SurbhiLately Product Management Fellowship

With this fellowship program, we have designed a free program that addresses these problems at a critical time for when young women are embarking and getting a start on their careers in the tech industry. Our short-term objective of empowering college-aged female students with the confidence and skill set to understand and embrace the field of Product Management leads into our long-term goal to create a pipeline of next-generation leaders in the technology industry fields.

Apply for the Fall PM

Fellowship Cohort Now!

Applications close August 19th.

Cohort starts August 24th.

Application for Fall 2022 Cohort

How do I apply?

Fill out the application at the link above by June 15th. Results will come out June 18th, and the cohort begins on June 22nd.

Who's eligible?

Target candidates will be women and non-binary individuals who are either looking to start their careers in technology and learn about Product Management. The ideal candidate will be a college sophomore or junior, who will be looking to break into PM via internships.

Note: All majors and backgrounds are welcome to apply!

When is it? What does it cost?

August 24, 31, Sept 7, 14, 21

This fellowship is completely free.

Course Curriculum

Week 1: Introduction to Product Management 101

- Intro’s across the cohort

- Understanding a high level day-to-day

- The PM lifecycle

Week 2: Think like a PM

- Determining priority and value - defining a problem statement, opportunity sizing

- User scenarios

- Spec writing

- Technical Skillset

- Product Launch Strategy

Week 3: Fireside Chat & Panel & Networking Tips

- This week’s session will include a panel of female PMs spanning a range of industries and experiences to chat about how they broke into PM, speak about their specific day to day, and share any advice with our fellows

Week 4: Case Study & PM Resume

- This session will cover how to edit and frame one’s resume in preparation for applications to PM roles

- We will in-depth review a product case study bringing together the parts from the earlier 2 sessions on PM skills and PM thinking

Week 4 con't: Live Mock Interview & Interview Prep Resources

- In the final session we will do a live mock interview between a mock interviewer and interviewee, with a breakdown session after allowing for constructive feedback and tips

We will share prep resources for all fellows to embark on the PM interview process from here on out on their own

Mission Statement & Overview

The tech industry as of 2020 boasts a disappointing 20% representation of women across a variety of roles. This disparity highlights the opportunity to engage more women and bring the numbers closer to 50-50. The mission of this fellowship is to introduce and familiarize young women interested in the field of technology to Product Management and share tips and tools that early career PMs wish they had when starting out.

The tech industry is not only limited to technical roles. Rather there are several opportunities for individuals with diverse academic backgrounds and experiences to create a niche within this industry. Product Management is a burgeoning field and this fellowship will help introduce more women to the discipline and to the skills needed to break into the PM role out of college. Breaking into PM from college has become a new path for technically minded students, however there is a lack of information and knowledge available to students looking to move into this path. The fellowship will help students access mentors, create a better understanding of networking, and help prepare for the interview process. This fellowship program will equip students with the knowledge and information they need to break into the role, and how to take advantage of student opportunities to bolster their resume and build a supportive network.

The fellowship comprises a 5 week long program in which the fellows will begin by learning about the PM discipline and key concepts related to PM. Fellows will then apply their knowledge into practice. We will prepare for interviews via the case study format together. The fellowship is modeled after a cohort format to create a sense of community amongst the fellows, while cultivating an in-built networking opportunity as well. We will also have an engaging and resource-filled private Discord channel for all of the fellows and mentors.

All fellows will also join an alumnae fellowship Discord group & alumnae LinkedIn group to connect with previous fellows as well.

If you have additional questions, please reach out to Fellowship Director Surbhi Lohia via email surbhilately@gmail.com.

What Our Past Fellows Are Saying

Alexandra Davis, a sophomore studying applied economics and environmental science at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, was a student in the fellowship’s first cohort. Davis labeled her experience as “absolutely amazing,” citing Lohia’s thoughtfulness as a large contributing factor.

“I think [Surbhi] went into it knowing that a lot of us hadn’t had exposure to this, and so she broke everything down bit by bit,” Davis said.Alexandra Davis, a sophomore studying applied economics and environmental science at the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, was a student in the fellowship’s first cohort. Davis labeled her experience as “absolutely amazing,” citing Lohia’s thoughtfulness as a large contributing factor.

“I think [Surbhi] went into it knowing that a lot of us hadn’t had exposure to this, and so she broke everything down bit by bit,” Davis said.

Another student, Dhwani Vaishnav, a sophomore at Ryerson University studying business technology management, was introduced to product management through Lohia’s fellowship and did not know non-coding roles existed in the technology field until seeing Lohia’s TikToks.

“[Surbhi is] so transparent about everything,” Vaishnav said. “I feel like in panels and Q&A sessions, you get some generic answers … I think Surbhi was great at giving us the answers we were all looking for and giving us a clear pathway.”

The Columbia Spectator wrote an article highlight Surbhi Lohia's TikTok work and amazing efforts in founding and building the SurbhiLately PM Fellowship. Please read the article here: https://www.columbiaspectator.com/arts-and-entertainment/2022/04/28/surbhi-lohia-bc-19-on-working-in-tech-and-mentoring-the-next-generation-through-tiktok/

SurbhiLately | Tech Product Manager