What to Know Before You Go to India
If you are selected to go
Working abroad is a big endeavor. BEO and several other Brown University offices will help you get ready.
In broad terms, all arrangements and expenses are handled by our offices. We will provide a detailed schedule of document and materials needed to obtain what you need to do, including the following:
- Immunizations
- Plane reservations
- Letters of invitations from Indian companies to request visa
- Visa to India
- Health and emergency evacuation insurance
We will also organize a cultural orientation session with a professor of Anthropology who has worked in India, and we will facilitate contact with former interns. The goal is for students to have what they need to go and know what to expect upon arrival.
What you will need to do on your own includes the following steps:
- Get a valid passport
- Read the US State Department “tips for traveling abroad”
- Browse through the Brown-in-India Program Handbook, bearing in mind that this handbook is for students who are studying--not interning--in India
- Complete the online form to register your trip with Brown's OIP
- Register with US Consulate
- Check the most up-to-date information on traveling and security in India
Once you arrive in India, a company representative will be waiting at the airport and take you to the company's guest house where you will reside during your internship. You will be provided meals, laundry service, and transportation to work daily.
At work, you will be given a project, you will have a supervisor and likely one or more mentors. You will be included in meetings, taken to see clients, and occasionally participate in company sponsored travel to other cities in India in order to complete the project. It is expected that in the final week of the internship you will deliver a final presentation summarizing your work.
In preparation for this exciting experience, it is a good idea to read about India. Here are some suggestions:
For Cultural Interest
Dalrymple, William City of Djinns: A year in Delhi
Dalrymple, William Age of Kali
Giridharadas, Anand An Intimate Portrait of a Nation's Remaking
Lahiri, Jhumpa Interpreter of Maladies
Mehta, Suketu Maximum City
Mistry, Rohinton A Fine Balance
Roberts, Gregory David Shantaram
Roy, Arundhati God of Small Things
Rushby, Kevin Chasing the Moment of Light, Search of the Kohinoor
Rushdie, Salman Midnight’s Children
Sainath, P. Everybody Loves a Good Drought: Stories from India's poorest districts
Sutcliffe, William Are You Experienced
Tharoor, Shashi India from Midnight to the Millennium
Tully, Mark No Full Stops in India
“India Today” magazine
“Manushi” magazine (women’s magazine)
For Economic and Demographic Background
