ISB Hyderabad introduces ‘PGP Class of 2015 Startup Fellowship’ to fund student entrepreneurs

The Indian School of Business (ISB) Hyderabad has launched the ‘PGP Class of 2015 Startup Fellowship’ to provide financial support to students who want to start their own businesses. ISB announced the fellowship in a recent press release.

Speaking about the initiative, Madan Pillutla, Dean of ISB , said, “The PGP Class of 2015 Startup Fellowship reiterates the strength of our alumni community and its commitment to supporting the next generation of entrepreneurs. By providing early-stage support through ISPROUTE, the fellowship will enable student founders to pursue promising ideas and advance their ventures.”

The fellowship will offer an annual grant to an eligible student or student-led team from the ongoing batch of the Post Graduate Programme in Management (PGP). The initiative will be introduced through ISPROUTE, which is ISB’s pre-incubation programme that supports upcoming entrepreneurs to develop their business ideas.

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ISB startup fellowship: Funding, agreement

The Indian School of Business fellowship will be funded through the 'PGP Class of 2015 Startup Endowment Fund', which is established by the Hyderabad cohort. ISB will also give additional funds to the endowment to ensure that financial support can be provided every year.

Sharing her thoughts on the fellowship, Anchana C, PGP Class of 2015, said, “ISB gave our class the confidence to chart our own paths. Dedicating our class endowment to this fellowship is our way of passing that on. Every year, it will support one student entrepreneur in taking the first steps towards building a venture, with ISB's entrepreneurial ecosystem behind them."

The memorandum of understanding (MoU) for the fellowship was signed between the ISB Dean and representatives of the PGP Class of 2015 Hyderabad cohort. The fellowship will encourage students to start their own businesses and is also expected to offer support to student founders as they develop their business ideas into startups.