Other links:
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Featuring Prasenjeet Patil’s creative piece that developed as an original project over his term at the Young India Fellowship
Featuring Shantanu Kulshreshtha’s creative piece that developed as an original project over his term at the Young India Fellowship
Featuring Nihaalini Kumar’s creative piece that developed as an original project over her term at the Young India Fellowship
Featuring Aadil Raza’s creative piece that developed as an original project over his term at the Young India Fellowship
Featuring Anuraag Khaund’s creative piece that developed as an original project over his term at the Young India Fellowship
Featuring Ura Verma’s creative piece that developed as an original project over her term at the Young India Fellowship
Sanjay Deshpande’s book, Don’t Ask Me How I’m Doing: Life, Death and Everything in Between published by LetsAuthor, an innovative…
Featuring Sreerupa Bhattacharya’s creative piece that developed as an original project over her term at the Young India Fellowship
Featuring Sakshi Barak’s creative piece that developed as an original project over her term at the Young India Fellowship
A multidisciplinary programme designed like no other.
Started in 2011, YIF grooms socially conscious leaders and change-makers for the 21st century. Offered as Ashoka University’s flagship residential postgraduate diploma in liberal studies, the YIF is unlike any other graduate academic programme. Fellows get access and exposure to diverse areas of study, research and practice within a year. This often helps Fellows (re)imagine themselves and discover or strengthen their passion and career trajectory. Fellows study a curated selection of courses taught by renowned educators, work on a team-based project to solve a real-world problem, and learn how to think critically and write effectively. They are also mentored by inspiring individuals, and live with a community of diverse individuals from many walks of life.
The multidimensional learning opportunities enable Fellows to build or hone 21st century skills that are in high demand, regardless of their past educational or professional backgrounds and their future goals: Collaboration, Communication, Problem-Solving, Critical Thinking, and Leadership.
Learn More | Programme Overview and Design
Click on any of the sections below to learn about specific components of the YIF.
Ever had an educator who profoundly influenced you? We bring together many.
The Young India Fellowship attracts renowned academicians, practitioners, and experts in the field to the classroom, and gives them the autonomy to innovate, create, and craft curricula. This is a rare freedom within academia and ensures an unparalleled teaching and learning experience, not just for YIF, but across all programmes at Ashoka University.
The diversity in courses is also reflected in the varied styles of teaching and assessment, which includes discussions, seminars, field visits, presentations, and group work. While catering to multiple learning styles, this allows you to learn from a range of perspectives, and prepare yourself to be a critical thinker who can connect the dots.
Challenge and enhance your understanding of the world around you. Try the YIF classroom.
Young India Fellows are a group of promising young individuals, selected through a rigorous and elaborate search for passionate achievers with a desire to bring about change. At the YIF, a gold medalist from IIT, a history major from LSR, a Kathak dancer, a banker from Goldman Sachs and a journalist from Reuters, all attend lectures together. This creates an unparalleled peer learning environment rich with multiple perspectives. From engineering to design, film to agriculture, medicine to art, and law to journalism, being amidst diverse peers will enable cross flow of ideas and learning – which will complement and challenge what you learnt in your previous experiences.
Work on a project which has real-world impact. Explore interdisciplinary collaboration.
The Experiential Learning Module (ELM) is a core component of the YIF curriculum where the Fellows work in groups of five on real-world projects from diverse sectors in collaboration with organisations and institutions (Clients). The ELM compliments academic learning at the YIF by equipping Fellows with structured problem-solving techniques, while also training them in designing and implementing sustainable solutions. It helps students learn how to work collaboratively, solve complex problems with an interdisciplinary approach, and build domain knowledge.
The ability to think critically and express effectively is valuable. No matter what you do.
The YIF Critical Writing Programme has few visible contextual precedents within the Indian higher education system. Acknowledging the importance of writing as central to processes of knowledge acquisition, production, and consumption, the programme has developed a pedagogy geared towards building critical reading, writing, and thinking skills to help Fellows engage with the world of ideas and enable them to develop and express their own ideas in a well-reasoned, lucid, and engaging manner. We do this by helping students innovate with genres of writing across different disciplines to develop a metacognitive awareness regarding their own reading and writing practices. These skills act as building blocks for the liberal arts education they receive at Ashoka University and enhance their abilities to navigate academic, professional, and social spheres once they graduate from the Fellowship.
Get mentored by eminent leaders and scholars of the 21st Century.
Mentorship is one of the key pillars of the YIF, where the Fellows are connected to Mentors with strong personal, academic, and professional track records who positively impact and guide their journeys during and beyond the YIF. The fellows have the opportunity to be mentored by not only a stalwart in academia or industry, but also by an alum who shares a similar background or interest. This allows the Young India Fellows to carve out a meaningful career path over time.
Immersions with Stalwarts.
Several public intellectuals, industry leaders, artists and other dignitaries visit campus over the year, to engage with and enrich Fellows through their craft, journey and more.
The Fellowship Never Ends.
Several high-impact alumni visit campus over the year, to enrich and inspire Fellows through their personal, professional and/or academic journeys and areas of interest/expertise. This also serves as a way for alumni to reconnect with the Ashoka ecosystem.
The YIF programme’s residential experience gives students access to the entire Ashoka University ecosystem. Students become a part of a vibrant community and get the opportunity to engage with people and spaces beyond the YIF. The residential experience is accentuated by the multifaceted environment of the University which includes:
● World-class infrastructure and facilities
● Multiple Centres of excellence
● Comprehensive student support systems
● Fulfilling cultural and co-curricular engagement
Since 2011, over 2100 individuals from India and abroad have commenced their lifelong journeys as Young India Fellows. Fellows are equipped with perspectives, knowledge, and capabilities that help them understand the world better and engage with their field of study or practice through a multidisciplinary approach - essential for navigating leadership challenges in the 21st century. Fellows keep coming back to the Fellowship, and contribute to shaping and nurturing it further. They continue to support and collaborate with each other and with members of the larger Ashoka ecosystem in their professional and personal pursuits, regardless of what they do.
The Career Development Office (CDO) facilitates campus placements for Ashokans and also organizes a career preparatory program. The CDO also looks for custom opportunities that match specific career interests, and often shares relevant work opportunities with the YIF alumni community as well.
The YIF Class of 2022 witnessed a 100% placements season. Recruiting organisations from the previous year include:
The University is a preferred destination for several leading recruiters across Consulting, BFSI, Conglomerate, IT, BPO, KPO, Research/Analytics, Social Sector, Internet, FMCG, Startup, Fintech, Pharma, Media and Advertising, Education/EdTech, and PR, and has a commitment to enhancing inclusion, diversity and social impact, and contributing to nation-building by preparing the leaders of tomorrow.
Know MoreSeveral opportunities exist within the Ashoka ecosystem for Fellows across graduate study, social impact and entrepreneurship. Fellows additionally also pursue further studies across leading academic institutions globally, through formal and informal support via the Ashoka community.
Extend your stay at Ashoka by a year and graduate with a Master of Arts in Liberal Studies (MLS) degree. The 32-credit interdisciplinary research program is open to Fellows and alumni. Students design their own…
Apply to the 5-month long holistic Entrepreneur-in-Residence (EiR) programme at Ashoka University’s InfoEdge Centre for Entrepreneurship to incubate, develop and test your idea through a support structure that brings together a network of founders, entrepreneurs,…
Apply to the Mother Teresa Fellowship, which allows you to pursue your goals in development by providing you mentorship, professional and personal support, along with a monthly stipend. YIF alumni have started national movements, built…
Several Fellows, either immediately after graduating from Ashoka or later, have gone on to pursue graduate and doctoral programmes at aspirational institutions and have also secured coveted scholarships.
Young India Fellows together form a community of diverse leaders and changemakers from all walks of life, driven to generate transformational impact on society. Fellows continue to make an impact across diverse spheres, whether as entrepreneurs, in the corporate world, development sector, research, journalists, policy, sports, academia or as professional artists. Members of the community continue to demonstrate a spirit of service towards the Fellowship and Ashoka.
Watch | Alumni Journeys of Transformation and Impact Watch | Pathways of Possibility | Career Conversations with Alums
Alumni have pursued and excelled in a diverse set of career paths. From completing further education across diverse disciplines and securing prestigious scholarships, to starting organizations and working with leading private and public sector institutions across the world, it is very likely that you will find a YIF alumnus or alumna who is pursuing a trajectory that you’d like to.
The YIF follows a holistic admissions process, which takes into account the academic and non-academic journey, personal context, interests and potential of an individual. The online application is designed to be a reflective process.
“The ELM initiated a transition for me: from being an engineer to being a passionate advocate for the environment. It helped me give structure to my interests, and I learnt what it takes to design a project from scratch. The support of my peers and professors, coupled with the learnings from courses, are key reasons for why I could ground myself in the environment sector.”
Radhika Sundaresan, YIF 2015-16
Program Analyst, Global Water Practice, The World Bank
Fulbright Scholar (Environmental Sciences), Yale University
BTech, Amrita University
“YIF made me realize the power of networks and how they can enable one to to build institutions and materialize projects. I felt immensely supported when 128 members of the community, including faculty and founders, came together to contribute to the fundraiser for my documentary project, ‘Borderlands’. Courtesy of the fellowship, I can receive mentorship and advice from some of the most driven and experienced people across domains.”
Samarth Mahajan, YIF 2016-17
National award-winning Filmmaker
BTech and MTech, IIT Kharagpur
“YIF gave me the freedom to explore a diverse set of subjects and benefit from varied viewpoints presented by my peers and professors. The Critical Writing course ended up being one of my most formative academic experiences. It was while working on my final paper for this course that I discovered where my research interests lay. I’ve since explored these interests in my MLS thesis and am hoping to carry them with me in my PhD.”
Huzaafa, YIF 2016-17, MLS 2017-18
Ph.D. Candidate (Anthropology) and Knight Hennessey Scholar, Stanford University
BA Sociology, Literature and Education, University of Kashmir
The best thing I found about the YIF was the diversity of peers, their stories and perspectives, and the openness with which everybody discussed ideas. We had agreements, disagreements, and we agreed to disagree. The YIF gave me a completely fresh perspective. I have also gained a lot from the YIF after graduating, through collaborations on multiple projects with other alumni.
Pavneet Kaur, YIF 2013-14
Indian Administrative Service Officer, Government of India
BE, Pune Institute of Computer Technology
Young India Fellowship, Ashoka University
Dilip Simeon
10 March, 2021
Young India Fellowship, Ashoka University
Rudrangshu Mukherjee
3 March, 2021
Young India Fellowship, Ashoka University
24 February, 2021
Young India Fellowship, Ashoka University
Urvashi Butalia
17 February, 2021
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Email:
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