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SPARC-AI Fellowship: Call for Applications
Now open · SPARC-AI
AI is changing how the world works, but it is reaching cities and the Global North far faster than the last mile communities, like those in India's last mile villages. SPARC-AI exists to close that gap.
Field documentation, in the home and on a phone.
About the fellowship
SPARC-AI Fellows spend 12 months living and working in a parliamentary constituency, alongside a Member of Parliament. You will support women in Self-Help Groups to use AI to run their businesses better.
You will learn AI skills, use them on the ground, and write and think about what works. This hands-on fellowship is expected to have a double-pronged impact: last mile communities effectively using AI to increase their income, and young people prepared for more effective AI use.
This is a fellowship for people who want to be ready for the AI shift themselves, and who want to make sure it reaches the last mile.
What you will do
The year has three phases. Each asks something different of you.
Throughout the year you will deliver a defined set of monthly outputs: data, reports, task cards and results, shared with Swaniti and the MP's office.
Listen and learn
Meet district officials and SHG federations. Survey SHG women, hold in-depth interviews, and write a report on how women earn and where AI can help.
Build and train
Turn field findings into simple AI task cards, film short phone videos, and train local women as Saathis who teach their own SHGs.
Iterate, improve and initiate
Meet SHG women at home to see whether they are using AI. Understand what is not working, fix it, and hand the work over to the community.
Who we are looking for
Young people ready for the AI shift, and ready to take it to the field.
We are looking for early-career professionals, ideally aged 23–30, who want to build the skills the AI era will demand and use them where they matter most.
| When | Quality | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Months 1–3 | Emotional intelligence in the field | You listen well, build trust with women in rural settings, speak the local language fluently, and document carefully in English and the local language. |
| Months 4–7 | Analytical and creative | You can turn field findings into simple, practical task cards, are comfortable making short videos on your phone, and want to learn AI tools. |
| Months 8–12 | Open to self-correction | You go back to the field to find what is not working, admit mistakes, and fix them. |
What you will gain
Two things employers increasingly look for.
Practical skill with AI tools, and real experience implementing a program on the ground, from field research to training to measuring results.
Expert AI training throughout the year
With hands-on experience deploying AI at the last mile.
Direct work with a Member of Parliament
And with the district administration.
Field research and writing experience
With published outputs.
A national cohort of Fellows
And a network of mentors.
The terms
What the year looks like on paper.
| Term | Detail |
|---|---|
| Stipend | ₹40,000 a month |
| Duration | 12 months, starting To be announced |
| Location | Living full time in the assigned constituency |
| Language | The constituency's local language, spoken and written (required) |
| Field travel | Local travel covered by the MP's office up to an agreed amount |
| Training | AI training at the start and throughout the year |
| Support | Named contacts at Swaniti and in the MP's office |
Eligibility
Who can apply.
Swaniti Initiative is an equal-opportunity organisation and welcomes applicants of all backgrounds, castes, religions, genders and abilities.
Essential
- Ideally aged 23–30
- A bachelor's degree and a master's degree in any discipline (or completing the master's by the fellowship start date)
- Demonstrable field experience with communities, for example through a fellowship, NGO, research project or government program
- Fluency in the local language of the constituency, spoken and written
- Clear, thorough writing in English and the local language
- Willingness to live in the constituency full time for 12 months and travel within it
Desirable
- Experience with surveys, interviews or field research
- Comfort recording and editing short videos on a phone
- Experience using AI tools such as ChatGPT, Gemini or Meta AI (no technical skills needed; we will train you)
- Familiarity with Self-Help Groups, livelihoods or rural enterprise
We strongly encourage applications from women and from candidates who come from the constituency or region they would serve.
Timeline
Key dates.
| Stage | Dates |
|---|---|
| Applications open | 19 October – 30 November 2026 |
| Applications close | 30 November 2026, midnight IST |
| Review and reach out to all applicants | 1 – 31 December 2026 |
| Second-round interviews | 1 – 15 January 2027 |
| Final-round interview | 15 January 2027 |
Application checklist
Before you submit.
0 of 5 ready
Application link to be announced
Questions: [email protected]
SPARC 2015–2020 · earlier phase
Applications for the earlier SPARC Associate program closed on 15 December 2019. The programme was significantly renovated for 2020, and SPARC-AI is its current form.