The Pay-it-forward Project
(INACTIVE)
We connect aspiring graduate students to accomplished mentors in their dream schools, and raise money for nonprofits creating systemic change in the education system.
Giving every student a winning chance.
We are aware that the graduate school application process is complicated and time-consuming. We can help.
From shortlisting universities to writing a winning SOP, our mentors provide personalised, end-to-end support to boost the chances of your admission into your dream school. With the right knowledge about courses and constructive feedback, you can make an informed decision at every stage of the application process.We are currently not updating or checking the interest form, however, feel free to reach out to any of the team members if you want to try restarting or working on this project!
*other points are covered in the FAQ section here.
The Team
Project Pay-it-forward started with the idea of trying to scale impact. We are a group committed to helping students get to where they want to be.
Karan Daryanani
Founder
As a first generation college student, Karan is keenly aware of the problem of information asymmetry in access to opportunity and higher education, and focuses much of his time and energy with projects that aim to 'do well by doing good'. He currently leads the Rethinking Economics India Network.
Tania Martha Thomas
Co-founder and Programme Lead
Tania's interests lie in the areas of climate change mitigation and adaptation. In applying for her master's, she realised the difficulties in finding specialised courses in the social sciences, which motivated her to join the PIF Project. Tania is a student at Sciences Po, pursuing a degree in Environmental Policy.
Varshini Sridhar
Knowledge and Research Lead
Varshini is a founding team member at the PIF Project, and a project assistant at Centre for Public Policy Research. She aspires to build a career in International Affairs and has previously been published at The Diplomat, the International Policy Digest and The Geopolitics. She works on creating actionable insights with data and research for Project PIF.
Nishitha Gokulapati
Growth and Partnerships Lead
Nishitha is a student at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences, and her research lies in between the areas of sociology and psychological development. Nishitha has played a role in brand development and marketing for several community based efforts, and is excited to support the expansion of Project PIF.
Shuba Subramaniam
Design & Branding Consultant
Shuba is currently pursuing a master’s at Srishti Manipal Institute of Art Design and Technology. She has always had a keen interest in the arts and aims to put her theoretical understanding of social sciences in action through design solutions. Her interests lie in visual storytelling and understanding the world through multiple narratives.
We hope to change the way people think about volunteering, and curate a memorable mentoring experience that changes the trajectories of both mentors and mentees that participate.We are always looking for new hands to support our work - both for our core leadership team, and for local ambassadors who support our operations on the ground. If you would like to volunteer with us, please leave a short statement of interest and send your CV to [email protected].
Schedule a session with us
Are you applying to graduate school? We'd like to hear from you - even if you aren't applying right this year. We match you with a mentor and run a 1 month long mentorship cycle with weekly check-ins and interaction with your mentor(s).Our mentors can help you with every step of the process, right through to applying to the right school, working on essays, or even just talking through your decision.
If you are looking for admission support, please drop us a line on this short form to schedule a session.
Join us!
Our mentors are from leading universities across the world. We look for dynamic individuals who understand the admissions process and can think critically about how to best help others. As a mentor for PIF, you get to be a part of an enthusiastic, dynamic community of changemakers that want to pay it forward.
What we look for in a mentor
You've been through the graduate admissions process, and succeeded.
You are committed to giving back to your community.
You are in a place where you understand the value addition of a master's degree and what it can (or cannot) do for you.
Can set aside at least an hour a week to volunteer (in 3-week bursts).
You are a team player and comfortable with volunteering remotely.
Benefits to becoming a mentor
Mentorship is a two-way street! We hope your mentee will have as much of an impact on you as you will on them.
You get to join a movement of young people committed to social impact.
You get to pay it forward twice - both through mentorship and via the charities we support.
We are looking for mentors that can help with one (or all parts) of the application process - from choosing a University, to resume writing, as well as essay support. If you would like to be a mentor, please fill up this short form.If we move you ahead with the process, you'll be asked to hop on a quick call with us, and paired with a mentee over email. Excited to have you on board!
Our fundraising effort
At the end of a mentorship cycle, we ask clients for a voluntary donation towards a nonprofit. This goes directly to partner nonprofits working in the field of education - we leverage the due diligence of platforms like Give, Milaap, and Ketto to support these communities. While a certain minimum is recommended, the size of the donation is completely up to you. You can even choose not to donate at any time.The nonprofits we are currently supporting:
*all donations to these beneficiaries are either 80G (50% tax exempt) or 35AC (100% tax exempt).If you are or know of other education-related initiatives that need funding, please do fill up this typeform or send over a short mail. We'll get in touch!
Our mentors are from some of the best schools in the world
*we currently provide admissions support for the Social Sciences only - Economics, International Relations, Public Policy, Management/Business, Public Administration, and Development Studies, and allied disciplines. We will be looking to expand to other disciplines soon, so please do fill up the form regardless :)
Frequently Asked Questions
Disclaimer: Please note that we do not make any guarantees of admission.
Background
Did your team come up with this idea?The idea to do admissions support via mentoring is not novel, but very few players cover programmes beyond MBA and Engineering. We were inspired by other people doing this for charity, like this one.Why the name Project Pay it Forward?We wanted to make this a painless, easy way for alumni from top schools to mentor potential applicants, and hence the 'project' part of the title, reflecting it as an initiative taken up by mentors all across the world. The 'pay it forward' bit is tied to the act of mentorship in itself, and the idea that contributions are being channeled to charitable causes.
On our offering
Why BETA?We're new, and still trying to fix up some back end processes. We have small delays, little experiments, and new features introduced during the beta period, sometimes even mid-batch. These sessions will also (and always) be completely free. We would really appreciate honest feedback during this process, so do get back to us at any point.The second BETA period will last from November to December, and take in a maximum of 25 people. Apply soon! The link can be found here.Do you support Undergraduate applications?At this time, no. Undergraduate applications are a very different ball game, and the founding team felt it would be hard to provide support without having that first-hand experience. However, if you think there are some areas (like resume or career mentoring) you think we could match you with, feel free to send over a mail - would be happy to set you up with a few free sessions.Otherwise, we would recommend you look at this.Why only top schools?We've set this up as a part-time pro-bono project geared to social impact, and restricting it to top schools helps us narrow our focus and provide tailored support. While the advice you receive will definitely be helpful for other applications as well, we cannot cater to those yet.What geographies do you operate in?As of right now, this mentoring is only for Indian students having studied at a local university. We feel that there are certain key areas of the application process that are unique to the Indian system of undergraduate education and how this is perceived by top schools. We felt Indian students would benefit from that focus - if we crack a right way to scale, we'd love to bring this all over the world!
Using the platform
What can I expect after signing up?(For applicants)You will get a mail with an application package, essentially a compilation of things we feel will support you in your admissions process, and we will connect you with a mentor after a short video call. This call is to brief you on the process, and to filter out any applicants who cannot commit to a mentor.(For mentors)Your application will be reviewed, and if selected, you will receive an invitation to a short video call with the team.How are mentors selected?We optimise for a range of things - the orientation for social impact, their background and work experience, and their ability to provide the time commitment and experience we are looking to provide for mentees.We also provide some structuring to the mentorship sessions by collating free resources and short trainings during our mentor onboarding period.
Donating to charity
Does PIF take any money?No, the donation goes directly to the charities involved. We are not in any way financially compensated for our time, though we do get to sleep with a warm fuzzy feeling at night.Why not just do it for free?We are providing a service that can help you get into some of the most coveted educational institutes in the world. Professionals charge a lot of money for this, and our mentors are usually happy to do this for free. However, we believe some of that value should be captured and returned to society, and donations for their time is one way to do this.We want mentors to be sustainably incentivised to help people, which becomes harder once other factors like time spent on work and family, etc. come into the picture. Knowing that their time is going to charity helps motivate mentors to continue helping year after year of students, even as they get more caught up with work.Which organisations will benefit from the donation?We choose three specific organisations each application cycle, but if you would rather donate to another charitable trust, please send us a mail at [email protected]. We choose these charities based on the focus on education and their capacity to support individual students as part of their programme, allowing for a 1-1 contribution.I’m a student and simply cannot donate at this timeAny and all donation facilitated by us is voluntary. We simply provide a platform to amplify the fundraising efforts of education-focused organisations. You will be sent a mail with the profiles of the organisations we support, but choosing whether or not to donate is entirely up to you.