The Fellowship spans nine months, concluding with a Final Showcase in the last month
Yes. Applicants currently pursuing a PhD must provide a No Objection Certificate (NOC) from their supervisor. Supervisors are encouraged to act as mentors for the Fellowship project.
Each team must include:
- At least one member with thematic expertise (e.g., data science, innovative finance, philanthropy).
- At least one member with experience in the social sector (e.g., program management, community engagement).
- Additional members (if any) may bring complementary skills based on project needs (e.g. communications, operations, analysis, etc).
Individual applicants must have expertise in both thematic and social sector domains.
Applications are open annually. Interested individuals must submit a proposal and supporting documents via the online application form.
The process includes:
Shortlisting: Based on qualifications, experience, and project proposal.
Interview: Shortlisted applicants will attend one round of interview.
Final Selection: Selected applicants receive offer letters and onboarding details.
Yes, except for Digital Open Solutions projects, which involve greater technical effort and time. These are limited to five seats.
Fellows benefit from:
Fellows must:
Yes, three workshops covering Research ethics, Data visualisation and storytelling and Creative writing.
Final outputs will be shared through:
Alumni become part of ISDM’s Community of Practice, gaining:
Outputs may include, but not limited to:
Yes, ISDM will bear these expenses for a maximum of two Fellows per team.
For any questions or clarifications, please write to: [email protected]
The Fellowship is a part-time, non-residential program.
No, stipends are not disbursed monthly. The Fellowship amount will be released upon completion of mutually agreed milestones.
The Fellowship amount will be transferred to the team leader’s personal bank account. Transfers will not be made to any organisational bank account. It is the team's responsibility to manage the internal distribution of funds.
Unlike incubation programs, which typically support early-stage ideas in a more open-ended manner, this Fellowship follows a structured timeline with defined milestones.
Yes, you may apply under more than one thematic area. However, only one project per individual or team will be awarded the Fellowship, based on the evaluation outcome.