YouthActionNet's 2018 Laureate Global Fellowship for Young Social Entrepreneurs
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YouthActionNet’s 2018 Laureate Global Fellowship is now accepting applications from aspiring and accomplished young social entrepreneurs. Be part of a new generation of young leaders striving for social change. Apply to the Fellowship today!
A signature initiative of the International Youth Foundation, YouthActionNet was founded 17 years ago in the belief that youth are uniquely positioned to build a more just and inclusive world. Their global network of 23 locally-owned and operated youth leadership institutes ensures that aspiring and accomplished young social entrepreneurs gain the support they need to deliver on their social change goals.
Sponsored by Laureate International Universities, the Laureate Global Fellowship annually recognizes 20 young leaders who have pioneered solutions to urgent challenges in their communities and beyond. Fellows develop leadership expertise and deepen their impact through a dynamic, yearlong learning experience, and join a network of over 1,700 changemakers like them who continue to benefit from learning opportunities and connections throughout their social change careers.
Laureate Global Fellowship Eligibility.
- The applicant must be proficient in English.
- Applications will be accepted in English only.
- The applicant must be 18 – 29 years of age at some point between January – December 2018
- The applicant must be a founder or co-founder, and currently a key decision maker, of a social venture. The founder or co-founder is defined as the person who, either alone or as part of a team, is responsible for conceiving and establishing the social venture.
- A social venture is defined as a project, organization, or business that uses social impact as a defining guidepost.
- Ventures can be non-profit, for-profit, or combine elements of both.
- Ventures can be stand-alone organizations or operating within an existing organization.
- Ventures can be legally registered or unregistered at the time of application.
- Only one co-founder per venture may submit an application.
- The venture must have demonstrated at least one year of impact at the time the application is submitted.
*Applicants must be founder or co-founder of a venture that has not previously participated in the Laureate Global Fellowship, and only one co-founder per venture may apply.
Laureate Global Fellowship Benefits.
In-person Retreat
Laureate Global Fellows begin their fellowship experience at a week-long, in-person retreat where they are challenged to step away from the demands of daily work in order to see themselves, their work, and the world with new eyes.
During the retreat, Fellows develop their leadership through the following lenses:
- Individual: Fellows explore their leadership capacities, strengths, and weaknesses, and define their sense of purpose.
- Groups: Fellows learn how to collaborate effectively, work toward common goals, and motivate teams to high performance.
- Ventures: Fellows critically examine their social change solutions and find ways to sustain their impact.
- Systems: Fellows consider how their work connects to larger systems and issues.
Retreat sessions are conducted using an experiential, peer-to-peer learning methodology that equips fellows with the necessary tools and frameworks to apply what they’ve learned.
Yearlong Support
We’ve found that young leaders prefer to learn on demand and seek out new resources as their priorities and strategies shift. Over the course of the fellowship year, fellows gain access to opportunities for needs-based personal and organizational development, including:
- One-on-one coaching and individualized support
- Virtual learning sessions
- Personal and organizational assessments
- Peer coaching groups
Fellowship for Life
Beyond the fellowship year, YouthActionNet provides fellows with learning and networking opportunities, facilitates access to resources, and helps position our fellows as credible experts in their fields. Fellows join our growing network (http://youthactionnet.org/fellows) of nearly 1700 changemakers in over 90 countries who have participated in YouthActionNet fellowship programs.
Laureate Global Fellowship Key Dates.
February 6th
APPLICATION OPENS
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Applicants must complete written and video portions of application, and supply two reference contacts
March 6th
DEADLINE TO APPLY
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Applications must be submitted by March 6, 2018 at 11:59pm EDT
June 29th
APPLICANTS NOTIFIED OF STATUS
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All applicants will be notified of their status by mid-June 2018
October 2018
LAUREATE GLOBAL FELLOWSHIP LEADERSHIP TRAINING AND RETREAT
- Those selected as Laureate Global Fellows must attend the entiretyof the training and fellowship retreat
- Costs including airfair, visa fees, ground transportation, accomodations, and group meals are covered by the International Youth Foundation
How to Apply for Laureate Global Fellowship.
In order to provide our applicants with the opportunity to clearly and thoroughly explain their ventures and personal journey, this application consists of seven core sections, which must be completed in order for an application to be reviewed. There is one additional section which is encouraged but not mandatory.
- General Information. This section asks for basic information about you, including contact information.
- You & Your Social Venture. This section focuses on key elements of your involvement with your social venture and core details of what your venture addresses.
- Video Submission. Using guidelines provided in this application, you will create an original short video and post it online. Your video will be the first opportunity we have to see your passion, knowledge, and unique perspective. We hope you will be specific and succinct in explaining what you do, how you do it, and why you’re passionate about your work. While creativity is encouraged, we care more about content than production quality.
- Your Work. This section asks for more detailed information on your venture’s focus, approaches, beneficiaries, impact, and achievements.
- Your Business Model. Questions in this section ask you to discuss your venture’s funding structure, revenue generation strategies, and partnerships.
- Leadership & Learning. This section gives you an opportunity to share some of your background, what kind of leader you are and what your learning needs are.
- References. You will be asked to enter the contact information for two references who can discuss your eligibility for the fellowship. Family members may not serve as a reference. References must be from two different organizations.
- Additional Information. Questions in this section are used primarily for statistics and program learning; they do not affect your eligibility for the fellowship.
Apply Online
In the case that you cannot submit an online application, Word document applications may be emailed to youthactionnet@iyfnet.org. Please save your application as “FirstName.LastName.2018” and attach the file to the email with the email’s subject line reading: “2018 Word Application – LAST NAME”. Please save using the .doc format, not .docx. Applications sent via email must be received no later than 11:59 PM US Eastern Standard Time on March 6, 2018.
Official Link (http://www.youthactionnet.org/apply)
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