The Mentorship Program at Kautilya is envisaged to be one of the key pillars of the Master of Public Policy (MPP) program. Through this program, students are connected to mentors with strong personal, academic, and professional track records who can positively impact and guide their journeys during and beyond MPP. The Mentorship Programme is an interactive engagement between the mentors and mentees without being prescriptive.
Program Scheme
The program starts in August (1st Trimester) once students have made their initial adjustments and have a better understanding of the academic schedule and the options available to them. The selection and screening process starts in the 3rd Week of August. The Mentorship Programme Coordinator will be the Point of Contact (POC) for the students and Mentors.
The mentors are identified from the following categories approved by the Advisory Board. The mentors can be:
- Advisory Board Members
- Founders of Kautilya
- Visiting Faculties
- GITAM Leadership
- Other distinguished leaders who join us as Friends of Kautilya.
The Mentors and Mentees will be connected for a period of 2 years i.e., during the MPP programme.
The Mentorship Programme offers space for mentors to:
- To help young individuals realise their full potential and grow into future leaders in the policy sphere.
- To connect and engage with young individuals who have fresh new perspectives.
- To play an integral part in shaping their life after MPP.
The mentees can benefit from this programme in the following ways:
- To get personalized advice and guidance as they make important decisions in their lives in the professional sphere.
- To connect with leaders who have both expertise and experience.
- To get a wider perspective on their journey ahead in the area of public policy.
The POC will take feedback from both mentors and mentees every 6 months from the commencement of the program and incorporate feedback to make the mentorship program more effective in the next phase of the program.
In case of any grievances from the mentor, the POC can be contacted and necessary action will be taken to address the concerns. The mentors can choose to discontinue the mentorship relationship with a particular mentee in case of major concerns.
The process to connect begins with a presentation of the Mentorship Programme to Students in August by the POC on the envisaged structure of the program and to address queries regarding the expectations from the program.
This is followed by the students filling out an application form which will require them to provide options for Mentors from the given list. The students have to shortlist at least 04 mentors from the provided list.
The two documents to be filled by students on the online application form are:
- Updated 1-page resume (PDF; professional) of the students
- An Expression of Interest (EOI) of 250-350 words for each option of a mentor requested by a student.
The POC will connect the selected students to their mentors. The mentee and mentor can then take the mentorship engagement forward. In case there are slots available with the Mentors and some Mentees are unable to get any mentors a subsequent cycle of applications will take place to accommodate them after the first round is over.
Mentors List
Ms. Anita Bhatia
Mr. Anil Swarup
Dr. Arvind Mayaram
Dr. Amir Ullah Khan
Dr. Chandra Commuri
Mr. Dilip Cherian
Dr. Faizan Mustafa
Dr. Harsha Vardhana Singh
Dr. Indermit Gill
Ms Manjula Rao
Ms. Manika Raikwar
Dr. Menaka Guruswamy
Prof. Moshik Temkin
Amb. Navtej Sarna
Ms. Nidhi Razdan
Mr. Ovais Sarmad
Mr. Prateek Kanwal
Dr. PV Ramesh
Prof. Rajeev Gowda
Mr. Ram Mohan Naidu
Dr. Rathin Roy
Mr. Rishi Kumar Shukla
Mr. Sribharat Mathukumilli
Prof. Steve Jarding
Ms. Sharmila Chavaly
Lt. Gen Sanjiv Langer
Mr. Santosh Mehra
Mr. Udaibir Saran Das
Mr. Vijay Gokhale
