Deadline: 29 February 2020
Applicants are invited to apply for the India Fellow Program 2020 with an objective to create a learning platform for young Indians who undergo a 13-month long journey of discovering their own leadership potential. It includes training, mentor-ship, reflections and hands-on work experience with a grassroots organization working on social issues.
Fellowship Design
Training & Workshops: The fellowship has approximately 8 weeks spread over the duration of overall 13 months where the fellows meet at a common point for training. This is divided into 3 parts:-
- Induction (20 days) at the start
- Midpoint (13 days) at the end of 6 months
- Travel workshop (10 days) and Endpoint (4 days) at the end
Work Assignment with Host Organization: The volume wise biggest chunk of the fellow life will be spent with a reputed, authentic and committed grassroots organization. This can be anywhere across the country on any thematic area.
- The fellow will be living in their work area, a rural or an urban setup, and working closely with the organization’s team to understand the social framework and development approach. This powerful experience inculcates sensitivity, deeper understanding and consciousness for the fellow to look inward as well as towards issues India faces at large.
Constant Engagement: While working intensively in the field areas, it becomes crucial to maintain a balance in action and reflection.
- Throughout the year, fellows document their observations, experiences and insights in the form of monthly blogs and a detailed year-end essay. They engage in regular virtual learning modules, online courses and fundraising to build a holistic understanding of the sector and gaining crucial skill sets.
- The fellows also stay in regular touch with the co-fellows and fellowship team over and above their host organization and the community, to peer learn from each other.
Mentorship: Every fellow is exposed to a pool of mentors, both from the host organization as well as the fellowship. A mentor is an expert with huge experience in their domain, someone who will be a philosopher and a guide to the fellow in his/her journey.
- Along with that, the fellowship ecosystem that consists of trainers, alumni, personnel from various host organizations and the program team are constantly available and interacting with the fellows to enrich the experience as friends and coaches. The mentorship piece helps the fellow build meaningful relationships and influential network for professional growth.
Benefits
The host organization supports the fellow with a monthly stipend of Rs. 16,000 INR for living expenses like accommodation, food and travel. The fellow in turn has to fund raise a total amount of 60,000 INR through the 13 months towards their training costs. This is done by the cohort as a collective action initiative with inputs and support from the fellowship team.
Eligibility Criteria
To be eligible, applicants must ensure that they:
- are between 21 to 28 years of age
- are already a graduate (in any discipline) or will be before fellowship begins
- are an Indian citizen
- are ready for a 13 month full time commitment to the fellowship
- understand that this is not just a job and will expect applicants to be engaged 24X7 in the process with the community
- understand that applicants can be placed in any part of the country and in any thematic area
For more information, visit https://www.indiafellow.org/about-the-fellowship/apply-now/