The Global Food Security Graduate Fellowship award will support exceptional graduate students who are interested in conducting thesis research in a developing country, in collaboration with a mentor from an International Agricultural Research Center (such as CIAT, CIMMYT, ICRISAT, IITA, ILRI, IRRI, INRAE, Embrapa, etc.) or a national research institute devoted to food and agricultural issues.
Award Details
- Fellows will receive a maximum value of $12,000 for research stays of three months or longer. Fellows are required to spend a minimum of eight weeks abroad and awards will be adjusted to amount to no more than $1,000 per week abroad.
- Supplemental awards of up to $1,500 are available to support a visit by the student’s College of ACES advisor to the international research site (optional).
Eligibility Requirements
Applicants should:
- Be a graduate student in a thesis degree program in the College of ACES.
- Hold financial support generating tuition and fee waiver through home department or another unit on campus.
- Have some commitment of resources from the mentor’s institution, which might take the form of use of laboratory equipment, subsidized or free accommodations, or other logistical or material support for the research.
Required Application Materials
Applicants should submit a package including the required application materials (listed below) in a single .pdf file to aces-oip@illinois.edu with "Global Food Security Fellows" in the subject line.
- A research proposal (4 to 6 pages) that is endorsed by both a faculty advisor from the student’s home department and a research mentor at the international research center. The proposal should include (1) introduction and motivation for research (2) research questions and objectives (3) research method (4) timeline for work (5) roles and capacities of student, mentor and advisor (6) budget (7) budget justification.
- A letter from a department head or other official confirming financial support for at least one semester after completion of the activities funded under this grant.
- A letter of support from the ACES advisor that confirms the writers’ support for the research proposed and his or her commitment to providing guidance to the activity.
- A letter of support from the international mentor that confirms the writers’ support for the research proposed and his or her commitment to providing guidance to the activity and indicates the resources being provided by his or her research institute.
- CV of applicant and a record of graduate level courses and grades.
- Information to suggest the international reputation and impact of the host center (link to annual report or website is sufficient).
Timelines
The deadline for applications is October 17, 2022.
Work should be completed by December 31, 2023.
Criteria for Selection
- Academic record of student
- Scientific merit of proposal
- Feasibility of proposal and its likelihood of being a significant element in the student's thesis or dissertation
- Strength of letters of reference from advisor and international mentor
- Relevance of research to promoting sustainable food security globally
- International reputation for research of the host foreign/international center
Expectations for Recipients
- Submission of a report of blog post for possible publication on the ACES website
- Submission of a short activity report upon completion of the project
- Presentation of conducted research, for example, as part of a seminar, symposium, or poster session, as requested
Questions
Questions may be directed to aces-oip@illinois.edu.
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