The ICICI Fellows programme is a 15-month transformative leadership programme aimed to create and nurture social leaders who will lead India into a brighter future.

If selected for the programme, you will work on 2 distinct grassroots development projects for the duration of 6 months each in 2 different rural organizations in diverse locations across India. These two projects will be interspersed with training modules that focus on management training, skill building and leadership development.

In 2009, ICICI Foundation launched ICICI Fellows, a pioneering ‘youth leadership’ programme that nurtures young talent to create a cadre of socially responsible leaders for India. The programme was founded with the belief that in each and every sector, India needs talented young leaders who have had in-depth exposure to India’s broader realities, who understand the challenges and opportunities presented in diverse environments, and who have the skills and determination to discover and implement innovative ideas in these areas.

Vision: This programme envisions developing social leaders, who would with their knowledge and skills, mobilize people, their thoughts and resources to create a better India

The objective is to groom committed young leaders by:

• Developing their inherent leadership potential
• Providing them with a broad exposure to rural India
• Imparting the development perspective in order to make them more socially responsive

ICICI Foundation is the CSR wing of ICICI group of companies. The ICICI Fellows programme is an initiative of ICICI Foundation. ICICI Fellows is presented by ICICI Foundation and implemented by iVolunteer To know more about the programme team, click here.

To be eligible for the programme you must be a young professional or graduate between the age of 21 and 28. We are looking for talented dynamic young individual who are passionate and committed to India’s social development.

ICICI Fellows come from all walks of life. They are a diverse group of individuals hailing from institutes like Loyola Academy, St. Xavier’s College, London School of Economics, and organizations like Deloitte, Infosys and Wipro, all brought together by their passion for India’s social development.

ICICI Fellows is a transformative programme that allows you a unique opportunity to work with organizations at the grassroots level in the country and receive leadership training from experts within and outside the social sector. We believe that this amalgam of experiential learning and classroom training will enrich you personally and professionally, helping you gain an insight into some of India’s basic developmental challenges whilst also providing you with the professional tools you will need to make a valuable contribution. Your interactions with rural communities will enrich you and help build a perspective and opinions on basic issues whilst your interactions with your peers will allow for learning through cross sharing. Upon completion we believe you will be equipped to take up a leadership position in any field that you choose to tread.

You are eligible for this programme irrespective of your education background if you are passionate about working for social development. We aim to select talented young graduates with consistent past performance, displaying leadership potential and a passion for India.

The language of instruction for the training sessions will be English. The organization you are placed with could be anywhere in India, so a basic knowledge of Hindi as well a local language will be an advantage.

Selecting future social leaders of the country is no easy task, therefore the selection procedure is designed to closely assess your performance record as well as the character traits which determine your eligibility for the programme.

To begin your application you must first fill in the online application form, next there will be a psychometric analysis which will assess you along various parameters. Those shortlisted after these two stages will be invited to attend an assessment day which will consist of various individual and group activities aimed at assess leadership skills, problem solving abilities and working with others in a team. Those who emerge successful at the end of this process are ready to begin their journey as an ICICI Fellow designate.

ICICI Fellows is not an academic programme so you will not receive a professional degree.

On successful completion you will receive a certificate of work experience from the organizations you have worked with as well as an ICICI Fellows certificate.

During the course of the fellowship, you are paid a stipend by ICICI Foundation to cover your living expenses.

Experiential learning forms the core component of the ICICI Fellows programme. This entails working on 2 grassroots development projects with rural organizations who are our partners for the ICICI Fellows programme. These partners are spread across India. Your placement will be assigned to you at the end of the induction training.

The programme team makes every effort to ensure that your first project is appropriately matched with your skills, interests and aptitude. However, the objective of the programme is also to build your perspective by exposing you to the different regions and challenges that our nation faces. Hence, to enhance your experience, your second project will be very different from your first one.

To learn about current and past projects visit Meet the Fellows on this site.

Your placement assigned to you at the end of the induction training will be appropriately matched with your skills, interests and aptitude. However, you do not have the liberty to choose your project or location.

You will be assigned a challenging project with an organization in rural India, working closely with rural communities in one of the following areas: Sustainable Livelihood, Elementary education, health, energy, water and access to finance.

To know about the projects ICICI Fellows designate are currently working on, visit Meet the Fellows section

The programme begins with a 4 week long induction training which is aimed to equip you with all the necessary tools you will need to work in a rural organization. This training encompasses a range of management and development-related topics including project management, financial engineering for low-income households, communication skills, monitoring and evaluation, development perspectives and rural livelihoods, in addition to workshops on personal development and leadership skills. The faculty will be experts in their fields and will share their experiences in the development sector, thus enriching you and preparing you for the journey ahead.

Additionally, a panel of experts is available to guide you as and when required in case of any technical project related queries that you might have.

You are given a stipend of Rs. 12,000 per month to cover your expenses during the programme. The organization where you work will assist you in making arrangements in the beginning of your placement, after which you would be equipped to manage the same independently

You will be placed with one of our partner organizations for the duration of your project. Each organization has been vetted for safety, legitimacy and accessibility by the ICICI Fellows Programme Team, and is visited frequently by their assigned coach.

Your parents are free to visit you so long as it does not interfere with your work.

You will be granted a week of leave during each project, i.e. a total of 14 days of leave through the course of the programme.

The first travel from your home to the training location and the last travel at the end of 15 months, and any personal travel in between are not covered under the programme. Travelling from the training location to and from your organization and any official travel is reimbursed.

Your accommodation, travel and other training related expenses will be covered during training sessions.

During the 15 months of the ICICI Fellows programme, you are groomed to be a leader - ready with the skills, experience, personality and motivation to succeed in any field you choose to pursue. We believe you will chart your own career path from here on. We will support you through career advice, professional networking and tie-ups with organizations seeking leadership talent. However this programme does not assure or guarantee any job placement at the end of 15 months.

The programme is in no way associated with ICICI Bank and has no connection with a bank job.

For these and other important dates, please write to us at icicifellows@ivolunteer.in or visit our facebook page

The ICICI Fellows programme is a full time 15 month commitment and cannot be taken up part-time. There is no option to pursue this through distance learning.

Non resident Indians are not restricted, however please bear in mind that you will need to travel to India for the Psychometric test and assessment days.

We do not have a policy against this, if you are married, and passionate for social change and are willing to stay away from your family for 15 months, you can most certainly apply for the programme

The ICICI Fellows programme invites applicants every year. You can apply for the next intake of the programme. Stay updated by following us on facebook and twitter

To apply for the programme you must first register on the site after which you will receive an authentication link via e-mail. This link will redirect you to the application form, which you must fill out as per the instructions and submit in order to apply for the programme.

If you have saved your application form you can come back later to view and submit. If you have submitted your form, you cannot make any further changes.