The Schaeffler India Social Innovator Fellowship Program is a future-forward initiative by Schaeffler India, aimed at recognising and empowering individuals who are developing innovative, sustainable solutions that have the potential to drive meaningful social and environmental impact.
This fellowship program is designed to support early-stage startups in the social sector by seamlessly combining financial support with a focus on measurable social impact. Key benefits include:
Applicants should belong to the age group of 18 to 35 years.
Open for individuals, groups of individuals, organisations of profit or non-profit both across India.
Early-Stage startups or NGOs with functioning prototype can participate
An entry must not just be a concept idea, or mock-up and needs to fulfil the following six requirements:
Should be a resident of India.
The project must not be an established commercial venture.
Participants also need to submit entries describing their work in the form of an idea pitch deck and a video that can be uploaded on the website.
The project must be related to any of the following categories:
A 24-week hybrid mentorship opportunity at the prestigious IIMA Ventures, IIM Ahmedabad, to help the winners further develop and scale their solutions.
Each of the 10 winning projects will be granted an award of INR 1.75 Lakh.
Access to Schaeffler India’s network & partners.
Entry into a fellow community of peers.
A multi-stage selection process will determine the winners of Social Innovator Fellowship Program 2025. The selection stages are mentioned below:
All eligible applications will be reviewed and scored basis the following criteria:
Telephonic interview and document verification
A virtual interview round with the Schaeffler India team
A project pitch presentation to Jury panel & leaders (organized by Schaeffler India team) and final interview