder of Mitti Café, inaugurated the event.

Manipal University Jaipur (MUJ) hosted the International Conference on Transition, Resilience and Applied Economics (ICTRAE 2026). Naresh Chandra Sahu, Associate Professor at IIT-Bhubaneswar, delivered the keynote address.

ITM Institute of Hotel Management is offering an integrated pathway to the globally recognised IATA Foundation in Travel & Tourism diploma alongside its hospitality degree programme to enable students to build careers across airlines, airports, cruise lines, travel companies, and international tourism organisations.

JD Institute of Fashion Technology, in collaboration with The Charter (Bombay Founders’ Club), hosted Founder-Student Designer Auction Platform to help young designers collaborate directly with emerging consumer brands.

The Speakers United (TSU) concluded the fifth edition of The Big Experience, its annual summer debating program, with 80 student participants from Classes 6 to 12 from Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Kolkata, and Jaipur to debate, research, and argue without any AI assistance.

A research team from IIT-Gandhinagar has won a seed grant to develop India’s first indigenous cooling tech for EVs, AI infrastructure, railways, and high-performance electronics. This technology can address two major issues: cooling of the fast-growing AI-driven data centres in India and safety concerns around electric-vehicle battery thermal management.

The India-headquartered Global Biofuels Alliance (GBA) has selected 15 early-career researchers from leading universities and research institutions across the world for its Global Biofuel Champion Fellowship (GBCF). The fellows will each receive a US$15,000 research grant and will work with the Alliance over the next two years to advance research, knowledge exchange and international collaboration in sustainable biofuels.

The Institute of Management Technology (IMT) Ghaziabad welcomed the incoming Class of 2026 across its flagship two-year full-time PGDM programmes in Marketing, Financial Management, Banking and Financial Services, and Dual Country Programme.

FORE School of Management hosted an induction Ceremony for the incoming PGDM 2026–28 and FPM Batch-08. Rajesh Magow, Co-Founder and Group CEO, MakeMyTrip, and Bikas Kumar Singh, Vice President and India Head, Government Affairs, SAP, addressed the students.

Duolingo English Test has announced that it is now accepted by more than 6,500 universities worldwide. The latest additions include Utah State University, and the University of Virginia School of Data Science, the U.S.; Bangor University, and the University of Exeter, the U.K.

Convocations

Fortune Institute of International Business hosted a convocation for 297 students with Manish Gupta, Senior Director at Google DeepMind, as the chief guest.

Around 1800 students of VNR Vignana Jyothi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Hyderabad, received their degrees on graduation day,. B.V. R. Mohan Reddy, Founder Chairman, Cyient Group Chairman; B. H. V. S. Narayana Murthy, Vice-Chancellor, Defence Institute of Advanced Technology, Pune, were among the dignitaries.

Chennais Amirta International Institute of Hotel Management held a convocation ceremony for over 800 students.

Awards

In the Times Higher Education (THE) Sustainable Impact Rankings 2026, Lovely Professional University was ranked No. 23 globally and Manipal Academy of Higher Education retained its overall 101-200 global band. SGT University was in the 601–800 global band.

EuroSchool Bannerghatta was named among the world’s top 10 schools in the Environmental Action category of the World’s Best School Prizes 2026, organised by T4 Education.

KLH Bachupally Campus has been conferred the Institutional Excellence Award by the Shri P. V. Narasimha Rao Memorial Charitable Trust for community outreach programmes and volunteer-driven initiatives.

Collaborations

Esri India has signed an MoU with Delhi Technological University to establish a Centre of Excellence in Geospatial Technologies to bridge the gap between industry expectations for geospatial skills and academic programmes.

The Ashoka Centre for a People-Centric Energy Transition partnered with Tata Power Delhi Distribution Limited to advance research, innovation, and capacity-building in the energy and power sector.

The Institute of Chartered Accountants of India signed an MoU with Sarvam AI to collaborate on AI training, capacity-building, professional development, joint research, and more.

K.P.B. Hinduja College of Commerce partnered with the Advertising Standards Council of India to promote responsible advertising through education, training, and industry collaboration.

The Institute of Management Accountants has partnered with five higher education institutions in Rajasthan — Banasthali Vidyapith; Manipal University Jaipur; Pacific Academy of Higher Education and Research University; St. Xavier’s College Jaipur, and JECRC University — to strengthen accounting and finance education through enhanced career readiness and professional skills.

SBI Life Insurance partnered with IIT-Bombay to launch Bharat’s AI and Cyber Innovation Hub for Insurance to advance deep-tech research and cyber resilience for India’s insurance sector.

UPES has collaborated with IIT-Guwahati’s Technology Innovation and Development Foundation and IIT-Guwahati BioNEST, to launch SPARC-AI, a joint initiative aimed at nurturing student-led innovations in clean energy, agritech and cleantech.

Virohan has entered into collaborations with three universities: UPES (Dehradun), Rungta International Skills University (Bhilai), and Vivekananda Global University (Jaipur) to deliver industry-aligned, skill-focused healthcare education that combine theoretical knowledge, practice and industry exposure through internships.

Vertiv will collaborate with IIT- Banaras Hindu University, Varanasi, to support the launch of the Undergraduate Research Avenue (UGRA), an initiative by the Department of Electronics Engineering to foster hands-on research and innovation among undergraduate students and support the establishment of an Advanced Hardware Innovation Lab in the department.

GSFC University signed six MoUs with Farmson Basic Drugs Pvt. Ltd., Nandesari (Vadodara); Indus Fire Safety (Vadodara); Alkem Laboratories Ltd. (Mumbai); Vasu Research Centre (Vadodara); the Centre for Entrepreneurship Development (CED), Government of Gujarat; and the ICMR–National Institute of Occupational Health Research (ICMR-NIOHR), (Ahmedabad) for greater interaction between academia and industry and to create pathways for applied research, technology transfer, product innovation, professional training, employment-oriented education and strengthen the university’s start-up and incubation ecosystem.