Fulbright Program Information on Coronavirus (COVID-19)

11529-MC

Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship

Multiple Countries/Areas

Multi-country
Burma
Cote d'Ivoire
Peru
Ukraine

Global/Multi-country

East Asia and the Pacific

Africa, Sub-Saharan

Western Hemisphere

Europe and Eurasia

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Award Details

Grant Activity

The Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship provides opportunities for U.S. early and mid-career professionals and practitioners to serve in placements in a foreign government ministry or institution around the world. Fulbright Public Policy Fellows build mutual understanding and contribute to strengthening the public sector while cultivating public policy experience in their area of expertise. The Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship also includes an independent research component that focuses on an issue related to the Fellow's in-country work.

The Fellows will have an opportunity to build their knowledge and skills, provide support to partner-country institutions, and promote long-term ties between the U.S. and the partner country.

Fellows will work with ministry officials as “technical specialists”, immersing themselves in ongoing assignments and new initiatives, at the direction and under the supervision of host government officials. They will have the opportunity to work on issues related to their sector and contribute to public policy-related projects that benefit the host country. In addition, Fellows will undertake an independent research project related to their area of expertise.

Fellows will be hosted a ministry or institution and spend approximately 80% of their time carrying out ministry-directed projects. Approximately 20% of their time will be dedicated to their independent research project. Fellows must work with their ministry supervisors to agree upon a schedule, which will be determined on an individualized basis and will take different forms depending on the country and the placement.

The research project is expected to be an independent project proposed during the application phase, but should be focused on a field or sector related to the ministry placement and be adaptable to the work done in the ministry.

In addition to being a prestigious academic exchange program, the Fulbright Program is designed to expand and strengthen relationships between the people of the United States and citizens of other nations and to promote international understanding and cooperation. To support this mission, Fulbright Scholars will be asked to give public talks, mentor students, and otherwise engage with the host community, in addition to their primary activities‎.

Grant Length

Minimum length of the total grant is four months and the maximum is nine months.

Grant Dates

Earliest start date is July 2021; latest start date is March 2022. Grants for the Fulbright Public Policy have a flexible start date and also flexible timeframe of a semester or academic year (4-9 months), with sufficient time to carry out the goals of the project. For Ukraine, preference will be given to grants that begin in September 2021.

Locations

Fulbright Public Policy Fellowships are available in: Burma, Cote d'Ivoire, Peru, Ukraine.

US Embassies, Fulbright Commissions (where applicable), and host country governments will coordinate placements in a host country ministry or institution in a variety of public policy areas.

All qualified applicants with skills applicable to public policy in any field are eligible and encouraged to apply. Preferred fields of interest and/or potential ministry hosts, along with language requirements, for each country are:

PERU:

Fields: Combatting gender-based violence, social inclusion, anti-corruption, equality, integration, sustainability, dialogue and reconciliation, identity and diversity

Potential Host Ministries/Focus Areas: Ministry of Agriculture, Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Energy and Mines, Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations, Ministry of Development and Social Inclusion, Ministry of Production, Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Transportation and Communications, Ministry of the Environment, Ministry of Culture, Ministry of Housing and Construction, Ministry of Labor, Ministry of Economy and Finance, the Mesa de Concertación de Lucha contra la Pobreza (a multiparty group that works on policies to fight poverty), and the National Council for Science, Technology, and Technical Innovation (CONCYTEC), among others

Language: Advanced (superior) Spanish is required.

BURMA:

Fields: Economics, Economic Development, Public Administration, Public/Global Health, Education, Environmental Science, Environmental Policy, Political Science, Agriculture, energy, drug issues, policy on rehabilitation of drug users, cyber crimes & cyber security, media

Language: Fulbright Public Policy Fellows for Burma do not need language proficiency skills, though they are helpful. Fellows communicating in English are strongly encouraged to use simple, clear English spoken slowly with counterparts.

COTE D'IVOIRE:

Fields: Security sector reform, environment and sustainable development, customs reorganization, justice and human rights, construction and urban planning, commerce and industry, and entrepreneurship

Potential Host Ministries: Ministry of Water and Forests, National Security Council, Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, Office of the Prime Minister, Ministry of Justice/Human Rights, Ministry of Construction, Housing & Urbanization, Administration of Territory and Decentralization, Ministry of Commerce and Industry, Ministry of Private Sector Promotion

Language: French proficiency is required.

UKRAINE:

Potential Host Ministries/Focus Areas: Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sports; Ministry of Health; Ministry of Social Policy; Ministry of Education; Ministry of European and Euro-Atlantic Integration; Ministry for Veterans Affairs, Temporarily Occupied Territories and Internally Displaced Persons of Ukraine

Language: Level of Ukrainian depends on the ministry. Some ministries will require a basic level of Ukrainian or Russian language skills; others work in English on a regular basis.

Flex Option

Discipline Type

Only applications in the following disciplines will be considered

Disciplines

Agriculture

Communication

Economics

Environmental Sciences

Information Sciences/Systems

Law

Political Science

Public Administration

Public Health

Areas of Interest

While this award is open to any project in the disciplines listed above, there is interest in scholars who are in these particular specialty areas.

Child Labor and Protection

Economic Development

Education and STEM

Energy

Environmental Policy

Infrastructure

Justice

Public Finance

Transparency and Good Governance

Women’s Issues

Award Requirements

Application Requirements

Applicants must register qualified language evaluator, such as a language instructor or a translator, to conduct the external assessment in the application. Being a native speaker alone does not qualify an individual to conduct the assessment.

Applicants who are native speakers do not need to complete an external evaluation.

Invitation Requirement

A letter of invitation should not be sought

Invitation Requirement Additional Information

No Invitation Required

A letter of invitation is not required for professional placement. Applicants should not contact potential host ministries to organize or advocate for a placement. Placements are negotiated directly between the U.S. Embassy and the Host Ministry. A letter of invitation from organization or academic institution supporting the research component is encouraged but not required.

Language Proficiency Requirements

Required

Additional Language Requirement

U.S. Embassies have consulted with host government representatives to determine the language requirements for Fellows.

Peru - Advanced (superior) Spanish is required. Applicants must submit the Language Proficiency Report: Self Evaluation and Language Proficiency Report: External Evaluation. Native speakers need only to complete the Language Proficiency Report: Self Evaluation.

Burma- Burmese language fluency is not required but helpful. Fellows communicating in English are strongly encouraged to use simple, clear English spoken slowly with counterparts until their facility with English is clear.

Cote d’Ivoire - Proficiency in French is required. Applicants must submit the Language Proficiency Report: Self Evaluation and Language Proficiency Report: External Evaluation. Native speakers need only to complete the Language Proficiency Report: Self Evaluation.

Ukraine – Level of Ukrainian depends on ministry placement. Preferred: basic level of Ukrainian or Russian language skills for some specific ministries; others work in English on a regular basis. For research, language proficiency sufficient to complete the proposed project is required. For applicants without local language proficiency, feasibility of conducting the project must be demonstrated in the project statement.

Fulbright Public Policy Fellows will be required to carry out a position in a foreign government ministry effectively and seamlessly. Meeting the language requirements is critical for completing the daily requirements of the professional placement. For research grant activity, language fluency sufficient to complete the research project is required. For applicants without local language proficiency, feasibility of conducting research must be demonstrated in both the project statement and the language self-evaluation form of the Fulbright application. Non-native speakers who have local language abilities will be asked to also register an external evaluator within the application.

Applicant Profile

Additional Qualification Information

Successful candidates will include early to mid-career entrepreneurial and self-starter professionals with a graduate degree in a public-policy related field (e.g., JD, MPA, MPH) and a minimum of three to five years of full-time work experience. Postdoctoral candidates and practitioners active in the academic, public, or private sectors with a record of experience and accomplishment in a public policy related area are encouraged to apply. Candidates with field-specific background applicable to public policy (e.g.., Energy, Agriculture, Engineering) are preferred.

PhD is not required. Doctoral degree holders are eligible as long as they have three to five years of public policy relevant experience – as a professional/practitioner outside of the classroom. Candidates enrolled in a PhD are eligible as long as they have a MA degree AND three to five years of experience. Candidates who have gone directly from undergraduate to PhD and have completed the PhD, but do not have any work experience are not eligible.

Additional Information

Additional Comments

US Embassies/Fulbright Commissions will work toward placement in a host country Ministry.

Helpful Links

https://www.cies.org/program/fulbright-public-policy-fellowship

Archived Webinar - Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship Info Session

Stipend & Benefits

Stipend

Monthly benefits will follow the rates for Fulbright U.S. Scholar grants in each proposed country. Dependent benefits are not available under the Fulbright Public Policy Fellowship.

Estimated Travel and Relocation Allowance

Round-trip, economy-class, international travel for the grantee provided. Relocation Allowance of $500 provided.

Estimated Book and Research Allowance

A $750 book/research allowance is provided to assist with the costs of research materials. Books purchased should be donated to the host institution upon completion.

Special Award Benefits

Fellows will participate in an in-person pre-departure orientation (approximately 1.5 days) in July 2021. Fellows to Burma, Cote d'Ivoire and Ukraine will also participate in Fulbright regional PDOs in June/July 2020.

Please refer to the figures above for an estimate of total monthly Fulbright award benefits. Benefits may include a monthly base stipend, living and housing allowances, and additional one-time allowances. Benefits may vary based on a scholar's current academic rank (or professional equivalent), the city of placement, the type of award (teaching, teaching/research, or research), and the number of and duration of stay of accompanying dependents. Research-only grantees receive a standard stipend that is not adjusted for academic rank. In most cases, dependent benefits will not be provided to Flex grantees, or to grantees pursuing grants less than four months (or a semester) in length.

Final grant amounts will be determined prior to the start of the academic year and are subject to the availability of funds. The United States Department of State reserves the right to alter, without notice, participating countries, number of awards and allowances.

Application Deadline

Tuesday, September 15, 2020

Activity

Professional Project/Research

Degree Requirements

Ph.D. (or other terminal degree) not required

Candidate Profile

Professionals

Academics, all levels including early career

Number of Grants

Approximately 10

Program Staff

Kimberly Williams

Outreach and Recruitment Officer

Phone:

202-326-7765

Email:

FPPF@iie.org

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