OPEN provides college/diploma scholarships for about 100 children annually through the IGNITE scholarship program. The children in this program come from poor backgrounds, with family monthly incomes of Rs.8000 on average. In spite of the financial hardship, these children average about 85% in their Higher Secondary school completion exams. Most of them are the first in their family to go to college or polytechnic. A total of over 800 children have been sponsored by OPEN thus far.
Note on program history: This scholarship program was started by Sushila Joseph, Sathya Nagaraj and Meenakshi Sudarshan who founded their own NGO, IGNITE. OPEN was one of the funders of IGNITE, and eventually the IGNITE founders became part of OPEN and the scholarship program is now run by OPEN. Meenakshi Sudarshan is still heavily involved in running the program, together with Sashikala Krishna, Sridhar Sockalingam and Vidya Sridhar.
Program details
OPEN sponsors children mainly for degree programs that enable them to enter the workforce soon after completion of their studies; programs such as:
Two- and Three-year Polytechnic Vocational Diplomas in Engineering
Four- or Five-year Professional program Degrees - B.E., B.Tech., B.Arch. etc
B.Sc. and B.Com. three-year Degrees
Admission guidelines
We accept applications in person at our Counselling sessions - a schedule may be obtained by contacting us at [email protected]. Alternatively, completed application forms in MS Word and Excel format may also be e-mailed to us at [email protected], but we still require a personal interview at our counselling sessions. All information below must be provided at time of application.
The student must live in Chennai and go to college in Chennai or its suburbs, so that educational background and family economic need may be verified in person. The average family monthly income of accepted students is about Rs.8,000, with a range of about Rs.4,000-15,000.
Outstation students may be accepted at OPEN's discretion if they have a strong adult champion who can advise them on academics and career path. Examples are teachers, family friends etc. Contact information of adviser, and length and quality of relationship between student and adviser, must be provided at time of application.
The student must have a good academic background and must provide both 10th standard and 12th standard public exam marksheets. 70% aggregate is required for polytechnic programs; 75% for B.Sc., B.Com., and other 3-year degree programs; 85% and above for B.E., B.Tech., B.Arch. and other 4- and 5-year professional programs. Exceptions may be made at our discretion for students with family hardships that prevented them from putting full energy into studies. Marksheets, and extenuating circumstances for percentage exceptions, must be provided at time of application.
The student must show evidence of admission to a good educational institution, affiliated to a recognized University or deemed a University.
The program works on reimbursement basis for college fees, with a cap of Rs.10,000 per year for Polytechnic; Rs.20,000 per year for 3-year degrees; and Rs.30,000 for 4- and 5-year degrees. The student must be able to make up the shortfall if any, with personal resources and other scholarships.
The student must provide college marksheets promptly at OPEN's annual counselling event, and be responsive to contacts from OPEN, to maintain their scholarship. Payments will be authorized solely at OPEN's counselling events.
Program workflow
Applications for the program are solicited from schools that OPEN is active in, such as Gen.Cariappa vocational school, and the various schools that host Vidyarambam English classes
After an initial screen, OPEN members Meena, Sashi and Sathya visit the homes of the final candidates to make sure they are indeed in monetary need
Pay the college/diploma fees for the children, to a maximum of INR 25,000 per year
Follow up with their semester exams & results and continue the scholarship only for students in good academic standing
Monitor the children's education through to completion
Offer Spoken English and Personality Development classes for students so they are prepared for interviews with communications skills, professional resumes etc. The target is to offer these programs once a semester, and provide special assistance with resume-writing and mock interviews for final year students.
Academic Year 2023-24 Results
Total students: 113
Final year students: 52
Number of final year students who graduated on time: 49 (94%)
Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs at time of graduation: 35 (67%)
OPEN Spend: $24,801
Academic Year 2022-23 Results
Total students: 102
Final year students: 16 (lower than normal since we didn't do an intake of IRT polytechnic students in the course of takeover of IRT by TN Govt)
Number of final year students who graduated on time: 15 (94%)
Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs at time of graduation: 14 (88%). Examples:
S.Dinesh, B.Tech. Petroleum Engineering, AC Tech College, Anna University. Placed at Wood PLC, salary INR 6L.
V.Barath, B.E. Electrical and Electronics Engineering, SSN College of Engineering. Placed at Microchip Technology, salary INR 10L.
OPEN Spend: $26,727
Academic Year 2021-22 Results
Total students: 86
Final year students: 38
Number of final year students who graduated on time: 38 (100%)
Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs at time of graduation: 35 (92%)
OPEN Spend: $14,211
Academic Year 2020-21 Results
Total students: 66 (fewer applicants than normal owing to the pandemic)
Final year students: 37
Number of final year students who graduated on time: 27 (73%)
Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs at time of graduation: 10 (27%)
OPEN Spend: $17,275
Academic Year 2019-20 Results
Total students: 85
Final year students: 39
Number of final year students who graduated on time: 28 (72%)
Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs at time of graduation: 6 (15%)
OPEN Spend: $14,114
Academic Year 2018-19 Results
Total students: 105
Final year students: 46
Number of final year students who graduated on time: 39 (85%)
Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs at time of graduation: 23 (50%)
OPEN Spend: $13,375
Academic Year 2017-18 Results
Total students: 120
Final year students: 46
Number of final year students who graduated on time: 39 (85%)
Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs at time of graduation: 20 (44%)
OPEN Spend: $16,100
Academic Year 2016-17 Results
Total students: 130
Final year students: 57
Number of final year students who graduated on time: 48 (84%)
Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs at time of graduation: 27 (47%)
OPEN Spend: $18,200
Academic Year 2015-16 Results
Total students: 130
Final year students: 36
Number of final year students who graduated on time: 30 (83%)
Number of graduates who got a job or admission to higher education programs at time of graduation: 21 (58%)
OPEN Spend: $22,750
Success Stories
Many of our past scholarship recipients remain in touch with us. Ms.Kowsthuba Rajagopalan, an Engineering scholarship recipient, worked at Honeywell India and then pursued a Master's degree at Eindhoven University, The Netherlands, and after graduating, is employed in The Netherlands as an Automation Engineer.
Ms.Anjana Jayashri, an Engineering scholarship recipient, worked at Tata Steel and then pursued a Master's degree at Texas A&M University, and after graduating, is employed in the US.
Family Backgrounds
The average family income of these students is INR 8000 per month. Students typically come from blue-collar backgrounds, and are the first in their families to go to college. The photos below, taken during needs verification, show one family living in a single-room home and another one in a home with asbestos siding and thatched roof.
Impact of personality development classes
The video below shows one of the children who came to our career counseling sessions in Feb-March 2016. The children were coached in resume-writing, interviewing, and public speaking, and on general career options for their particular skills.
Interview Preparation
The video below shows one of the children who came to our career counseling sessions in late 2018 going through a mock interview.
