UiPath, Inc., a leading enterprise automation software company, has announced its groundbreaking Academic Alliance program now includes more than 500 higher education institutions and workforce development organizations in Asia Pacific (APAC). There are 21 academic alliance partners in Singapore including NTU, SMU, Temasek Polytechnic and Republic Polytechnic that bring specially designed robotic process automation (RPA) curricula and free UiPath software to the next generation of workers. 

In the APAC region, UiPath Academic Alliance has added institutions across China, India, Singapore, Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand and the Philippines. Globally, the program reaches more than 1000 institutions—comprised of universities, colleges, government bodies, professional workforce organizations, and not-for-profits—has educated more than 245,000 students and professionals on automation in 63 countries through the program in its first two years. To date, the Alliance has influenced more than 30,000 of these individuals in gaining employment, according to a UiPath survey of more than 200 Academic Alliance members.

Organizations are embracing an automation-first strategy—meaning any process that can be automated, should be automated. According to a recent Deloitte survey, 78% of organizations are already implementing RPA, while Gartner predicts 90% of large organizations globally will have adopted some form of RPA by 2022. Today’s technical and business professionals must have the skills and expertise to identify processes that should be automated via RPA, and the ability to rapidly deploy the technology. 

According to Forrester Research, the APAC region and its markets have been growth engines for RPA in recent years, accounting for close to 17% of the global market for RPA services. Singapore is leading the way in the region – it has launched initiatives to encourage industries to adopt robotics and automation, as part of the government’s industry transformation plan. It is also among the most prepared countries in APAC for workforce automation.

“We’re seeing strong demand for robotics and automation skills across all sectors, as organizations embrace AI, automation and advanced systems in preparation for the future of work,” said Rick Harshman, Senior Vice President and Managing Director, Asia Pacific and Japan at UiPath. “The UiPath Academic Alliance program provides significant opportunities for students and professionals to educate and upskill themselves in automation, so that they are equipped with the necessary skill sets to take on more creative, strategic and fulfilling work in the future.”

Robotic Process Automation is integral to any organization’s digital transformation today, and it has become imperative for students to be armed with the right skills. The training received in UiPath has benefitted both our staff and students by equipping them with the competencies to create end-to-end automation solutions. In addition, for our students on internships, they are able to support companies in their digitalization journey while honing their skills.  On the organizational front, it has also been highly beneficial in accelerating our business productivity,” said Dr Eng Pin Kwang, Director, School of Informatics & IT, Temasek Polytechnic.

The UiPath Academic Alliance is a global RPA knowledge ecosystem helping to shape the future of work. Institutions that join the Alliance are provided free courses, free UiPath software for students and educators, and the ability to network with the highly active community of global RPA professionals and users. 

“The automation industry is growing at a fast pace which underscores the increasing importance of RPA skills for the future workforce. These skills have put our students in good stead to secure internship opportunities, as well as industry automation projects. We are happy that our educators and students are playing a pivotal role in shaping the UiPath ecosystem workforce”, said Mr Soh Lai Seng, Director, School of Engineering, Republic Polytechnic.

RPA market revenue is on target to meet an estimate of $2.9 billion in 2021, according to a recent report by Forrester Research, Inc.[1] In addition, the total available market for automation solutions is estimated at $65 billion, highlighting how early most organizations are in their automation journeys and the need for skilled workers to support long-term, wide-ranging enterprise automation initiatives.