IIHS UFP 2021-22 (Urban Fellows Program) has opened the applications for the session 2021-22, to recent graduates and young professionals from varied educational backgrounds or practice domains.
About the IIHS
The Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) is a national education institution committed to the equitable, sustainable and efficient transformation of Indian settlements.
About the Programme
The Indian Institute for Human Settlements (IIHS) has launched the sixth iteration of the Urban Fellows Programme (UFP) 2021-22. It seeks to combine classroom teaching, site-based applied learning, work in live projects, and external internships to introduce learners to diverse forms of urban practice. The sixth iteration of UFP will run from August 2021 to May 2022.
The Urban Fellows Programme (UFP) is scholarship-based, nine-month, full-time, residential and inter-disciplinary, situated at the IIHS City Campus in Bengaluru. The UFP seeks to equip, nurture and prepare a new generation of graduates and young professionals committed to the common good, who can become change-makers, team players, original thinkers, reflexive practitioners, entrepreneurs and thought leaders to address India’s complex urban challenges.
Through the UFP, Fellows understand issues of urbanisation in India and the global South; learn from practice; develop skills necessary to tackle key urban issues in India; build an inter-disciplinary foundation; network with thought leaders; and learn from a diverse and experienced faculty.
UFP Structure
The UFP draws from IIHS’ curriculum co-created in partnership with the world’s leading universities including Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), University College London (UCL), University of Cape Town (UCT) and Federal University of the ABC Region, Sao Paulo (UFABC), in addition to nearly a hundred practitioners and scholars from across India.
Seven learning elements are structured across three terms: Commons, Electives and Internships. Fellows are in residence in Bengaluru for the first two, and in their internship placements for the third. There is an Exposure Visit held in between. Skill Labs, Applied Practica and Master Classes run throughout the Commons and Elective terms.
- The Commons: Using a mix of classroom-based teaching, and case-based learning, the Commons is where Fellows understand the different approaches, systems, aspects and components that make up the urban.
- Elective Modules: Electives build on concepts and skills taught in the Commons and allow learners to create their own trajectory through the UFP by focusing on particular sectors and focus areas they want to develop.
- Applied Practica and Projects: The Practica are term-length, site-based applied learning modules that enable Fellows to integrate theory with practice as well as to deploy skills and concepts learned in the classroom to imagine and develop appropriate, innovative and sustainable solutions for the Indian context. The Fellows are also placed with different project teams within IIHS. This enables real-time application of the theory and skills they learn during the UFP.
- Exposure Visit: Through a series of field-based exposure trips in cities of different sizes and types, Fellows are exposed to complex problems in the real world. They observe, diagnose and conceptualise solutions to real life problems in small towns as well as in larger cities in India. In 2020-21, Exposure Visits to cities outside Karnataka were not conducted due to Covid-19 travel restrictions. However, these visits are an integral component of the UFP, and for the 2021-22 batch will be initiated after taking into account relevant COVID-19 guidelines, IIHS’s operating procedures and safety protocols.
- Masterclasses: Masterclasses provide Fellows with opportunities to meet thought-leaders and practitioners from India and across the world, to learn about their work and the challenges they face as practitioners in different disciplines and domains.
- Skill Labs: Through the UFP, Fellows are equipped with the most appropriate technical, analytical and professional skills that will be taught through a series of labs, as well as through assignments and the Practica and Projects.
- Internship: UFP provides for a two-month internship for all Fellows in order to facilitate the transition from classroom learning to the complex world of work and practice. Internships are offered in government departments and public institutions, private firms and practices, non-governmental organisations, research think-tanks, development sector organisations and planning and design firms, among others.
Webinar Series
A series of webinars is being hosted from 18 March to 13 April 2021, every Tuesday and Thursday from 5 pm to 6 pm. The webinars are a platform for students to interact with IIHS faculty, and a few Fellows from previous batches, who will address curriculum and subject-specific queries. To register and view the webinars, click here.
Eligibility
- An ideal candidate will have a Bachelor’s Degree in any subject or discipline and their age should not exceed 30 years at the time of the UFP’s commencement. Therefore, candidates should be born on or after 1 August 1991.
- The Fellowship may, subject to facts and circumstances, consider non-degree training and certification programmes completed after 10+2 schooling. Candidates without any formal education after their 10+2 may also apply, especially if they have valuable experience of formal or informal work in urban sectors.
- All candidates must have basic proficiency in reading English. There is support available for candidates with limited speaking ability in English and they are encouraged to apply.
- Candidates must be Indian citizens. OCI Card holders are not eligible to apply at this time.
- They strongly encourage applications from women, people with disabilities, and those from economically and socially excluded communities.
How to Apply?
Interested applicants can register for the programme through this link.
Important dates
- Applications open: 10 March 2021 (Wednesday)
- Applications close: 11 April 2021 (Sunday 11:59 pm, IST)
- Shortlisted candidates will be contacted to set up interview times and dates. Interviews will be on the phone or via Skype: Mid May
- Selected and waitlisted candidates will be informed via email: June 2021
Contact
Email: ufp.info@iihs.ac.in
Phone: +91 99012 55788, 96064 84336
For more details, click the link below.
