Scheme

As a premiere Institution for Social Science Research in India, the Institute for Social and Economic Change, Bangalore, has initiated the ‘Social Science Talent Search Scheme’ to foster social science education among young students for knowledge and career building. It aims to identify talented students to get into social science education after 12th standard (plus-two level) and to motivate them to opt for social science subjects in their degree courses. It aims to nurture them with appropriate capacity building, coaching and financial support so as to produce bright torchbearers from social science background for future policy making – both at state and national levels.

For the time being, the scheme is open to only those studying in the Pre-University colleges falling under the jurisdiction of Bangalore Division of the Department of Pre-university Education in Karnataka. More than 800 such colleges are located in the districts of this Division, viz., Bangalore (Urban), Bangalore (Rural), Chikkaballapur, Kolar and Ramanagaram.

25 students who score the highest marks in the competitive examination offered under SSTSS are eligible to receive a monthly scholarship of Rs. 500/= pm (for 10 months in a year for 3 years) and an annual scholarship of Rs. 2500/= for 3 years, i.e., till they complete their BA course. The monthly scholarship is sponsored by the H’ble Vice-Chancellor, Bangalore University. The annual scholarship is sponsored by the Karnataka State Knowledge Commission. The Christ University has sponsored annual scholarships for 10 students who would join for degree courses in social sciences in its college. The successful students are eligible to avail of the above scholarships only if they join for BA courses taking social science subjects.

The Institute, in collaboration with the Bangalore University and the Christ University will offer orientation to the selected students, at its campus, regarding the utility of studying social sciences and its relevance to policy making and knowledge-building processes. The purpose of this orientation is to guide the selected students to undertake suitable career and post-graduate education. ISEC has collaborated with the above two universities and with the Karnataka State Knowledge Commission and the Department of Pre-University Education in Karnataka to organise this programme and is looking forward to building partnership with other institutions for better outreach activities and to extend the SSTSS to the whole of Karnataka, in course of time, with adequate financial and human resource support.

Initiated in 2010, already the programme has progressed to two years of successful implementation. The 2011-12 batch of successful students are now graduated to II year of BA studies in various colleges and have benefited from both financial support offered as scholarship and capacity building. The examination for the year 2012-13 was conducted on July 1, 2012 in different examination centres across the districts of Bangalore Division and in the Christ University campus, Bangalore. The results of this exam were announced on July 16, 2012 on the website of ISEC, as well as due intimation to respective colleges where the exams were held. Upon receiving confirmation about their joining to BA degree course in the colleges of the above jurisdiction and at the Christ University, they have been finally selected for award of the respective scholarships. An orientation is planned in the near future to the two batches, at ISEC, on which occasion they will also be awarded of their first of the two instalments of scholarship.