Bihar teen Adarsh Kumar wins $1,00,000 Global Student Prize 2025

Adarsh Kumar, an 18-year-old student-innovator who grew up in poverty, was on Wednesday declared the winner of the $1,00,000 Chegg.org Global Student Prize 2025 at a ceremony in London.

Adarsh was selected from almost 11,000 nominations and applications from 148 countries to make the cut for the annual prize, given to an exceptional student who has made a real impact on learning and society at large.

Raised by a single mother

Born in Champaran, Bihar, Adarsh was raised by a single mother who cleaned homes to fund his education. He went on to become the first student to win a full-ride scholarship to the Jayshree Periwal International School (JPIS) in Jaipur, worth Rs 30 lakhs, and now helps replicate that success for others.

“Winning this prize is unbelievable,” said Adarsh Kumar, after receiving his prize in London.

“Winning the Global Student Prize has given me the confidence to work harder. My message to others is this: Be the change you want to see. Change should first start within and then to the world. The world celebrates people who dare to dream, so please, dream big," he said.

Adarsh discovered coding and the start-up ecosystem at an early age through YouTube and Google when his single mother spent her life savings to get him a laptop. He went on to launch his first venture in Class VIII, which failed. But his second, Mission Badlao, helped 1,300 families access welfare schemes: Ayushman Bharat cards, pensions, Covid-19 vaccines and school enrolment.

Left home at 14

Aged 14, Adarsh left home with just Rs 1,000 for Kota in search of IIT-JEE coaching. As he found coaching unaffordable, he used the free library wi-fi to send emails to mentors and eventually was able to join programmes, intern at start-ups and shadow founders. Skillzo was eventually born as a platform delivering exposure, mentorship and programmes in entrepreneurial skills.

It has gone on to impact over 20,000 underserved students, many now on scholarships, launching ventures and winning national competitions.

“Adarsh's story is more than a personal triumph – it is a powerful symbol of the courage and grit of young changemakers everywhere, whose voices deserve to be heard and whose stories can inspire the world,” said Nathan Schultz, Chief Executive Officer and President of Chegg, Inc.

“Their stories remind us of the extraordinary impact students can have when they are given the support and platform to act on their vision,” he said.

With his Chegg.Org Global Student Prize winnings, Adarsh intends to build SkillzoX — an AI-powered, low-bandwidth mentorship platform for rural areas, and launch the Ignite Fellowship – a global accelerator for student changemakers.

“Adarsh's journey is a powerful reminder that education is the greatest gift we can give – it opens doors, creates opportunity, and transforms lives,” said Sunny Varkey, Founder of the Varkey Foundation, a partner behind the prize launched in 2021 as a sister award to the Global Teacher and Global Schools Prizes.

Applications and nominations for this year's Global Student Prize opened in February and closed in April, with students assessed on their academic achievement, impact on their peers, how they make a difference in their communities and beyond, overcome odds to achieve, demonstrate creativity and innovation, and operate as global citizens.