Panjab University to teach students how to start a business, with seed money on offer

Chandigarh: Panjab University (PU) students will be able to earn academic credits through three new online courses in innovation and entrepreneurship from January 2027. Registration opens in December.

The courses will run under a new PU-Haydn Green Foundation School of Entrepreneurial Mindset (SEM). PU signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for it with the UK-based Haydn Green Foundation (HGF) on Tuesday.

The courses are open to PU undergraduate and postgraduate students, PU faculty, outside learners, working professionals in India and students abroad. Fees will be ₹3,000 for on-campus PU students in Chandigarh, ₹6,000 for PU students studying off-campus, ₹12,000 for other learners in India and ₹18,000 for foreign learners.

The first phase will offer three courses:

– Mastering Innovative and Creative Thinking

– Mastering Entrepreneurship: From Idea to Scale

– Entrepreneurship for Women: From Ideas to Enterprises

Each course carries three credits and runs for eight weeks, with 45 hours of learning. This includes 33 hours of self-paced study and 12 hours of live sessions. Classes will begin with a January 2027 batch, followed by batches in June and August.

For eligible PU undergraduates, the courses will be part of the university’s Skill Enhancement Course (SEC) basket. PU will award the credits and record them in the Academic Bank of Credits (ABC), as per academic rules.

Seed money for social projects

Learners will be asked to develop social project ideas linked to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). They can enter these in an annual SEM competition at PU. Selected entries may win seed-funding prizes and get a chance to connect with the Haydn Green Foundation’s flagship Annual Ingenuity Competition.

The school will run through PU’s Centre for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship (CSDE). It aims to link entrepreneurship learning with jobs and self-employment through structured learning, mentoring and project work.

The courses will be taught on a co-branded PU-HGF online learning platform. Officials said it goes beyond a regular learning management system and will offer live batch-based classes, AI-based learner support, learner communities, assessments, progress tracking and verifiable digital certificates.

Who signed the MoU

Registrar Prof Yajvender Pal Verma signed for PU. Gurinder Pal Singh Sadra, founding member, signed for The Foundary LLP, the digital partner that will deliver the courses. Vice-Chancellor Prof Meenakshi Goyal chaired the ceremony at the Vice-Chancellor’s Committee Room. Hardev Singh, chair and founder trustee of the Haydn Green Foundation, was the guest of honour.

Former PU vice-chancellor Prof Renu Vig, CSDE honorary director Prof Suveera Gill and several faculty members were present.

What they said

Prof Goyal said the tie-up would make innovation and entrepreneurship education easier to access and more relevant to new opportunities. She said the mix of academic rigour, practical learning and online delivery would give learners the confidence to start ventures and contribute to society.

Hardev Singh said entrepreneurship education can change how young people see their future and help them spot chances to build ventures with social impact. He said the initiative would take entrepreneurial learning to a wider group of learners.

Sadra said The Foundary LLP aimed to offer a rigorous, practical and accessible learning experience backed by technology.

Prof Gill said the CSDE wanted to bridge the gap between skill training and livelihood. The online courses would help more learners explore self-employment and turn their ideas into practical projects, she said.