There are countless social issues in society which are of huge concern, which may directly or indirectly impact the community and the human lives. .Sometimes it’s just too overwhelming to think about them and keep sitting idly without making an effort to stop it, or change it. So what can be done at an individual level? The answer is simple, yet not easy as it seems – Personal Responsibility.
To quote Mahatma Gandhi- “Be the change you wish to see in the world.”
The Gandhi Fellowship Programme is one such bold initiative which strongly believes that a person can elicit the change he/she desires and an individual is as much responsible for the impact and changes in the society as anyone else is.
What is the Gandhi Fellowship Programme and when was it started?
Motto of the programme– “Build Self, Build Nation”, this programme aims to provide the kick-start to the enthusiastic youth of the nation, in order to introduce necessary reforms in the public education system. It strives to make available the mentorship required to make the students understand the issues and identify the lapses, and thereby work diligently to come up with interactive and creative ideas to resolve them. Through its activities, it instills the various skills and qualities required in a potential leader to influence and move people.
Supporting organisations– The Gandhi Fellowship Programme is fastened by the constant support of Piramal School of Leadership and Kaivalya Education Foundation, and is a two year rigorous residential journey. It has been working dedicatedly since 2008 to create leaders who are capable of breaking the conventional norms and lead the transformation drives.
The Curriculum
The Gandhi Fellowship Programme is an intensive programme which involves some main processes it follows for the development of the enrolled students in various arenas. The processes are diverse and are formed in a way that it would help in the overall transformation of the individual so that they can apply the skills learnt in real life as well as in the changing education scenarios.
1) Boot Camps, Classroom and Community Immersion
2) Field Support – For School and Community, and Debriefs
3)Kaun Banega the New Millionaire
4) Leadership Curriculum, Monthly workshops
5) Private Dream Articulation, Vipassana and Wellness Management
How does it provide field experience?
The Gandhi Fellowship team strongly believes that field experiences are a requisite for making the fellows understand and inculcate life skills like communication, self awareness, and spontaneity.
Qualities Instilled :
1) Self Awareness and Excellence in Collaborative Work
2)Articulation of Private Dream and Values
3)Influence without Authority
Responsibilities allotted :
The fellows will be allocated five schools during the two years where they would take care of the primary school while being in touch with the principal for the same. The idea is to give the fellows real life application problems and hence they would be expected to come up with innovative and effective ideas for the development of the school. By the time the programme comes to an end, the fellows become equipped to handle situations in a way which benefits the society.
What are the major programmes under which the Gandhi fellowship operates?
- School Leadership Development Program (SLDP)
This programme aims to increase the leaders available in the education sector for efficient and effective learning of the students. It is currently working in more than 1300 schools across 12 districts in the major cities – Rajasthan, Haryana, Gujarat, Uttarakhand and Maharashtra.
- District Transformation Programme (DTP)
This programme fuels on the belief that the people in the rural sector having suitable capabilities are important and should be utilized for the transformation of the education system in the rural sector. Every fellow who is a part of this programme collaborates and works not only with the government,the parents and the media so that an overall development of the mind-set could take place.
- State Transformation Programme
The State Transformation Programme works in partnership with 10 major state governments. The fellows work with the state officials to achieve the goal of providing supreme teacher-workforce who would work on the holistic development of the children. It aims to create a better curriculum where teaching is combined with fun activities which will help in instilling skills required in real life.
All the three programmes are designed in a way that the individual throughout the journey not only improves but also becomes a better thinker and decision maker in different fields. By working while observing the ground reality, they tend to become more passionate for the cause and later on start working at state and regional levels for the enhancement of the same.
What is the eligibility criteria to apply for this programme ?
The Gandhi Fellowship is a highly demanded programme and every student aspiring to be a part of this fellowship programme who is interested in making efforts to serve the society must meet some basic eligibility criteria-
1) The candidate must be a graduate, but those studying in their final year can also apply.
2) Those who are already working i.e. are employed, but are below the age of 26 years can also apply.
Note: Students who are meticulous and have a record of extracurricular activities related to entrepreneurship, leadership, organisation work, and competitions are all welcome!
How to Fill Online Application forms for Gandhi Fellowship?
The interested candidates must visit the official site i.e. http://www.gandhifellowship.org/ to instigate the application process.
Important– there is no offline method available to apply for the same. It only works through the website.
Step 1 –The online application form requires the candidate to fill the personal details, education details, work experience, and data regarding ECA activities.
Step 2-After submitting details asked in step 1, the candidate has to wait for further intimation by the team regarding the selection. If they feel the candidate has the required potential, the candidate will reach step2 where he/she will have to fill up the final application form.
Once the candidate has provided all the required details, the application goes through various screening processes. And if shortlisted, the candidate will be called for an interview. The final result is intimated through email and usually the review process takes 5 to 10 days and the further details are communicated by the team through emails.
What are the various benefits the candidate is entitled to, once selected?
Apart from the various competitive and academic skills the fellow will enhance during the programme, there are also a plethora of other advantages which the selected candidates would be entitled to during the fellowship programme-
- INR 14000 would be given to the fellows as a monthly stipend.
- Apart from the above, to meet the monthly needs for miscellaneous charges like mobiles, computers, water, motorbikes, power, rent and additional services of a cook, an amount of INR 600 would also be provided.
- The Gandhi fellowship placement cell would also constantly support the candidate in finding a suitable job.
Gandhi Fellowship is a golden opportunity which uplifts the people willing to make the efforts and provides them a chance and the required resources to work for a social cause, wherein they learn on-field about what all governs the system and how their thinking should be , so that they are able to make a lasting impact in the society.
Anyone with the matching interests and beliefs must apply for this fellowship so that the collaborative efforts of people having the same mindsets yield better results, which would thereby improve the society.
