Download the complete program overview (PDF).

With some 1.1 billion people, diverse regions, and a vibrant democracy, India has been making significant economic progress since gaining independence from Britain in 1947. Despite its successes, however, India continues to be home to over one-quarter of the world’s poor.

Program Location: Bridge Year students in India will spend nine months of service based in the city of Varanasi, located in the middle Ganga valley of North India. In a number of ways, Varanasi represents so many of the hopes and needs of developing India. It is a thriving and dynamic city, extremely rich in cultural, religious, and historical significance. At the same time, many of its 1.1 million residents struggle daily with the challenges of caste-based discrimination, poverty, insufficient health care, and limited access to education.

Local Language: Residents of Varanasi mainly speak Kashika Bhojpuri, which is very closely related to the Hindi language. As part of the Bridge Year, students will participate in an intensive Hindi language program in order to gain the necessary communicative competency to engage in community-based development work.

Program Partner: In India, Princeton University is partnering with Where There Be Dragons. Founded in 1993, Dragons is dedicated to inspiring youth leadership and responsible global citizenship though community-based service projects and cultural exchange. Over the last 15 years, Dragons has managed hundreds of unique small-group service learning programs in developing Asia, Latin America, and Africa.

Service Opportunities: Dragons has well established relationships with a number of service institutions operating in Varanasi. These include orphanages, public schools, microfinance organizations, a social service agency dedicated to assisting children of prostitutes, leper colonies, and the Mother Theresa Center for the Indigent. Bridge Year participants will be exposed to a variety of project types, in addition to being assigned a primary project. By mid-February, participants will be fully engaged in their primary project work and should have gained greater expertise and responsibility in their defined project area. Around this same time, Bridge Year participants in Varanasi will work with local staff to develop and execute an independent field project to be completed prior to the program’s conclusion.