Fulbright African Research Scholar Program(ARSP) for the 2018/2019 academic year

The Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy in Nigeria is pleased to announce the annual for applications for the Fulbright African Research Scholar Program(ARSP) for the 2018/2019 academic year. The deadline for submitting online applications is June 1, 2017.

This program, funded by the United States Department of State and administered by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES), offers senior faculty members from Nigerian universities, the opportunity to conduct research at U.S. institutions for a minimum of three (3) months and a maximum of nine (9) months. The selection process and final award of grants are extremely competitive.

The Fulbright African Research Scholar Program offers two categories of grants: Research grants and program and curriculum development grants.

  1. Research Grants:

Awards of 3 to 9 months are offered under the research grants for African university faculty or research institute professionals to conduct research in any academic discipline at a U.S. academic or research institution beginning no earlier than August 2018 and no later than March 2019.  Applicants must hold a doctorate or equivalent terminal degree in their fields.  Also, applicants must have have at least three (3) years of university teaching experience and a productive scholarly record.

  1. Program and Curriculum Development Grants:

Awards of 3 to 5 months are offered under program and curriculum development grants for African university faculty or administrators to conduct research in any academic discipline at a U.S. academic or research institution beginning no earlier than August 2018 and no later than March 2019.  Proposals should be linked to professional duties and demonstrate how the scholar will use the knowledge gained to develop new courses, curricula, or other academic programs at the home institution.  These grants are designed for university faculty or administrators with less experience and who may not have had recent access to research or instructional developments in their disciplines.  A doctorate degree is not required, but applicants must hold a minimum of a master’s or equivalent graduate degree.

HIV/AIDS:

The ARSP includes a special group of grants for scholars with proposals in HIV/AIDS-related research. Scholars in all academic disciplines are invited to formulate proposals with an HIV/AIDS focus.  Candidates may apply either as research scholars or program and curriculum development scholars.

Grant Benefits:

The grant covers the candidate’s J-1 visa, round trip airfare to the U.S., a settling-in allowance, professional allowance, monthly stipend, housing allowance, books-and-supplies allowance, and computer allowance. The grant also covers basic university health insurance as a primary insurance coverage and the Fulbright ASPE health benefit as secondary coverage. Also, the grant covers travel of one dependent if he/she will stay with the grantee for at least 80% of the grant period. Moreover, it covers the dependent allowance.

 Application and Instructions:

Online applications must be submitted using the Embark Visiting Scholar system, accessible at:https://apply.embark.com/student/fulbright/scholars/  As new users, applicants must create new accounts and are advised to follow the steps for preparing the online application.

Eligibility requirements:

  1. An intended applicant must be a citizen of Nigeria or a permanent resident, and should hold a valid passport issued from the country in which the application is made.
  1. The ARSP is open to scholars in all disciplines and without regard to gender or age; however, proposals for clinical medical research involving patient contact cannot be approved under the Fulbright Program.
  1. Applicants for research grants must hold a doctorate degree or equivalent terminal degree in their fields.  Preference is given to individuals who have at least three years of university teaching experience and a productive scholarly record.
  1. Applicants without doctorate degrees but who hold a master’s or equivalent graduate degree are eligible in the program and curriculum development category.
  1. Applications for doctoral dissertation research, postdoctoral research immediately following the completion of a doctorate degree, or general professional travel, are ineligible.
  1. Preference will be given to candidates who have not previously received a Fulbright scholar grant.
  1. Preference will be given to candidates who have had no experience or limited experience in the U.S.
  1. Applicants must be in good health.  Successful candidates will be asked to submit a Medical History and Examination Report.
  1. Scholars must indicate the grant category for which they are applying (research or program and curriculum development).
  1. Each application must include three letters of reference.
  1. Letters of invitation from U.S. academic or research institution are strongly encouraged.

We urge applicants to contact Fulbright alumni for guidance with the application process, if possible. Should you have questions regarding this program, please send an email to NigeriaFulbright@state.gov

We look forward to receiving applications from your institution by the deadline.