We're looking for aspiring change-makers passionate about creating social impact at scale.
The ACT Fellowship is a 9-month full-time apprenticeship for early to mid-career professionals who want to learn what it takes to leverage venture philanthropy for creating social impact at scale. Whether you're building a career in social impact, pivoting towards impact investing or hoping to become a social entrepreneur — the programme gives you a platform to learn from leading investors and startup founders and get real-world experience inside venture philanthropy.
Our Purpose
Why the Fellowship exists
The ACT Fellowship was designed for one specific kind of person — the early- or mid-career professional who already senses they want to spend the next decade close to social impact, and is looking for a programme that lets them learn the craft of venture philanthropy from the inside.
Fellows spend nine intensive months working alongside the ACT team — across one of our four focus areas — and come out the other end with hands-on experience in dealflow, due diligence, portfolio support, programme design, impact assessment and partnerships. The cohort is small, the workload is real and the network you join stays with you for years after the programme ends.
Program Structure
What the Fellowship year looks like
9
Month full-time programme
An intensive apprenticeship experience that lets fellows learn, first-hand, what it means to apply venture-capital principles to philanthropy.
4
Impact spaces
Every fellow works inside one of ACT's four focus areas — ed-tech, public healthcare, climate action or gender inclusivity.
40
Hours per week
Fellows work alongside the ACT team on sector research, dealflow sourcing, due diligence, investment pitches, portfolio management, impact assessment, collaborative programmes and industry partnerships.
6
Fully-funded fellows
We are highly selective about who we invite into each cohort — small numbers, so every fellow has an incredible peer-learning experience alongside the work.
Stipend & Completion
All Fellows are paid a stipend of ₹60,000 per month — and every graduating Fellow receives an experience letter from ACT.
Who Are We Looking For
The four kinds of fellows we keep saying yes to
Entrepreneurial Self-Starters
Ambitious go-getters who can think on their feet, are hungry to learn, enjoy taking on challenges and can work both independently and as part of a team.
Passionate About Innovation
People who genuinely believe that innovation can accelerate social impact — and who keep up with the latest technology trends shaping the impact space.
Deeply Invested In Social Impact
Aspiring change-makers genuinely interested in the social sector — who want to catalyse meaningful change and are willing to do the slow work that makes it happen.
Fascinated By Venture Philanthropy
Sharp thinkers with a bias for action — intrigued by the idea of applying venture-capital principles to social impact and ready to learn the craft up close.
Minimum Eligibility
Open to resident Indian citizens with at least two years of full-time work experience and a graduate degree from any discipline at an accredited university in or outside India. Applicants must be based in, or willing to relocate to, Bombay, Delhi or Bangalore for the duration of the programme. Applications are welcome from across professional backgrounds — prior experience as a founder, or in strategy consulting, investment banking, impact investing or the social sector, is an added advantage.
Meet Our Alumni
What past fellows have shared about the year
A short, in-their-own-words read on what each cohort took away from the Fellowship — paraphrased here so you can scan quickly.
Diksha Nawany
ACT For Health · 2024-25 Cohort
Speaks about how the Fellowship reframed what impact means for her — and singles out the relationships with founders, the investment committee and the wider ACT team as her biggest takeaway.
Achita Khare
ACT For Health · 2024-25 Cohort
Reflects on how ACT's tech-first thesis, paired with conversations with founders and ecosystem anchors, gave her a grounded new view on using technology to solve hard public-health problems.
Upasana Nallari
ACT For Women · 2024-25 Cohort
Describes the Fellowship as the right mix of learning, experimenting and shipping work that mattered — with the room to chase new ideas alongside a driven crew.
Prathyusha Praviraj
ACT For Education · 2024-25 Cohort
Reflects on getting hands-on experience applying venture-capital principles to tech-led social impact — and on collaborating with social entrepreneurs through the nine-month programme.
Divya Malhotra
ACT For Women · 2023-24 Cohort
Calls the Fellowship a transformative experience — pointing to the depth of learning, the diversity of her cohort and the peer-to-peer collaboration that came with it.
Lakshay Talwar
ACT For Health · 2023-24 Cohort
Describes ACT as a place built for doers — an environment where fellows can experiment, take initiative and learn through real exposure to a wide set of stakeholders.
Rucha Phadke
ACT For Environment · 2023-24 Cohort
Reflects on the Fellowship as a career-shifting year — deep immersion in venture philanthropy and the climate sector, with the network and stretch goals that come with it.
Sailee Rane
ACT For Environment · 2023-24 Cohort
Reflects on coming in to understand the climate-change space in India — and finding the Fellowship's team, network, anchors and mentors a uniquely strong place to learn.
Ananya Yerra
ACT For Education · 2022-23 Cohort
Describes the Fellowship as the launchpad for her move into the impact space — particularly the fuel it gave her decision to pursue impact investing.
Brintha Chandrasekaran
ACT For Health · 2022-23 Cohort
Reflects on the enabling, mentor-rich work environment — the room to take ownership early, and the confidence it built in problem-solving and stakeholder communication.
Gulam Sarwar
ACT For Health · 2022-23 Cohort
Describes the Fellowship as a journey of growth and continuous learning — built around immersion in ACT's ecosystem of investors and social entrepreneurs working on healthcare.
Shazib Siddique
ACT For Environment · 2022-23 Cohort
Reflects on what he took away: time with experts in the impact space, hands-on experience in venture philanthropy and the leadership reps that come with the work.
Sunaina Mathur
ACT For Women · 2022-23 Cohort
Reflects on the Fellowship as a place to learn how impact funding can be done differently — and on the permission it gives fellows to fail in the service of building for India.
Application & Selection Process
From form to first day
- 01
Submit the online application
Complete and submit the online application form before the stipulated deadline. We recommend applying as soon as possible — spots are limited.
- 02
Virtual case interview
Shortlisted candidates are invited to a virtual case interview that explores how you think through real social-impact problems under realistic constraints.
- 03
In-person leadership interview
Final-round candidates meet a member of ACT's leadership team in person to talk about motivation, fit and what you would bring into the cohort.
- 04
Reference checks & matching
Selected candidates go through reference checks and are then matched with one of ACT's four verticals for their Fellowship year.
ACT Capital Foundation For Social Impact is a not-for-profit company incorporated and registered under Section 8 of the Companies Act, 2013 (CIN: U85300KA2021NPL148543). All donations made to ACT Capital Foundation are eligible for income-tax deduction under Section 80G of the Income Tax Act.
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