About the fellowship
Tech Talent Hunt is evolving into a Rural Future-Tech Fellowship for underserved rural learners,
especially girls and young women. The programme combines merit-and-need scholarships, shared technology labs,
practical projects and mentoring—supporting school students towards further education and eligible adults towards technology careers.
About the fellowship
Potential should not be limited by family income, gender or geography. Tech Talent Hunt supports
promising rural learners who lack access to affordable technology education, practical learning or guidance.
It includes young people who cannot access government engineering colleges or afford private engineering education,
without requiring unsuccessful admission as a condition of entry.
The fellowship complements recognised school, diploma and degree education; it does not replace it.
The Talent Hunt identifies potential. The fellowship provides the sustained support to develop it.
Two fellowship journeys
Discovery is the common entry stage. After that, school learners and adults follow separate journeys.
For school learners
School Future-Tech Fellowship
- Who
- Learners in Classes 8–12.
- Time
- 240 guided hours in a school-compatible learning cycle.
- Support
- Shared labs, practical projects, mentoring and merit-and-need scholarships.
- Progression
- Stronger capability, continued education and informed course choices.
Register School Fellowship Interest
For young adults
Career Launch Fellowship
- Who
- Eligible adults aged 18–24; documented exceptions may be approved.
- Time
- 600 guided hours in one employment pathway, plus up to 240 hours of supervised workplace practice.
- Support
- Technical learning, assessed portfolios, employer engagement, interviews and joining support.
- Progression
- Relevant paid jobs or apprenticeships, with three- and six-month tracking.
Register Career Launch Fellowship Interest
Target: at least 50% girls in the school fellowship and 50% women in the adult fellowship. The programme welcomes eligible learners of other genders as well. School fellows have education and learning goals—not placement targets.
How we discover potential
Learn.Learners receive a guided task.
Try.They attempt it and receive feedback.
Improve.They get an opportunity to improve.
We look for curiosity, problem-solving and improvement after guidance—not just marks, fluent English or previous computer access. Financial need is assessed separately through a transparent review, with a reassessment or appeal route.
No prior coding experience is required to express interest. Adult career pathways have readiness requirements that will be explained before selection.
What learners will explore
AI and data
Understand AI, question its outputs, work with data and build useful dashboards.
Applications and automation
Build a simple application or workflow; test errors and retain human review.
Smart devices
Use low-voltage sensors and microcontrollers to create and test safe prototypes.
Digital design
Design an accessible interface or digital experience and improve it with feedback.
Reasoning, mathematics, coding, debugging, communication, privacy and cyber safety run across all learning. School fellows explore the studios; adult fellows specialise in one employer-validated pathway. Adult role families are AI-assisted applications/software testing and data/workflow automation with technical support.
Build. Test. Explain. Improve.
School fellows will work towards at least three smaller projects and one assessed final project. Each learner will explain their own contribution, how they used digital tools and how they tested their work. A private skill passport will record assignments, feedback, assessments and the next learning step.
Examples of learning projects
- Example
A local-language information assistant using approved documents.
- Example
A supervised water-level sensor and dashboard.
- Example
A workflow simulation using synthetic inventory data.
These illustrate supervised learning. They are not completed work, commercial production or live utility systems.
Scholarships that protect access
All selected fellows will receive programme teaching, shared-lab access, mentoring and assessment without application, training or placement fees. The pilot also includes financial support based on merit and need.
| Support | Pilot provision |
|---|
| School merit-and-need scholarship | ₹10,000 per selected school fellow, planned over 10 learning months, for approved books, connectivity, safe travel and learning expenses. Pilot provision: 240 awards. |
|---|
| Education progression grant | Up to ₹30,000 for up to 20 eligible school fellows entering a recognised diploma, degree or approved technical pathway. A one-academic-year contribution; these fellows are part of the school cohort, not additional learners. |
|---|
| Adult participation support | Needs-based learning-access and supervised workplace-participation support under approved terms. This support is separate from employer wages and is not itself employment. |
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| Personal laptop support | Not an automatic entitlement. Any individual device award requires an access assessment and separately confirmed funding or an approved budget substitution. |
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Proposed support, subject to funding, eligibility review and published award terms. Registering interest does not confirm admission or an award. Scholarships supplement free fellowship delivery; they do not cover all school/college costs.
Shared labs. Sustained support.
The pilot uses two shared rural learning hubs, with 25 learner workstations each, paid teaching support and separate school/adult time slots. Suitable existing facilities will be assessed before new equipment is purchased. Personal laptops are desirable, not automatic; individual access needs will be reviewed separately.
Suggested locations
Vaishali, Bihar, and one rural Uttar Pradesh cluster are proposed for the pilot. Final sites, partner institutions and learning schedules will be confirmed after readiness review and funding approval.
Our 24-Month Pilot
- Project period
- 24 months
- School fellows
- 240 unique learners across two intakes
- Career Launch Fellowship
- 100 separate learners
- Shared learning hubs
- 2 hubs × 25 workstations
- Participation target
- At least 50% girls/women in each stream
- Indicative CSR request
- ₹1.75 crore for the full pilot
All quantities, sites, costs and outcomes are planning targets, subject to assessment and partner approval. Twenty-four months is the pilot period, not the study period for each learner.
School education targets
- 204 completions
- 180 individual final-project competency passes
- Education continuation checked for all, targeting at least 90% at the next available checkpoint
Adult employment targets
- 60 verified paid job/apprenticeship starts
- 50 retained at three months
- 45 retained at six months
These are targets, not guaranteed results. The pilot serves 340 core learners (240 school fellows + 100 adults); scholarships, completions and jobs fall within these cohorts.
For corporate partners
Help rural potential become a technology future.
Partner with Vision India Talent Foundation to support a school fellowship and scholarships, an adult career cohort, or a shared learning hub with funded teaching. Corporate experts can contribute mentoring and project reviews, subject to programme safeguards. Employer partners can support genuine learning opportunities and independent recruitment.
The illustrative full-pilot CSR request is ₹1.75 crore over 24 months. Programme modules will be separately costed with a fair allocation of shared expenses. A ₹10,000 scholarship contribution is not the full cost of a fellowship place.
Frequently asked questions
Who can register interest?
School learners in Classes 8–12 and adults in the proposed 18–24 age group. Adult exceptions and pathway prerequisites will be reviewed under approved rules. Parents, guardians and schools can enquire on behalf of school learners.
Do I need coding experience?
No prior coding experience is required to express interest. Selection considers learning potential; adult pathway readiness is assessed separately.
Is the programme only for girls?
No. It prioritises rural access and targets at least 50% girls/women in each stream while welcoming other eligible learners.
Are scholarships and places confirmed?
No. This is a pilot programme under development. Funding, locations, selection and award terms must be confirmed before admission or scholarship offers.
Will every learner receive a laptop or job?
No. Shared-lab access is central; personal laptops depend on assessed need and funding. Adult employment support is provided, but jobs, salaries, remote work and recruitment by a donor are not guaranteed.
Does the fellowship replace a degree?
No. It complements recognised school, diploma and degree education. School students are supported towards continued learning, not commercial work.
Does every participant study for 24 months?
No. Twenty-four months is the pilot period. School fellows undertake one 240-hour cycle; adults undertake 600 guided hours and up to 240 additional supervised practice hours.