JSW Foundation Fellowship 2023 -2025
JSW Foundation is the social development arm of the US$ 13 billion JSW Group, one of India’s leading business houses. It has a long track record and a rich legacy of empowering rural communities to enrich their lives since the last three decades. JSW Foundation’s holistic life-cycle based interventions have positively impacted more than a million underprivileged people across India. Through a strong field presence, it operates across 22 rural locations in 11 Indian States with priority on communities around JSW’s plant & port locations.
The Foundation’s core focus areas include Education, Health & Nutrition, Skill Development & Livelihoods, Agri-Livelihoods, Water, Environment & Sanitation, Sports, Rural Development and Art & Heritage.
iVolunteeris a social enterprise that promotes volunteering with the mission to bring volunteers and organisations together to share time, skills & passion to promote India’s social development. India’s first and largest volunteering organisation, iVolunteer has been working 12 social development areas since the last two decades, namely: Education, Poverty Alleviation, Environment, Health, HIV-AIDS, Gender Equality, Human Rights, Disability, Youth Welfare, Elderly Welfare, Child Welfare & Active Citizenship.
iVolunteer maximises social impact in India by leveraging corporate philanthropy, CSR and global sustainability initiatives.
JSW Foundation Fellowship was born out of the conviction that young Indians today have immense leadership potential and the power to transform the world around them. With the right training and mentorship, this potential can be nurtured and youth can be equipped to become changemakers at the grassroots level.
The programme is spearheaded by JSW Foundation and iVolunteer.
The JSW Foundation Fellowship is a transformative two-year youth leadership programme for the most promising young people of the country, that empowers them with deep insights into social development and nurtures a commitment to social change.
Through a personalised leadership journey, Fellows will be equipped to formulate their own understanding of rural and social development, support community and youth development, and affect change at the grassroots level.
The Fellowship is designed to nurture the innate leadership potential of extraordinary young Indians, through four key programme pillars- Skill Building, Rural Immersion, Peer Learning, and Mentorship.
The JSW Foundation works across the thrusts areas such as Water, Environment, Sanitation Sustainable Livelihoods, Community Development, Women Empowerment, Health & Nutrition, which the Fellowship adopts and accelerates innovative action towards. The Fellows will innovate and implement a project under the themes and look after end-to-end project management.
The Fellows will work towards understanding the challenges faced and the interventions in the specific themes they are assigned. At JSW Foundation, we are excited to welcome the first cohort of these young changemakers!
Fellowship design
The Fellowship Programme is designed to nurture the innate leadership potential of extraordinary young Indians, through four key programme pillars.
Skill Building: Commencing with a 2-week in-person induction and training the Fellows will be equipped with basics of development theory and skills to initiate their field projects. Over the course of two years, regular training programmes will be conducted across diverse thematic areas, as per the needs expressed by the cohort.
Rural Immersion: Close to 21 months of the Fellowship tenure will be dedicated to a full-time Development Project hosted by rural organisations. Development Projects will be offered on a range of social development issues such as sustainable livelihoods, community development, women empowerment, water, health & hygiene, sanitation, education & environment. A key component of all Development Projects will be engaging with the local community and supporting the development of select community members with an aim to nurture community leaders and entrepreneurship.
Peer Learning: Fellows will be expected to share their learnings and progress within the Fellowship team and externally, through multiple mediums. Dedicated sessions will be organised to facilitate reflection on their experience and journey beyond the immediate outcomes of their development projects or theoretical constructs imparted during formal training sessions.
Mentorship: During Development Projects, each Fellow (or a pair) will be supported by a Field Mentor to navigate challenges related to community work and Development Projects. Parallelly, Leadership Guides from diverse professional streams, will guide Fellows in their own personal leadership quest.
Fellow support
Finance
- All Fellows will be covered under a Group Policy for Cashless Medical and Personal Accident Insurance.
- A monthly stipend of Rs 30,000 to cover the cost of boarding, lodging and other living expenses
- Travel expense reimbursement to attend trainings and travel to field projects. Any other travel expenses incurred on instruction of the programme management team will also be reimbursed.
- An optional exposure visit (relevant to the field project / domain of Fellows’ interest) outside the field project. Each Fellow may apply once for the exposure visit during the Fellowship tenure
2. Insurance
All Fellows will be covered under a Group Policy for Cashless Medical and Personal Accident Insurance.
3. Leave
Fellows are eligible for a 7-day leave in each term of their Development Project, subject to approval by their reporting manager at the project location and the Fellowship Programme Head
4. Other
Any other support towards professional development and Field Project execution may be considered on case-by-case basis by the programme management team.
Assessment & Recognition
Assessment Structure
Fellows will be monitored for their progress and learnings. As an open Fellowship program, a comprehensive assessment comprising of the following will be undertaken:
- On-going assessment of Development Projects based on self-reports and host community / project manager;
- Evaluation on successful completion of all mandatory trainings and assignments
- On-going tracking of Fellows’ blogs and feedback from Field Mentors
- Comprehensive end of project report
- Completion of mandatory period of fellowship
- However, no formal exams or tests will be conducted.
Fellowship Graduation
On completion of Development Projects, all the Fellows will convene for the End Term Review and Reflection which will also be the final leg of the Fellowship.
Each individual successfully completing all the Fellowship components will be formally awarded a completion certificate and recommendation. A gala graduation ceremony will be organised showcasing the Fellows, their accomplishments and the fellowship journey. A cross section of audience – industry leaders, host community representatives, mentors & guides, and Fellows’ own family & friends – will be invited.
Before the Fellowship completion, each Fellow will be encouraged to plan for their post Fellowship professional career. Counselling by Mentors and Leadership Guides along with the program team will focus on these. Placement support and references where needed will be offered.
Post Fellowship
On successful completion, the Fellows will become lifelong ambassadors of the Fellowship. The program will endeavour to ensure that Fellows are connected to the programme and to each other through an alumni network.
Eligibility
To apply for the JSW Foundation Fellowship Programme you must be :
- A graduate/post graduate or a young professional with 1-7 years of work experience from a field such as science, humanities, engineering, medicine, agriculture or other professional streams.
- Less than 30 years old as on 1st May 2023
- Conversant in English (as a primary medium of training) and at least 1 Indian language (for field projects)
- While a professional background in social work is not mandatory, those aware of the social sector and NGOs and have had a brief stint with the sector through sporadic or structured engagements are encouraged to apply.
- Potential applicants understand the risks and are willing to commit time for a deep engagement and a potential career in development.
Application Process
Step 1: Register on the website and fill out the online application form
Step 2: Applicants to undergo a stringent screening process through telephone interviews
Step 3: Shortlisted candidates to attend an assessment day where they will be put through various activities to determine their suitability for and commitment to, the programme
Step 4: Selected Fellows will be invited to join the JSW Fellowship Programme
