Social Impact in India2 week program
Use your knowledge, skill sets and passion to make a real difference in collaboration with our Indian school and village community partners.
This is a real-life authentic experience that will accelerate your personal growth, interpersonal skills, and exposure to the challenges of the global community.
Key information
Destination/s: India
Dates: November / December 2025 (exact dates to be confirmed) | 2 week program
Cost: TBC + airfares
Funding available:
- A$4,947 OS-HELP Loans available for eligible students
- A$9,893 OS-HELP Loans available for eligible students
- A$1,000 Swinburne Abroad Travel Grants available for eligible students
Eligible students: Undergraduate students from all study areas
Applications close: 15 August 2025
Overview
See incredible India on this International Award-Winning study tour which enables you to put your academic theory into practice, practice into service & service into life! You will visit community-based social enterprises in Mumbai, Agra and Delhi. The highlight of the tour will be spending a week embedded into the remote village of Pal in the Yawal Wildlife Sanctuary where we are hosted by a 3rd generation Gandhian-philosophy NGO focused on projects providing quality education, gender equality and development for under-served Adivasis (Indigenous or original inhabitants) communities. The Social Impact in India tour has been travelling to this region and our home village of Pal since 2014 to build and realise real long-lasting partnerships and benefits for those communities.
Highlights / tentative itinerary
- Highlights / tentative itinerary
- Ride a bicycle through the very early morning streets of Colaba, Mumbai and Old Delhi
- Be guided through Dharavi, one of Asia’s largest slums, and see a thriving, industrious community – home of Slumdog Millionaire
- Lunch at Leopolds Café (Mumbai)
- Visit Chowpatty Beach
- Experience 2 x authentic Indian railway journeys
- Walk in the footsteps of Mahatma Gandhi in Faizpur and learn of the Freedom Fighter Heritage
- Participate in basic Hindi & Marathi lessons
- Visit Pal’s Hindu temple and meet the Guru
- Hike Pal Mountain for sunrise
- Enjoy incredible authentic Indian food
- Plant a tree in the Pal-Swinburne Friendship Forest
- Explore the vast Agra Fort and the Taj Mahal
- Visit Sheroes Hangout Café (a social enterprise for acid attack victims)
- Visit Goonj and understand ‘development with dignity’
- Wander the markets in Delhi
- Visit Gandhi Smriti (Mahatma Gandhi's home while in Delhi and the site of his assassination)
- Visit Gurudwara Bangla Sahib
- Become an India Foods MasterChef with our end of tour celebration Taste Sutra cooking school
- Visit the Australian High Commission in New Delhi
Academic information
Which unit/s can this program be taken for as credit?
ICT20005
Can this unit be taken as an elective by students in any Swinburne degree?
Yes
Eligibility
- Students must have completed 100 Credit Points
- You will be required to speak with Tour Leader prior to selection
- This program is open to students from all study areas/disciplines
Past Social Impact Study Tour staff and students attending a Tribal wedding in Pal, India
Program cost
Inclusions
- Accommodation
- Meals
- In-country transport (where practical)
- Entry into sites and activities mentioned in itinerary
- Travel and medical insurance
Exclusions
- International airfares
- Academic unit fees
- Visa (if required)
- Vaccinations (if required)
- Sari, Sherwani and Kurta (if applicable)
Funding
Funding your overseas journey may be easier than you think!
OS-HELP Loans
Eligible Australian students can apply for an Australian Government OS-HELP Loan of A$4,946 or A$9,893 in Asia to help cover costs associated with your overseas program. Plus, up to $1,314 to complete Asian language study in preparation for your program in Asia.
For more information on funding and eligibility see our Fee Help and Scholarships page.
Swinburne Abroad Travel Grants
This program has A$1,000 Swinburne Abroad Travel Grants available.
This grant can help offset travel and program cost expenses for your overseas study tour and is available to both Domestic and International students.
For more information on funding and eligibility, see Fee Help and Scholarships.
Information sessions
To attend an information session, register your interest and we'll send you further details.
Application
Applications will be assessed on a rolling basis, with places (and scholarships) allocated to the first students to complete a full application and meet eligibility criteria.
Keen to apply? You can submit your application now. Applications will be assessed after the application deadline.
Final application deadline: 15 August 2025
Still not sure?
For further details on this program please contact:
Jason Sargent
Lecturer, Information Systems
+61 3 9214 5287
jpsargent@swin.edu.au
Alastair DeRozario
Mobility Adviser - Study Tours
studytours@swinburne.edu.au
Get more information
Register your interest to learn more about this study tour and to be kept updated on upcoming information sessions.