The Developmental Activities Program (DAP) at FLAME University is a holistic endeavour to expose young minds to discover and decode the complex social, cultural, environmental and economic problems that plague our world. DAP incorporates a truly immersive experience. For a period of four to six weeks, every student is expected to actively participate in the work/projects of a civil society of their choice and contribute in every manner expected of them. The projects may vary from policy and rights-based issues to education and healthcare.
Emotional intelligence (EQ) is being widely recognized to be as, or perhaps more critical than intelligence quotient (IQ), in determining an individuals’ success and well-being. Personal and relational competencies that constitute EQ, such as self-awareness, empathy, social skills, self-regulation, and motivation can only be enhanced through community consciousness and civic engagement, considered to be essential components of any world-class liberal education programs.
The Developmental Activities Program (DAP) at FLAME University provides every student with a hands-on opportunity to recognize the socio-economic and environmental realities of India at the grassroots and understand how organizations have developed to address these problems. Mandated to be a part of their credit-based academic requirements involving rigorous planning and final reporting, students are expected to volunteer at a non-profit organization working for social-economic or environmental development, which can be either an NGO, a semi-government, or a government agency during the summer break after their first year at FLAME University.
The exposure to such social reality, immersive fieldwork, and direct engagement with their chosen target community—often the marginalized and vulnerable sections of our society—is a life-changing experience for our students. Moving beyond classroom training or passive observations, compel the students to re-examine their own values and attitudes, recognize structural and social processes, understand the intricate workings of and challenges faced by organizations, and identify the constituencies, stakeholders and opportunities for meaningful interventions to address specific issues. Such lessons in humility and sense of a higher purpose—have paved the way for careers for many of our graduates—as professionals, researchers, and entrepreneurs in the fields of social impact.