KARM Trust :: KARM Fellowship

Need for the KARM Fellowship

According to data from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, the effort of the government towards reducing gender gap at the primary levels is paying off, as the ratio is visibly improving. Distressingly, this gap widens dramatically at the secondary level and worsens further at college. Recognising the need for individual help at the critical juncture of adulthood, when key personal and professional decisions are taken, the KARM Fellowship steps in. By adding multiple dimensions to formal college education through mentoring and life skilling, we aspire to not just narrow the gender gap in higher education but also promote social inclusion in the community.

Visions of KARM Fellowship

Our experience has taught us the value of Education, Mentoring, Life Skills and Community Service. Basing our Fellowship on these key pillars, we aim to enable the professional aspirations of future women leaders in their areas of choice.

The overarching theme for envisioning KARM Fellowship is Education-to make it valuable, accessible and empowering.

Its enablement is based on the following :

1. A College Degree - This will be earned by pursuing a three-year bachelors’ course from Delhi University. KARM mandates that the course be honored by the students as per the statutes of the college. The KARM Trust is in no way connected with the administration and admission process of Delhi University colleges, including SRCC and LSR.

2. Mentoring- This is a key pillar of the Fellowship-from being a guide to a role model, the designated mentor will meet with the assigned Fellow on a one-on-one basis, several times during the year, along with maintaining regular contact virtually.

This will allow for the young Fellow to not only observe and learn from this association by proximity, but also to receive counselling and direction related to individual career planning, skill acquisition, and experiential challenges.

3. Life Skills- Through group sessions on Communication, Leadership, Cultural Sensitivity, World Awareness to professional skilling through case studies, critical thinking, problem solving and Internships, the Fellow will build the capabilities that are necessary to enable professional fulfillment.

4. Community Service- To help shape a personality that is compassionate, grounded and empathetic, the KARM Fellowship has woven community service into its very fabric. From individual efforts that may be directed towards chosen causes to group projects in the development sector, this is a critical pillar of the Fellowship.

About the Fellowship

To enable young women from less-privileged backgrounds to pursue their educational and professional dreams. Educating women is transformative for societies, as they use their learning to guide and nurture their families along with realising their own professional dreams. Empowering young school graduates so that they can pursue college education is the one permanent way to impact each family and hence, the larger community to achieve a better quality of life. We at KARM wish to support these driven, resilient, and bright young girls by providing Fellowships to deserving girl students who have completed their 12th grade and are readying for college. Going forward, we aspire to establish a cohort of our Fellows who will assist and help one another in the pursuit of their goals and enable a meaningful ripple effect in their communities.

KARM Fellowship will connect these students to mentors, career counselors and experts, to enable a complete learning experience. The Fellowship creates the necessary bridge between students and their mentor(s) one-on-one, both in-person and online, thereby opening doors to a brighter future.

Our Fellowship will include:

Our financial support will include college fee, rent & travel (twice a year) for out stationed girls, laptops, transport to KARM workshops & mentor visits, books & exam fees
Mentorship - Steady and consistent support will be provided to each Fellow through personalised mentoring and guidance through the three years
Life Skill trainings will be provided to enable skill building
Internships in both the Development and Corporate sector
Fifty hours of Community Service per year for the duration of the Fellowship

The KARM Fellowship

She is an eighteen-year old girl from under-privileged background. Driven and determined, she knows that she can impact her circumstances positively by working hard. She may or may not have an accessible role model, has a clear idea of who she does not wish to be, with a vague idea of who she might aspire to be. Her vision of herself is shaped by the community that she comes from-which she wears on her person. Her desire to improve the lot of her community is fierce. As she grows in stature through the four pillars of Education, Mentoring, Life Skills and Community Service, so does KARM; through her, with her and along-side her. Her responsibility is to live the ideals of the Fellowship-both in her personal and professional life. Her commitment to integrity is non-negotiable as is empathy and sensitivity. She has to be passionate about her vision and seek it with courage and determination. She must embrace diversity in all of its forms.

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Selection Process
KARM will nurture and financially support young girls from Government and aided schools who exhibit drive, ambition and willingness to work hard to achieve their professional aspirations, at Delhi University. Selection is on the basis of academic excellence, interviews, all-round extra-curricular and leadership capability and tangible evidence of drive for such candidates. Acceptance to this Fellowship is conditional on the candidate securing admission in Delhi University. Continuance through the Fellowship is conditional. The Fellowship must consistently maintain at least a second division in each semester examination in the College. We have no religious or political compulsions or affiliations.

Indicative Timeline: KARM Fellowship selection

October 11, 2020 Stage 1 Activation of online forms for current grade 12 girl students

December 31, 2020 Last day for form submission.

January 2021

Shortlist 1

Announcement of the first list of shortlisted applicants

January - February 2021

Stage 2

Selected students called for interviews

March - May 2021

Shortlist 2

25 students selected. To be filtered down to 14 (+11 on a waitlist post background checks)

June - July 2021

Stage 3

Chosen 14 to be declared post the class 12 board results and Delhi University admission

No information on this website may be reproduced or used in any form or by any means – graphics, electronic or mechanical without the written permission of the KARM Trust. July 2020

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