Microsoft's AppFest, an initiative taken by the Redmond-based company to promote application development, will be held in India on 26 February.
Thousands of students from across the country will come together on AppFest day to transform their well-thought ideas into new applications. Students will be given an opportunity to showcase their talents in application development and will also be trained to use them through code-wise techniques. "On one hand, the trends in the IT space have evolved over the past few years, creating greater opportunities for students and budding developers. On the other, the global youth unemployment rate is currently at 12.7 percent - double the overall unemployment rate," said Pratima Amonkar, Microsoft director (strategic audience marketing), IANS reported.
The participants will be mentored by Microsoft mentors, trainers and Microsoft Student Partners (MSPs). The AppFest will also give students a chance to showcase their apps on the Windows Store after thorough evaluation.
"These two things clearly indicate a gap in demand and supply - and the obvious answer: Given the right skills and training, there is lot young technology students can achieve today. This is exactly what we are trying to do: bring together the opportunity and those who can utilize it, said Amonkar.
"Obviously students recognize the opportunity, going by the enthusiastic response we have received across India so far."
According to the company, the AppFest will feature all basic apps including those related to games and education. The company will offer Visual Studio Express designed for the Windows 8 platform along with Windows Store registration codes for students in the programme
