You are eligible for consideration if you meet all of the following criteria:  

• You identify as a woman 
• You work in a role that focuses on public health policy, practice, and/or research (Your work and partnerships serve populations at the national or regional level in India and may include practicing public health, producing research and innovation, creating or implementing policy, supporting service delivery, or managing teams/departments or projects/grants in public health.) 
• You have 10-25 years of experience working in public health in India
• You are an Indian National and reside and work within India 
• Possess ease in written and verbal communication in English

We require participants to be living in the India Standard Time (IST) time zone for at least 75% of the program as we believe time zone compatibility is essential to your ability to engage with your peers within and outside of the touchpoints.  

Access our Application FAQ here. If you have any questions about the application or process, please contact IndiaJourney@womenlifthealth.org.   

If accepted, you will be required to attend each virtual and in-person learning residency* as detailed in the 2026-2027 Calendar A and B and to complete the deliverables associated with the Leadership Project. The JourneyPLUS sessions are optional to attend.

The time commitment for the required Leadership Journey activities (all virtual touchpoints and inter-session activities) ranges from between four to eight hours each month, plus the in-person residencies (five days total, plus travel). This estimate does not include the time required for the design, planning, and implementation phases of your Leadership Project, so please consider that in your decision to participate in the program.  

There is no cost to participate if you are selected. All program costs, including travel and lodging, are covered. 

Please ensure you have access to a computer and the Internet to attend the virtual touchpoints. Sessions will be conducted in English. 

You will also be asked to complete a “Benchmarks 360 Assessment and other leadership style assessments, which will inform your understanding of your leadership strengths and growth areas. The Benchmarks 360 Assessment will involve soliciting feedback from your supervisor, peers, direct reportees, and others.  

While these are not technical requirements, our hope is that you will bring your drive, passion, and commitment to the program, engage actively with your peers, mentors, and coaches, and take full advantage of the resources provided. As our approach involves human-centered design, we will ask you to evaluate your experience and contribute ideas for how to enhance the Leadership Journey for future cohorts. One of the most important takeaways of this Journey are the relationships you form during this year. As many of our Global Fellows would say, “Behind every successful woman is an amazing group chat.”

Download our Application FAQ here.

Your Health Leadership Project (HLP) proposal is a critical element of your application, and an opportunity for you to design and lead an effort that taps into your expertise, network, passion, and creativity. It should aim to improve health outcomes in India and give you the opportunity to apply new leadership skills to advance gender-informed health impact.

Please note that implementation of your project does not have to be completed by the end of the Leadership Journey and will likely continue beyond it.

Please read this Health Leadership Project brochure for the guidelines and expectations of a Health Leadership Project. Learn more about the Health Leadership Projects by watching the Lift-Off videos presented by previous India cohort members (2022, 2023, and 2024). 

WomenLift Health does not provide funding for your Health Leadership Project. We play an active role in connecting you with highly experienced mentors, coaches, and experts within our team and network. Your peers can also be an excellent resource for enhancing your project.

Please include a letter of recommendation from your supervisor. If unable to obtain a letter of recommendation from your direct supervisor, you may submit a letter written by a senior leader at your current organization or a leader in the global health community who has experience working with you.  

The letter of recommendation may speak to:  

• The significant contributions you have made to your professional field that demonstrate leadership capacity  
• Your strongest personal quality which distinguishes and qualifies you for selection to participate in this Leadership Journey  
• How this Leadership Journey will help you enhance your leadership knowledge and skills  

For your application to be considered complete, you must upload and submit your letter of recommendation as part of your application by the deadline. 

Open Application Period: Application period closes on October 10, 2025 by 5:00 PM IST

Notification Period: We will notify applicants about their acceptance, waitlist, or rejection status by mid-February 2026 .

Acceptance & Pre-Orientation Period: The accepted candidates will be asked to confirm their participation within two weeks of receiving their acceptance letters, after which we will begin pre-Journey onboarding.

Leadership Journey Launch: Orientation commences the second week of March 2026.

This program brings the considerable resources of the New Venture Fund (NVF), a 501(c)(3) public charity that incubates new and innovative public-interest projects and grant-making programs. Our sponsor, the Gates Foundation, has provided the funds to enable this movement. Our Leadership Journey curriculum design partner and touchpoint facilitator is the Center for Creative Leadership (CCL). The cohorts’ virtual learning and engagement platform is developed and powered by our partners at TechChange.

We’ve noticed an increase in the use of AI tools in recent applications. Your application responses should be specific, contextualized, rooted in your work or interests, and include clear, realistic goals. If your submission includes vague ideas and reads the same as multiple other submissions this might result in a poor rating and lower the probability of your selection in a highly competitive process. We live in a world shaped by AI, and we welcome thoughtful, transparent use of these tools. But your application should showcase your own thinking, experience, and goals, not what a chatbot can generate.