In 2014, the University Grants Commission recognized and approved 98 skill based colleges in the country across five states. These skill based colleges are also referred to as Community Colleges. Community Colleges in the Indian context offer courses such as diplomas, advance diplomas and certificate courses that generally range from six months to two years. These degrees have been started with regard to the rising unemployment, low rates of employment and lack of skills and productivity at the workplace. The courses offered at Community Colleges also act as a savior for those who cannot afford expensive college degrees; and for the responsible individuals who do not have two or three years in their schedule to devote themselves to college or formal education.

With regard to the low productivity and rise in unemployment in the country, the dynamic Business and IT Industry and Post-Secondary Education of the country have overtime derived on a common ground for the cause of producing highly skilled workforce to the work frontier. With regard to the rapid technological change and increasing global competition in the recent decades, it has been observed that the scale and adaptability of community colleges make them a strong choice as a driving force. Among higher education institutions, community colleges stand closest to the crossroads of higher education and the real world, where the country's education sector needs to apply a mix of technical knowledge, business acumen and creativity to add value in firms whose imperative is to compete on innovation. This complex talent mix requires knowledge and skills gleaned from both academic education and vocational training.

In order to develop curriculum and instruction models that deliver the right skill set to large numbers of Indians, business and education leaders need to build collaborations that leverage their combined knowledge of labor markets, skills, pedagogy and students. This could be achieved by integrating the three historic missions of community colleges:university transfer education, vocational education and, developmental education.

It is a common fact that colleges today have a key role to play in their communities. Consequently, strategic partnerships between the workforce system and community colleges are critical. The strategic partnerships need to involve the stakeholders as well: economic development, business, industry, workforce and other educational partners. It is in the context of these strategic partnerships that the best are positioned to develop and implement innovative solutions to challenges of making market ready graduates. Community colleges are a provider of choice for workforce training and, in most communities; community colleges are an active training provider for the workforce system.

In addition, community colleges play a variety of roles in the operation of One-Stop Career Centers across the country. More recently, the strategic partnerships described have transformed into a driver in bringing community colleges and the workforce system together. Workforce boards and community colleges working collaboratively provide a powerful team to engage local business and industry in various strategic partnerships. These enable comprehensive assessment of workforce needs and a strategic approach to workforce investment, both by the workforce system and by the community college. In addition, collaboration also opens doors to more effective leveraging of resources and the ability to attract new resources, which has the synergistic effect of expanding the impact of workforce development efforts in a community and promoting economic growth, especially in an economy like India. For graduates who feel they lack the skills to survive in the industry, Community Colleges act as a boon in providing them the apt requirements of skills without demanding a greater sphere of their time for greater productivity.