The training programme in progress at the XLRI computer centre. Pix: Srinivas

Jamshedpur, May 26: About 270 engineering students from over 36 engineering colleges across the country participated in an information technology course that was organised at the XLRI School of Management today.

Last year, the programme saw the participation of about 180 students in the 25-day training program on network management, conducted by XLRI and Nettech, a Bhubaneshwar-based IT firm.

Sapan Purkait, manager of Nettech, said there was an overwhelming response for this year?s event as most students who had attended the programme last year have found good jobs.

?Thanks to good campus recruitment for most computer science students who attended the program last year, it has resulted in an upsurge in the popularity of this course. The course was launched last year,? he added.

The sessions are aimed at equipping the participants with skills to master a network operating system.

?It is a certificate program designed to increase the technical knowledge on Linux and Linux-based solutions,? said A. K. Pani, chairperson of the information systems wing of XLRI, and the coordinator for the course. ?After the completion of the course, the participants can install web servers and mail servers on their own. Such skill sets are generally not taught in engineering colleges.?

Nettech?s manager explained that an advantage networking solutions have over operating systems is that they co-exist in the market. Such a trend helps students learn one network package and yet have the window to work in numerous organisations. Nettech has completed a similar program at XIM, Bhubaneswar, which concluded on May 21. Further, the organisation has also joined hands with IIT, Kharagpur, and IIM, Clacutta, to conduct similar training programmes from this year.

The program at the Kharagpur institute will begin from June 16, whereas IIM, Calcutta, would have its programme on June 20.

Participants, upbeat about the opportunities the course will open for them, said even the course fee was affordable at Rs 6,000 for tuition and Rs 3,750 for boarding and lodging.