About iVolunteer

iVolunteer is a not-for-profit organisation that promotes and facilitates volunteering in India and overseas. iVolunteer Service Centers in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai work with over 300 non-profits across India creating opportunities for people of all ages from all occupations to contribute their time and skills for a social cause. We provide options for local volunteering, rural volunteering, overseas volunteering and virtual volunteering. Our programmes also cater to international non-Indian volunteers and corporate employee volunteers.

iVolunteer India Fellow

Young people are considered to be the future of any country and more so in India where youth comprises 60% of the total population. As India grows in leaps and bounds, rural India still struggles with basic issues such as lack of employment, education and healthcare. There is a pressing need to bridge this divide in order to enable a more harmonious social and economic structure. A step in this direction is to connect youth to rural India thereby creating awareness about the development challenges that India faces.

iVolunteer India Fellow is a rural fellowship programme for urban youth across India. It is a summer fellowship programme designed to sensitize youth to rural India and the challenges faced in the development sector. As part of the fellowship, 60 students from across India are selected to undertake a 6-week placement (in pairs) with a rural NGO living with the rural community and working on social development projects.

Support

·        Stipend of Rs.3500/- to cover food and other day-to-day expenses

·        Reimbursement of travel expenses to the Host NGO and back

·        Local accommodation

·        Pre-departure orientation

·        Field visit by iVolunteer representative for midterm review of the placement

·        Post fellowship Convocation to felicitate successfully completed fellowships

We follow a stringent selection procedure ensuring that only the brightest young minds are selected for the Fellowship. Fellows are selected based on the application, a personal interview and a group activity.

History

Since 2005, iVolunteer has placed 102 Fellows from Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Chennai with 42 rural NGOs in Himachal Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Our Fellows have worked on diverse projects in the fields of education, self help groups (SHG), primary healthcare, microfinance, child labour, watershed management, biogas, child rights, ecology, village dynamics, public distribution system, panchayat raj, village mapping, water conservation & purification, wage structures & socio-economic conditions, livelihood (dyeing, fodder, irrigation, rain fed farming), income generation, Right To Information (RTI), sanitation, government schemes, women’s issues, baseline surveys, rural tourism, and tribal issues.

India Fellow Alumni

Delhi’s Hindu College, Indraprastha College for Women, Lady Shri Ram College for Women, Miranda House, Shri Ram College of Commerce and others

Mumbai’s St. Xavier's College, Government Law College, IIT Bombay, Jai Hind College, D. G. Ruparel College and others

Bangalore’s Christ College, St. Joseph’s College and others

Chennai’s Madras Christian College, Presidency College and others

This summer will change your life… It could also change the lives of many others.

iVolunteer India Fellow

Reaching out to rural India

Calling adventurous young spirits for a 6-week life changing experience in rural India. Here is a chance to make the most of your summer vacation, do something you have never dreamed of and discover the other side of reality.

It’s 6 weeks with a twist – no parents, no friends, mostly no TV, no flashing billboards, sometimes no electricity, no swanky skyscrapers, no fancy food, just REAL RURAL INDIA with real people living a real Indian life.

iVolunteer India Fellow aims to involve talented youth and provides them with opportunities to experience, first hand, the development challenges that rural India faces and explore ways to make a positive impact.

Programme features

Eligibility: Students between 16-23 years

Placement: Fellows (in pairs) work with rural NGOs in the same or a neighboring state with respect to the fellow's place of residence

Tenure: 6 weeks starting from May onwards 

Support: Stipend of Rs.3,500,  travel reimbursement,  local  accommodation, pre-departure training and orientation, midterm review and post fellowship Convocation

Work: Development project assigned by the NGO and a socio-economic study on the rural community     

To apply, fill out the iVolunteer India Fellow application form and courier/post it to us along with a photocopy of your college ID. Applications forms are available at various locations in your city (list on our website) and can be downloaded from our website www.iVolunteer.org.in/IndiaFellow.

For detailed information about the programme, Fellow and NGO testimonials, and more, visit www.iVolunteer.org.in/IndiaFellow

Fellow Testimonials

“I realized that we need to put into practical use whatever is found and go to the field and then do something about it rather than just giving suggestions and recommendations to improve the situation in the villages.” - India Fellow Mahim Singh, Delhi (2007)

“The fellowship has opened my eyes to the vast difference between urban and rural life; the women I interviewed were a great inspiration.” - India Fellow Mihika Mirchandani, Mumbai (2007)

 “India Fellow was an awesome experience. It opened up my personality towards rural life and gave me a clear insight into the development problems rural people face.” – India Fellow Priya A, Chennai (2007)

“I learnt a lot of life skills through the programme. Living independently in a remote village with a purpose in my mind and heart was such a brilliant experience.” – India Fellow Chetan Chauhan, Banglore (2007)

NGO Testimonials

“India Fellow offers a wonderful platform for the exchange of ideas, knowledge and skills between both the Fellows as well as the workers.” - Grameen Vikas Samiti, Nainital, Uttaranchal (2007)

“For youngsters with fire in their bellies, this could be their first encounter with reality." - Watershed Organisation Trust (WOTR), Ahmednagar, Maharashtra (2007)

“This Programme helps young ones to understand and internalize the real situation of rural India." -  Gandhigram Trust, Dindigul, Tamil Nadu (2007)

Through the Fellowships, iVolunteer intends to provide an ‘intense’ experience to the participants so that wherever life takes them, they find for themselves opportunities to contribute to India’s development.

Contact :Sunamika Singh

iVolunteer,

A-1, Chiranjeev Bldg.,

Chittaranjan Road,

Vile Parle (East), Mumbai 400057.

Off 022-26105235/65828875/9833369367

email: sunamika@ivolunteer.org.in

Website: www.ivolunteer.org.in