The Eka Fellowship

Mobility doesn't happen in a short span. Research suggests it takes sevengenerations for a low-income Indian family to approach the mean income. We stay withevery fellow from Grade 9 through their first job: through stream choices, board exams,college admissions, and the first steps of a career. Sustained, relationship-based supportthat does for our fellows what a privileged household does by default.

We work with students from government and low-cost private schools, joining in Grade9. We look for what we call the missed-out middle: driven, capable children who areneither at the very top of the class (where merit scholarships find them) nor in acutecrisis (where welfare programs do), but who fall through the gap in between. All Grade 8 students from our partner schools are eligible to apply for our Fellowship, after which they go through a rigorous application process. What we look for above all is fire: curiosity, effort, and the will to walk the distance with us.

The Fellowship is completely free for all Fellows and their families, for all eight years.

We currently work with schools in Bangalore and Pune.

We'd love to hear from you! Write to us at support@ekafellowship.org and our team will share the application criteria and process. Applications for new cohorts typically open in November.

Companies partner with us by providing CSR grants, connecting us to guest speakers for career sessions, organising workplace visits, apprenticeships and internships for our older fellows. To partner with us, please write to us at support@ekafellowship.org.

Yes! We welcome volunteers for workshops and camps, and mentors who can guide fellows through academic and career decisions. Because our model is relationship-based, we ask volunteers and mentors for consistency over intensity: showing up regularly matters more than showing up impressively. Write to us at support@ekafellowship.org.

We are extremely grateful to the organisations and the countless individuals who have stood by us over the years. We would like to thank Bangalore Little Theatre, Teach For India, Akanksha Foundation and WeWork for their continued support in helping our Fellows achieve economic mobility.

Yes! The Eka Fellowship is registered under Sections 80G and 12A of the Income Tax Act. Additionally, we hold a valid CSR-1 registration with making us fully eligible to receive Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) grants.