Earn while you learn: HCLTech enables employees to pursue higher education in Canada

In a significant move, global technology powerhouse HCLTech has forged a strategic alliance with Canada’s renowned Athabasca University. This synergy is set to revolutionize the tech workspace in Canada by allowing eligible HCLTech employees to simultaneously work and chase a STEM degree.

Empowering Employees Through Higher Education

This new partnership primarily targets HCLTech employees who have victoriously culminated the company’s IT Apprenticeship Program, granting them an avenue to join Athabasca University’s Bachelor of Science, Computing and Information Systems program. Notably, based on their academic flair, these employees can avail tuition benefit coverage.

Joelien Jose, HCLTech’s EVP and Country Head for Canada, shared his enthusiasm, stating, *”We are excited to partner with Athabasca University to strengthen our apprenticeship program… Employees from diverse backgrounds can now benefit from the apprenticeship program, which gives them room to learn while they work and achieve their higher education degree.”*

Dr. Alex Clark, the President of Athabasca University, echoed similar sentiments, emphasizing the flexibility of the online learning milieu that allows HCLTech’s workforce to nurture their education and professional growth concurrently.

HCLTech collaborates with Athabasca University: Dual benefit for tech employees in Canada

Tech Talent Development: A Priority for Canada

Several economic growth entities like Invest Alberta and Edmonton Global have expressed their robust support for this pioneering partnership, underlining the paramountcy of fostering tech talent within Canada’s borders.

Further amplifying this sentiment, non-profit giant NPower Canada, renowned for offering bootcamp training and job prospects to the nation’s youth in tech, acknowledged how HCLTech’s apprenticeship initiative accelerates career trajectories in technology. This, in turn, reinforces Canada’s competitiveness in the global tech arena.

Highlighting HCLTech’s commitment to inclusivity and diversity, the tech major cherry-picked candidates from NPower Canada’s varied cohorts across the nation, bestowing them with dual opportunities – gainful employment in the tech sector and an online IT degree from Athabasca University.

Closing on an impressive note, a special report by Technology Business Research Inc. tagged HCLTech’s apprenticeship program as ‘groundbreaking’. It’s a 12-month comprehensive module interweaving training with work-integrated learning, primarily aiming to catapult careers in software development, digital services, cloud paradigms, infrastructure provision, and intricate engineering.