If you are registering as a group, you must elect a group leader who will register your group. The group leader will create a group name and password and will pull you into the group. Prior to being added to the group, all group members must login to begin the application process and select a program.

• 1. Click on Register and choose “Register as a group”
• 2. Complete the Group registration form and submit
• 3. You will receive an email
• 4. Login using your user id and password and you will be taken to My BEYOND BORDERS section
• 5. As a group leader you have to enter all the details of the member who are coming for any BEYOND BORDERS program.
• 6. You have to fill in the following details:
  • a. Program Name
  • b. Program Duration
  • c. Arrival
  • d. First Name
  • e. Last Name
  • f. Email
  • g. Gender
• 7. Make sure you enter the email id correctly as the member will receive the user id and password on the entered email address.
• 8. Once the details are entered, members can login to MY BEYOND BORDERS using their email and password
• 9. Members have to pay registration fee of 45$ immediately after they receive the email and first installment of 300$ within 15 days of paying registration fee
• 10. Only after all the members of your group pay 300$ your group will be eligible for the program
• 11. The final installment will be automatically displayed in the student panel and all the members have to pay 45 days prior to the arrival date.
• 12. There is a group limit set for every group application so make sure you enter your members accordingly.

• 1. Forming a group is really simple
• 2. Get a few friends to come for an BEYOND BORDERS program with you and you could avail of a special institutional price for your program. This price would apply to all members of your group.
• 3. You would require at least 3 more people besides yourself to apply for a program as a group.
• 4. BEYOND BORDERS would treat the group as a single unit, thus all members of your group would need to apply for the same program and select the same program start date as yours.
• 5. We assume you would be the leader of this group and once you select an BEYOND BORDERS program and a particular start date, the rest of the group could enter their personal details on their own “My BEYOND BORDERS” page.
• 6. In case the group wants to edit their program selection or their start date, you as the leader would need to send a request to BEYOND BORDERS admin to do so.
• 7. All members of a group would be expected to pay their respective deposits & fees and in order to confirm the group’s participation in a program. If any member of a group misses a payment, this would jeopardise the rest of the group’s ability to participate in the program as a group and avail the benefits of a group.
• 8. If any member/s in your group drop/s out before fully paying for the program and that brings down the group number lower than the minimum required 4, each participant would be treated as an individual and would need to pay fees applicable to any individual applying for a program.
• 9. If any member/s in your group drop/s out after fully paying for the program and that brings down the group number lower than the minimum required 4, you and the remaining members of your group would still enjoy the institutional price applicable to the group. The individual/s who dropped out would need to refer to the BEYOND BORDERS refund and cancellation policy applicable for individual applicants.
• 10. If the entire group decides to cancel their program, you would need to refer to the BEYOND BORDERS refund and cancellation policy applicable for individual applicants as any group for cancellations & refunds is treated as a single unit.

BEYOND BORDERS programs will either make you work in a group or accomplish a rotation involving many organisations. In an internship you would work with a single chosen organisation on a pre-arranged identified project. Even if there are other Interns assigned to the same project and you may have a group goal, your work and the outcome of your work would be reviewed individually.

Internships could give you a chance to take higher responsibility right from the start and be involved in important projects that would help improve your skills at work. You would learn to manage difficult and challenging situations in everyday life and at work which will lead to personal growth and professional competency.

Unless you have obtained an entry visa for more than 6 months stay in India, your Internships could last for the duration of your visa.

They have to be for a minimum of 5 weeks.

Indian life is affordable for interns as accommodation, food, clothing and travel are comparatively inexpensive, thus allowing you to combine work and travel experiences at an affordable price.

An intern would be expected to spend USD 500 to USD 700 per week in India for accommodation, food and placement services. For travel and basic essentials you could budget for USD 50 for the entire work week.

Placement organisations who accept Interns keep us posted about project opportunities that exist with them every year. Once you apply as an Intern you would need to choose a field of work and then produce evidence of your competency in making a difference in that field.

BEYOND BORDERS would match your skills and interest areas to available projects and then share the project details with you for you to choose. There are times when another student might be accepted into a project at different phases of it’s lifecycle and this could mean that more students could be working on a project with you.

The selection process requires you to commit to a certain amount of work time to a community intervention or an organisational project. We expect at least 35 hours of work time to be logged in per week by an Intern and the minimum duration of any internship is 5 weeks.

Once this is understood, your resume would be matched with available opportunities or projects that you have shown interest in and choices, if available, will be given to you to select a project.

After this you would go through a personal interview to qualify for a project. This interview will assess your ability to navigate a new culture, your skills and interest areas and your ability to function and produce results while dealing with stress.

Through the duration of your internship the Beyond Borders Academic Director assigned for your program will collaborate with you to provide you with guidance and expert advice as well as cultural or social context to your experiences.

We will be the bridge between your work and the organisation’s expectations and continuously assist you in producing the desired outcome for yourself and the organisation.

We will also mediate any issues that you may have to deal with and help you navigate any concerns that might come up during your work. In not so many words, we will be your guardian angel through your India experience!

Interns would get shared accommodation arranged by Beyond Borders and 3 meals everyday. We will also provide emergency support services round the clock and be happy to help you with all sorts of local support through your Internship.

Beyond Borders offers scholarships for certain Programs from time to time. Please write to info@indiastudyabroad.org to know if scholarships are available for you.

Sometimes, some part of an Intern’s in-country expenses while on the program could be taken care of by the organization with whom you intern.

The program fee includes the following services :

• 1. Pre departure orientation and support
• 2. Airport pickup on arrival
• 3. Transportation from Mumbai to Program site (in case the program site is different from Mumbai)
• 4. Cultural adjustment, health and safety orientation.
• 5. Program orientation and overview by qualified program personnel (Program Director/Academic Director/Sr. Program Managers)
• 6. Local sim card on day of arrival
• 7. Shared accommodation at BEYOND BORDERS guest houses. The accommodation at all BEYOND BORDERS program locations is secure, centrally located and basic but comfortable. Most BEYOND BORDERS guest houses have power backup, hot water, modern amenities, internet access, television, a well equipped kitchen, day staff for cooking and cleaning .
• 8. Three meals a day: Indian vegetarian meals. BEYOND BORDERS does not serve meat at guest houses for health and hygiene reasons. Often curries or breakfast might include eggs. Vegan meals can also be arranged on request.
• 9. Support during program activities and monitoring (Program activities are Monday to Friday. Weekends are free for students’ personal travel).
• 10. Weekly reviews of the program with qualified program personnel (Program Director/Program Manager/Academic Director). This includes reviews of the participants learning, contribution to placement organization, facilities, logistics and program content.
• 11. Help/support/certification in completing participant’s requirements for academic credit.
• 12. 24 Hour emergency support (7 days a week).

The cost does NOT include :

• 1. Any overnight accommodation in Mumbai if your flight arrives before program date.
• 2. Daily local transportation. (Proper guidance will be provided to participants on how to use local transport systems.)
• 3. Air ticket to India, visa fees and any travel insurance will be the responsibility of the student.
• 4. Weekend and overnight excursions outside the program activities will have to be paid by the students directly.
• 5. Expenses of personal nature like table drinks, fruits, juices, other snacks or personal preference meal items, mineral water, international telephone calls, or any other expenses which are not included in the above list, would be borne by the students.
• 6. Airport Drop at the end of the program is not included in program cost.

It may be possible to get academic credit for your program.Only academic departments can offer credit, and policies differ greatly from one department to the next. Often your choice of program must relate directly to your major and will require you to complete a substantial research project or writing component as part of a special studies course. To know whether your major and choice of program match your academic needs, write to us at info@indiastudyabroad.org

In the event of circumstances beyond our control, BEYOND BORDERS reserves the right to cancel any program at any time. BEYOND BORDERS also reserves the right to reject an individual at any time prior to departure, at its sole discretion. In the unlikely event that a program is canceled, or if a person is rejected the total amount paid to BEYOND BORDERS will be refunded.

If you cancel your program for any reason, you must notify BEYOND BORDERS in writing. If you cancel, you may apply the non-refundable deposit of USD 300 to another BEYOND BORDERS program scheduled within 12 months of the original arrival date, subject to space availability. If you cancel within 30 days or less of the scheduled arrival date in country, you will be charged 50% of the program fee and the balance will be refunded to you. No portion of the program fee is refundable after the program start date. Furthermore, no refunds will be made for unused portions of your program or because of your inability to participate according to the scheduled itinerary. Please note that any airfare penalties charged by any airline or travel agent are not BEYOND BORDERS responsibility.

We accept online payments through credit/debit cards only. To make payments you must click on a secure link in an invoice that will be emailed to you and pay.

BEYOND BORDERS is an independent social enterprise with no governmental funding or religious affiliations. Like most other internship/volunteering programs BEYOND BORDERS charges a fee that covers the cost of operating these programs. These operating costs include cost of placement, accommodation, meals, honorariums to academic directors/sector-specific resources, qualified program staff, marketing/outreach, donations to placement sites and other organizational overheads that facilitate a large number of students participation in BEYOND BORDERS programs.

Below is an excerpt from a book on international volunteering that helps to explain the necessity of this fee.

How to Live Your Dream of Volunteering Overseas

Authors Joseph Collins, Stefano DeZerega, and Zahara Heckscher. ©Penguin Putnam, Inc., 2002. Prospective volunteers are surprised to learn that many programs charge their volunteers a fee to participate. At first, this can seem ridiculous —Why should you pay money to work for free? Aren't you already forgoing income you could be making? Here are a few things to keep in mind while trying to understand why the vast majority of programs charge international volunteers a fee:

• 1. The local organizations and projects with which you volunteer overseas have limited resources and are seldom able to subsidize your trip or cover the costs of hosting you. (These costs include housing, feeding and transporting you, among numerous other things.)
• 2. Identifying appropriate host organizations overseas and working with them is time-consuming, takes resources, and requires an experienced and professional staff.
• 3. The process of preparing, training, transporting, housing, feeding, and supervising volunteers is not cheap. Additional services such as health care, re-entry assistance, travel medical insurance, and more, all add to the expenses of a program.
• 4. The costs of recruiting volunteers, producing literature, answering the phones, sending mailings, developing a website, and interviewing potential volunteers are significant.

Volunteer safety is of paramount importance to us at BEYOND BORDERS. BEYOND BORDERS does its due diligence on all accounts including volunteer safety and security for all new projects before opening it to volunteers. This includes identifying reliable local emergency contacts and point of contact in case of emergency for each site. BEYOND BORDERS has well trained staff to deal with emergencies of any nature at any given point of time and are quick to reach out to volunteers in case of any turn of events. BEYOND BORDERS programs follow best practices prevalent internationally and followed by excellent organizations offering similar programs. For more information on our emergency guidelines, please write to

BEYOND BORDERS programs do not require knowledge of the local language as English is widely spoken in India. We also believe that navigating through diverse cultures and languages is an integral part of experiential learning. While BEYOND BORDERS provides participants with a list of essential phrases in the local languages, most placement sites have coordinators who converse in English and students on programs as short as 3 weeks often understand the local language (some even begin conversing in them)!

Although no prior experience or other training is required to participate in BEYOND BORDERS program, the participant must be preferably over 18 years of age, easygoing and flexible. The students should be able to adjust to inconveniences caused due to disturbances in communications, power and water supply in some remote areas of India.

You will need a valid passport for your travel to India. For updated information on Indian visa requirements and rules visit the following links:

For information and online visa applications: http://indianvisaonline.gov.in/visa/

For citizens of the United Kingdom:http://in.vfsglobal.co.uk/

For citizens of the USA :

For citizens of Australia :http://www.vfs-in-au.net/

For Canadian citizens:www.blsindia-canada.com/visa.php

The climate in India is predominately influenced by the Himalayas and the Thar Desert which together drive the alternating monsoons which drive the weather changes in India.

India can basically be split up into 7 different climatic regions which play host to 4 different climates. As you move around India you will find a variety of weather conditions ranging from tropical wet to tropical dry and subtropical humid to montane.

Extending from 8 degrees north to 33 degrees north and with a wide variety of terrain it is understandable why such a variety of weather conditions prevail. India is home to the highest mountain range in the world- the Himalayas, so here you will find permanent snow fields that are frozen year in year out. As you move south and head toward the tropical coast lands you will find conditions that are fairly typical of a tropical climate. In the vast plains of the Ganges valley, summers can get unbearably hot and even in the winter months the conditions stay fairly warm.

As a whole, India’s climate is driven by the Asiatic Monsoon system which differs from any other weather system in the world in that the winds which determine the climate are ever changing from year to year, and there is no predictable weather pattern from year to year as the prevailing winds can change direction at any point in time.

JUNE to OCTOBER

is when the south west monsoon comes through India. In different parts of the country the monsoon will come in at later periods, though on average it will hit in about June. During this time, in the mountains, very heavy rainfall is recorded.

A majority of BEYOND BORDERS’s programs are hosted around India’s diverse western region which include Maharashtra and Gujarat. Mumbai (formerly Bombay) is located in this region, and conditions here are fairly indicative of what weather prevails at sea level. The weather in Mumbai is tropical, and is home to two seasons- both of which are fairly enjoyable. The humid season in Mumbai is between March and October, and is characterized by humidity and temperatures over 30 °C. The average high during April, May and June is 32- 33 degrees and the minimum only falls to 26-27 degrees. Rainfall is at its highest during June and July, particularly in July.

The dry season in Mumbai, typically from November to February, sees moderate humidity and warm to cool weather. From January to February, cold northerly winds bring a mild chill through the area. Average minimums during this time are still a pleasant 12 degrees, maximums sit at about 29 degrees. Daily sunshine during this time is about 8 to 9 hours, which is a stark contrast from the 2 to 3 hours of sunlight during the cloudy months of July and August!

As we move away from Mumbai towards our other major program site in Malavli which is situated near the popular hill-station Lonavla there is a dip in temperatures and humidity levels. Weather in Malavli is mostly pleasant to chilly throughout the year. Rainfall can be heavy in the months of July and August with long burst of heavy rain that sometimes last for over 3-4 days.

BEYOND BORDERS’s other program area is around the desert state of Rajasthan, which is dry and, well, desert like. In almost all parts of this region rainfall is below 500mm annually and in some parts no more than 250mm of rain will fall in an entire year. In the hottest time of the year, from May to July, this region is in fact one of the most hot places in the whole world.

BEYOND BORDERS programs include 3 meals (breakfast, lunch and dinner). These meals are vegetarian, nutritious, non-spicy and cooked at our facilities by BEYOND BORDERS cooks. BEYOND BORDERS provides only vegetarian (mostly Indian) cuisine while on the program primarily for health and hygiene reasons; variable quality of meat and hot spices used for preparing curries can often lead to indigestion and sometimes serious gastrointestinal problems. There are a variety of excellent options for dining out close to most program sites where participants who need their fix of meat can enjoy a meal. Eggs are sometimes a part of the BEYOND BORDERS menu. Vegan meals and special dietary plans can be customized by BEYOND BORDERS staff provided the requests are sent to us at least 1 month prior to the participant’s arrival into India.

You might need universal plugs for your electronic gadgets.

As part of your pre-departure orientation, a sample suitcase list would be sent to all enrolled students. The dress code is conservative with minimal display of skin. Do not bring any tight fitting, short or see-through dresses. Spaghetti straps and shorts are often considered inappropriate at the program sites.

Try to bring money in a variety of forms including : -

• 1. Internationally accepted credit cards
• 2. Travellers checks (be cautioned that exchanging these in rural areas can often be cumbersome and sometimes impossible) ATM Card
• 3. Some cash in US dollars or Pounds that you can exchange into local currency
• 4. Most preferable are credit cards and ATM cards as they provide you with maximum flexibility. You will find ATM machines at most locations and you can draw money from your account or get cash advances on your credit cards. Please bring all your relevant pin numbers with you.

Most BEYOND BORDERS guest houses have Internet facilities in the form of wifi routers or modems. However, these services can be erratic, particularly in rural areas. Internet cafes are usually located in nearby locations and these can be utilized for a nominal cost. International dialing/messaging services are available on the local sim cards provided to participants by BEYOND BORDERS. Since incoming calls on these local numbers are mostly free of cost we recommend that participants provide their contact numbers to friends and family overseas.

Before visiting India, you may need to get vaccinations and medications for vaccine-preventable diseases and other diseases you might be at risk for at your destination.

Your doctor or health-care provider will determine what you will need, depending on factors such as your health and immunization history, areas of the country you will be visiting, and planned activities.

To have the most benefit, see a health-care provider at least 4–6 weeks before your trip to allow time for your vaccines to take effect and to start taking medicine to prevent malaria, if you need it.

Even if you have less than 4 weeks before you leave, you should still see a health-care provider for needed vaccines, anti-malaria drugs and other medications and information about how to protect yourself from illness and injury while traveling.

If you have a medical condition, you should also share your travel plans with any doctors you are currently seeing for other medical reasons.

If your travel plans will take you to more than one country during a single trip, be sure to let your health-care provider know so that you can receive the appropriate vaccinations and information for all of your destinations. Long-term travelers, such as those who plan to work or study abroad, may also need additional vaccinations as required by their employer or school.

BEYOND BORDERS since its inception in 2006 has hosted nearly 1100 students for various programs.

Goods and Services Tax (GST) is an indirect tax applicable throughout India which replaced multiple cascading taxes levied by the central and state governments. Under GST, goods and services are taxed at the following rates, 0%, 5%, 12% ,18% and 28%. BEYOND BORDERS Programs have a 18% GST which will added to your Program Fee and will be paid to the Government of India.