Acumen Fund Fellowship Program 2011

 

Acumen Fellows Fund Program has one of the most open and flexible eligibility criteria in a fellowship program. The current call for applications has been made for the Class of 2012 which is expected to begin from September 2011.

Benefits -

- During the first 8 weeks, Fellows will be based in New York for the leadership, where there will learn "soft and hard skills, ranging from self-reflection, negotiation, and storytelling to functional topics such as investment techniques, valuation, marketing and operations."

- Following this 8-week training, the Fellows will be sent away to their field placements in various countries for a period of nine months.

- Half-way through the field placement, Fellows will meet each other and share their experiences.

- At the end of the field placement, Fellows will return back to New York for feedback in September 2012.

All expenses including living stipends, housing, travel are covered by the Program for the Fellows during the entire duration of the fellowship.

Where will the field placements be made?

Acumen Fund has investees or companies in which it has made investments (Acumen Fund raises charitable funds to invest equity and debt in enterprises serving low-income people). These investees are presently located in China, India, Kenya, Pakistan, South Africa, Tanzania, and Uganda. Fellows may be placed in any one of these countries during their field placements.

 

 

According to the guideline, "After completing the fellowship, the vast majority of Fellows Alumni have continued to pursue careers that are in or directly impacting the social sector, ranging from continued work with social enterprises on the ground to starting up social investment funds of their own. Fellows have built lasting relationships with each other and with Fellows alumni from previous classes, often collaborating on projects within the social enterprise space, such as teaching courses and pursuing joint investments. Acumen Fund's global team also shares post-fellowship opportunities as they come along and works with Fellows, when possible, to achieve their post-fellowship goals."

Who can apply for it?

It is happy to consider applications from social sector leaders and professionals with 3-7 years experience and preferably qualified with just a graduate degree.

Other key indicators for applicants include the following:

• Proven track record of leadership and management responsibilities

• Experience working in emerging markets

• Unrelenting perseverance, personal integrity, and critical thinking skills

• Strong passion and commitment

• From the above information, it is clear that most of us working for the poor in developing countries can apply to this opportunity.

If you are still unsure, you can even take a look at some of the past fellows from diverse backgrounds who have received this fellowship and have benefited with or benefiting from the leadership training of the Program and the subsequent hands-on experience of working in different countries for finding solutions for global poverty. Please, visit at acumenfund.org/fellows/class-of-2011.html

What you need in hand for application -

• Resume/Curriculum Vitae (MS Word)

• Personal profile information

• Two professional references

• One letter of recommendation

• Four short essay questions (topics given)

Where to apply ?

Acumen Fellows Fund Program accept online application only, The deadline for applications is Monday, November 15, 2010. For more info please visit acumenfund.org//uploads/assets/documents/Application%20Instructions%20for%202011-2012_eOJBsZek.pdf

SUDESH KUMAR

The NGOs / NPOs Consultants

Email: ngo.consultant@sudeshkumar.net

Website: http://ngo.sudeshkumar.org

Geo. Coverage: Asia, Africa and Europe