Ashoka Horizons: Where the Classroom Meets the Future

Ashoka Horizons are certified, live micro-courses uniquely crafted for curious and ambitious high schoolers entering grades 9-12. Offering the widest range of subjects, 21st-century skills, and life interests, these courses are available year-round. Students interested in subjects or skills get a never-before opportunity to explore college-level topics with leading global faculty and industry experts. These future-forward modules provide personalised mentorship, live sessions, and project-based learning, empowering students with richer knowledge and stronger profiles for better college admission outcomes in India or abroad.

Structured for 16 hours of learning spread over four consecutive weekends, these courses are designed to fit into the busy lives of high school students. Each module covers real-world topics that are innovative and academically rigorous, helping students enhance their academic profiles while giving them a glimpse of university-level study.

On Saturdays, students attend live lecture sessions with Horizons faculty, offering a rare chance to interact with world-class academicians, professors, and practitioners. These interactive sessions encourage students to ask questions and think critically, developing a nuanced understanding of concepts and skills. This summer, the courses were taught by faculty from Ashoka University, IIT Delhi, and Azim Premji University, alongside expert practitioners, including an award-winning filmmaker and a writing pedagogy expert. 

Sundays are dedicated to working with Teaching Fellows, usually graduate-level students, on individual or group projects. These projects allow students to practice their learnings in real-world scenarios, fostering peer learning and hands-on experience that enriches their college application profiles.

The live sessions often include live quizzes, polls, simulations, working with data sets and office hours to boost engagement and participation. Students also respond to prompts, interact with each other and work on activities on EdX, the learning platform that hosts all the courses. Apart from the live sessions, Horizons students also participate in a virtual talent night, allowing them to know their peers better and foster an inter-course peer engagement.

For Horizons Summer 2024, students had the option to choose from eleven distinct courses across seven future streams and four future skills. The courses were attended by 188 students from over 100 schools and 30 cities, including three diversity schools. Reflecting Ashoka University’s commitment to accessibility, we provided full merit-based scholarships to 24 students from across the country. Additionally, we launched the Brainbomb Challenge for high school students worldwide, offering winners a free seat in the course of their choice. The challenge encouraged critical and analytical thinking, requiring students to submit short essays on given topics. Essays showcasing originality and the ability to connect the dots were chosen as winners, with 21 students from 19 schools and 10 cities declared winners.

Ashoka Horizons are the only courses of their kind, available exclusively to high schoolers, they offer a transformative educational experience designed for deep learning, rich participation, and meaningful engagement with Teaching Fellows and peers. Through personalised mentorship and hands-on projects, students gain the knowledge, skills, and confidence to thrive in the 21st century.