Ashoka University invites applications for Young India Fellowship

NEW DELHI: Ashoka University has started the registration for the second round of the Young India Fellowship (YIF) Class of 2025. The YIF programme offers a year-long residential postgraduate Diploma in Liberal Studies. Candidates can apply for the programme till March 4 on the official website, ashoka.edu.in.

The university trains 100 students from across the country and abroad for leadership roles. It will also offer need-based financial aid, including a tuition, residence and hostel fee waiver up to 100%. The fellowship also offers the chancellor’s merit scholarship to 10 candidates, who have excelled in more than one area of engagement and demonstrated leadership qualities, covering their entire tuition fee, including residence and meals. Notably, 68% fellows in the Class of 2024 had received financial aid.

Eligibility criteria

Candidates of all age groups, who have received a recognisable degree in any discipline by July 2024 or earlier (including final-year students), are eligible to apply.

The programme aims at training students to ‘how to think’ instead of ‘what to think’. The YIF fellow will have to study 20 courses during the programme, taught by distinguished academics and domain experts, including in areas such as data, statistics, public policy, international relations, economics, philosophy, psychology, communication, design thinking, art appreciation and gender studies.

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The fellowship also offers an experiential learning module (ELM), where fellows work in groups on real-world projects. The fellows will also have to undergo the critical writing programme, focused on development of their reading, writing and thinking skills.

The course instructors includes K VijayRaghavan, former principal scientific advisor to the prime minister; Arun Kumar Singh, former ambassador to the United States; Sanjeev Bikchandani, founder of naukri.com and co-founder, Ashoka University; Rudrangshu Mukherjee, chancellor of Ashoka University; and Pramath Raj Sinha, founding dean of ISB Hyderabad.