The scholarship programme has been administered by Bangalore-based Societe Generale Global Solution Centre (SG-GSC), as part of its Corporate Social Responsibility initiative to promote professional education for students with financial constraints.
The students who benefit from the scholarship will get fee for the complete term/duration of the course; including tuition, boarding and lodging from the company.
“India has tremendous intellectual capital which doesn’t surface in view of a lack of the ability of the individual to afford exposure through good renowned Indian institutes. It is SG-GSC’s attempt to make this possible for a few highly deserving students through financial assistance,” said Nippi Kochhar, Chief Executive Officer of SG-GSC .
Excluding a few scholarships given by the institutes themselves, a few scholarships cover full fee of the courses, noted the academicians, who attended the event.
Prof S Sadagopan, Director -IIITB, said “SG-GSC’s scholarship is special as it is trust based. With no expectations and no bond it is likely to win long-term mindshare of the students. SG-GSC senior management is willing to invest its time, rather than merely outsourcing the scheme to an efficient donor agency. This once again shows their ‘investment’ view rather than ‘cost’ view of CSR program. By using merit and means, the scholarship is likely to benefit the needy, at the most beneficial time of the student’s career”.
In addition to the fee, the students of top management and technical schools will also be mentored by senior employees of the organisation during their course of study.
Mentorship programme
The mentor will guide, coach and motivate the students to succeed, honing their soft skills, and monitoring their progress. The mentor will also provide avenues for the student in various SG Group and SG-GSC initiatives. Prof Pankaj Chandra, Director - Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore, said, “ One of the key differentiators in this scholarship offered by SG-GSC is the mentorship programme.
Each student is provided with a mentor from SG-GSC leadership team which will be a great advantage to the student as he/she gets on-going advice on projects, career development, etc.
Pushpak Aggarwal, a student of Indian Institute of Management Bangalore, one of the eleven students selected for the scholarship said :“The scholarship has reduced the burden on my parents and help me focus on studies.”