Manzil : A High School Student Counseling Program Initiative

High school students from economically and socially marginalized backgrounds—especially those studying in Urdu and Kannada mediums—face a critical information gap. Traditional career guidance in India is narrowly focused on a few core fields (STEM and Commerce), leaving the vast majority unaware of diverse opportunities in entrepreneurship, creative arts, vocational trades, or specialized academia.

This lack of exposure, combined with limited professional mentorship and financial constraints, leads to unexplored potential. As a result: 93% of Indian students are familiar with only seven career paths. 75.8% of government school students have never received any form of career guidance.

There is an urgent need for an inclusive, personalized program to help these students discover their true "Manzil" (destination).

Beyond the Board Exam

Our Solution: Personalized Mentorship, Real Impact

The Manzil Program replaces generic lectures with a conversation-based, mentorship-driven model to provide tailored guidance. Our approach focuses on building individualized paths, not just presenting a broad list of jobs.

How It Works:

1. Initial Engagement (Conversation): We start with informal, voluntary discussions within schools to build rapport, understand existing knowledge gaps, and secure parental and community buy-in.

2. Interest Mapping (Discovery): Students are categorized based on their unique interests (Academic, Vocational, Entrepreneurial, Sports, etc.), moving beyond traditional streams.

3. Personalized Mentorship: We meticulously identify, onboard, and match students with relevant non-subject expert mentors, creating a sustainable, case-by-case mentor directory focused on quality over quantity.

4. Resource Building: We provide access to locally relevant, multilingual, and culturally appropriate resources.

75.8% of government school students have never received any form of career guidance.

Key Program Goals & Impact

The core mission of the Manzil Program is to expand student awareness of opportunities far beyond traditional academics, encompassing business, entrepreneurship, and diverse vocations. We are fundamentally committed to providing tailored mentorship based on individual student strengths, not generic advice. Our long-term vision is to achieve sustainable impact by establishing a structured, community-led mentorship ecosystem, cultivating local success stories, and developing a quality-focused, multilingual mentor directory that ensures students from marginalized backgrounds have the continuous support and resources necessary to realize their highest aspirations.

We measure our success not just by attendance, but by Engagement Metrics (voluntary participation), Mentorship Matches, and, most importantly, Impact Assessment (the number of students who actively pursue opportunities they were previously unaware of).

The Manzil Program is dedicated to bridging the opportunity gap and ensuring that every marginalized student can identify, set, and confidently achieve their aspirations.