Program Experience

How the two weeks work

The program runs as one connected arc: you arrive, you learn, you build something with a team, and you present it. Sessions are hands-on rather than lecture-based, and you spend most of your time working alongside participants from other countries.

University workspace

Participants are hosted at universities in Istanbul as their working space during the program. You build your team project on a real campus, alongside other participants — not in a hotel conference room.

Workshops and sessions

Structured sessions on innovation and social leadership, led by facilitators and speakers. The focus is practical: how to identify a real problem, how to test an idea against reality, and how to lead a group of people who do not all think the way you do.

Your team project

You are placed in an international team and work on a project across the two weeks. This is the spine of the program — the sessions feed into it, and it is where most of the collaboration happens.

The closing showcase

Every team presents its project at a showcase at the end of the program. It is a real opportunity to stand in front of an international audience and defend an idea you built yourself.

Your certificate

Participants who complete the program receive a Certificate of Completion in Global Innovation and Social Leadership. The 1st-place team and the MVP participant also receive a Certificate of Excellence in Innovation and Leadership. At least 80% attendance is required.

The network afterwards

The program does not end when you fly home. Participants stay connected through the IISLP alumni community, and for many people that is where the long-term value of the two weeks shows up.

Session details and the final schedule are confirmed closer to the program and shared with accepted participants.