We, at hed-x, are working on creating a collaborative learning community where we aim to connect students, academia, and industry to collaborate on industry relevant projects and learning. Multiple focus groups and market studies leads us to believe that formal education, in its current form, is far removed from the real world problems and that students and employees do not have a forum for meaningful interactions. In the continuum of education more importance is given to marks over knowledge and theory over practical implementation. Methods of evaluating students through point in time assessments and GPAs do not give a true picture of a students capabilities and leaves little or no scope for self learning and innovation. This collaborative learning community aims to address these systemic issues by creating a 'ramp up to the real world' for the students by providing them with an opportunity to work on real world projects to gain exposure to industry trends.