Don Bosco Network Partners With FiiRE to Turn 65,000 Graduates Into Founders

A database of more than 65,000 vocational and technical graduates is being redirected from entry-level job placement toward startup creation under a new nationwide partnership in India. The Don Bosco Job Placement Network and the Forum for Innovation Incubation Research & Entrepreneurship, or FiiRE, signed the agreement to convert job seekers into founders across 11 Salesian provinces.

The program targets a specific weakness in India's skills pipeline: low-paying, high-attrition entry-level jobs that absorb technical graduates without building careers. Instead of routing candidates into conventional employment, the partners plan to equip them with skills, mentorship and resources to establish sustainable enterprises.

FiiRE brings proven infrastructure to the deal. The incubator is backed by India's Department of Science and Technology and based at Don Bosco College of Engineering in Fatorda, Goa. It has supported 251 startups, facilitated the creation of more than 600 jobs and assisted in filing 28 patents. Its portfolio companies have also raised external funding.

The economics of the arrangement hinge on connecting two assets. Don Bosco holds scale: a nationwide network of technical institutions and industrial training institutes feeding a candidate database spanning 65,000-plus names. FiiRE holds the incubation machinery: prototyping laboratories, industry mentors and startup funding channels.

A Salesian involved in the launch detailed the mechanics. "Under the collaboration, selected candidates will gain access to FiiRE's advanced prototyping laboratories, experienced industry mentors and startup funding channels," the Salesian said. "These include government-backed initiatives such as the National Initiative for Developing and Harnessing Innovations Entrepreneur-in-Residence and the Startup India program, which enable aspiring entrepreneurs to develop, test, and scale innovative business ideas."

The rollout starts with digital infrastructure. Don Bosco will upgrade its existing job portal into a technology-driven platform for talent identification, entrepreneurial skill assessment and startup onboarding. The first phase includes online orientation sessions for regional directors, followed by campus immersion programs, prototype development workshops and business idea pitching events.

Leaders at the launch meeting agreed to identify promising entrepreneurs from the Don Bosco network and connect them directly with incubation opportunities. Screening will draw on the placement network's granular data on candidate skills and training backgrounds.

The long-term plan extends beyond matchmaking. The partners intend to establish incubation centers inside Don Bosco industrial and technical institutions across the country, embedding startup facilities within vocational education campuses. The stated goal is a nationwide ecosystem of youth-led enterprises that creates employment and drives innovation in local communities beyond India's major urban centers.

The strategy carries a geographic logic. India's startup activity concentrates in metros such as Bengaluru, Mumbai and Delhi, while Don Bosco's training institutions reach smaller cities and towns. If the incubation model transfers successfully, the partnership could open venture creation to graduates who rarely pitch to urban investors. The first campus immersion programs and pitching events will test that thesis.