Apprentice Lawyer Experiences Campus Ambassador for Teach for India

In this column, former TFI Campus Ambassador, Ayesha Khan talks about the Teach for India programme, how it works and how becoming a Campus Ambassador under the programme can help law students hone their skills..The Teach for India programme (TFI) is a nationwide movement of outstanding college graduates and young professionals who teach fulltime in low income schools for two years. The TFI Fellowship enables them to become lifelong leaders advocating for educational equity. Every year, bright students and young professionals from all streams apply for this fully paid Fellowship and once selected, go on to transform their lives and the lives of children in their classrooms..TFI Campus Ambassador Program is an auxiliary program which seeks to connect with campuses across the country and create a presence there, which will help them target and recruit potential Fellows. This is done by recruiting students from campuses across the country for the post of Campus Ambassadors (CA) who will represent TFI in their respective colleges..There are no such restrictions on which colleges TFI prefers as they are open to recruiting talented graduates from any stream. This includes law schools as well since a number of law graduates are opting for the Fellowship, primarily because of the plethora of options that open up to them after they finish it. Not only do several corporate and non-profit employers look at TFI Fellows for new employment, but many companies also offer deferrals to their current employees by allowing them to pursue the Fellowship with a 2 year work sabbatical. Some of the organisations where TFI Alumni are working include McKinsey, Leaders Quest, ICICI Prudential, Room to Read and Axis Bank. Several graduate schools have also tied up with TFI in a variety of ways, offering admission deferrals, assistance with loans and scholarships, recognizing TFI as valid work experience, and even reserving seats for Fellows. Some of these graduate schools include Columbia University, Harvard University, Princeton University, Stanford University and University of Pennsylvania. CA’s essentially have to look for students in their final year who are interested in being TFI Fellows and help them through the application process..TFI selects 1-3 CAs from each of its 400 target colleges. The CAs are expected to commit approximately 2.5 hours a week to the program for a one year period. I applied for the CA program in my 5th year and was chosen as the Campus Ambassador for NUJS for the year 2011-12. After completing an online application (available here) I was shortlisted and after a 30 minute telephonic interview, I was selected. After that, there was an online training session wherein I was told what my primary responsibilities would be. These included:.1. Building awareness about the TFI movement: Mobilizing final year students from your campus to apply to TFI Fellowship through posters, presentations, calls, e-mails, group discussions/debates, and college festivals, online and other mediums..2. Serving as a liaison between TFI and your campus: Helping coordinate TFI presentations in your college, helping TFI connect with important stakeholders within your network (e.g., placement head for your campus, the head of major student groups on your campus, coordinator of campus festival)..3. Targeted Recruiting: Managing relationships with the high-potential students from your campus who are basically students who are interested in and have the potential to be a TFI Fellow, supporting TFI staff by managing conference calls with candidates of your profile and soliciting a certain number of high-potential applications from your network..4. Staying in touch: by attending in-person trainings, weekly team calls, and submitting a “Reporting Sheet” bi-weekly..TFI essentially looks for independent, self-motivated, mature and responsible high achievers for this position. Considering that the work involves talking to several people, the CAs should be excellent communicators in both group presentations and one-on-one conversations and should be well-networked with contacts and the ability to engage with a variety of audiences. They should also be resourceful and perseverant in the face of obstacles. Being a CA means one should deliver results and consequently, it is a must to be organized, accountable and professional in one’s approach . Finally, the CA must be committed to TFI’s mission of building a movement of leaders who will eliminate inequity in education..The CAs who are committed, fulfil all their responsibilities, and perform consistently are adequately rewarded and given the recognition they deserve both during and at the end of the recruitment campaign. Serving as a CA provides excellent leadership experience. Furthermore, every month around 4 CAs from across the country are selected on the basis of their performance (ascertained scientifically based on very clear deliverables throughout the tenure of the program) and declared “CA of the Month”. These CAs are generously awarded. This award includes a certificate and a cash prize of Rs.2000 and an acknowledgement on TFI’s website, social media and newsletter. And if that’s not enough, all CAs with good performance and willingness to apply to the TFI Fellowship are directly invited to the final stage (Assessment Centre) of the selection procedure..All in all, if you’re looking for an opportunity to help lead a recruitment campaign of one of the most exciting and challenging movements in India and gain an understanding of how a professional and ambitious start-up organization operates, this is what you need. The level of attention given to each CA helps tremendously in building their skills of leadership, communication, organization, innovation and creativity, which are essential skills for lawyers. I gained a lot from my involvement with TFI and would strongly recommend it to all those who are looking to gain some enriching work experience while in law school..Ayesha Khan graduated from NUJS in April, 2012 . She was the TFI CA of the Month for December, 2011.