Fulbright One-Year Doctoral Student Fellowships

Program overview

The United States - Israel Educational Foundation (USIEF) intends to award about two grants to Israeli students, enrolled in a doctoral program at an accredited Israeli university, who are about to undertake a year of activity at a US university within the framework of their Israeli program of study. Program grants provide $12,500 in support of the recipient's year of study in the United States.

The grants offered are for students who will begin their programs of study in the United States in either the Fall or Spring semester of the 2011/2012 academic year.

This program is open to students in all fields of study, except those in which hands-on contact with patients is required.  Students in medicine, dental medicine, veterinary medicine, nursing and other programs which involve treatment of patients are not eligible for Fulbright grants. 

Candidates must arrange affiliation with a US university on their own initiative. Applications may be submitted even if applicants have not yet received official confirmation from a United States institution of its agreement to grant the requested affiliation by the submission deadline date.

Before taking up their grants, those selected as program fellows will be required to provide proof that they have received official notice of affiliation to a university in the United States.

The highest-ranked candidates will be invited for an interview in Israel in late March/early April. All interviews are held on the same day. In order to be considered for an award, applicants must be available for interview in person on the date fixed by USIEF.

The Foundation reserves the exclusive right to determine, within the framework of applicable law and regulations, the qualitative standards for the evaluation of applications.  The Foundation is not under any obligation to provide the reasons for its decisions regarding the allocation of Fellowships.

Candidates should note that receipt of a Fulbright-Israel Student Fellowship affects eligibility to receive a Post-Doctoral Fellowship. A former Student Fellow is not eligible to begin work in the United States as a Post-Doctoral Fellow until five years have passed since the conclusion of his/her stay in the United States as a Student Fellow.  See the regulations regarding repeat fellowships in the Fellowships section above.

Grant benefits

• $12,500 award
• limited health insurance for grantee only
• pre-departure orientation meeting

Eligibility criteria

• Candidates must be enrolled as students in a doctoral program at an accredited Israeli university.
• Candidates must be Israeli citizens. Dual American-Israeli citizens or permanent residents of the United States are not eligible to apply.
• Candidates must be resident in Israel at the time of application and must continue to be resident in Israel until the beginning of their doctoral studies in the United States as Fulbright Fellows.  Students who have already begun their program in the United States or who are planning to begin study in the US before the Fall 2011 semester are not eligible to apply.
• Students in medicine, dental medicine, veterinary medicine, nursing and other programs which involve treatment of patients are not eligible for Fulbright grants. 
• Prior to activation of grants awarded, candidates selected must give proof of affiliation to an accredited university in the United States.
• Candidates must be in good health. All applicants selected for a Fulbright grant are required to submit a Medical History and Examination Report before their grants can be activated.
• Candidates selected must give proof of having obtained adequate financial support for their stay in the United States prior to activation of grants awarded.
• Prior conviction or current indictment for a felony may result in disqualification.

Evaluation criteria

• Academic excellence is the primary criterion for the evaluation of candidates.
• English language proficiency is an important evaluation criterion.
• Leadership qualities are an important evaluation criterion.
• Preference will be given to applicants who have not had a substantial, recent, academic experience in the United States, or other English speaking country.
• Preference will be given to candidates under 30 years of age.
• Possession of skills required to promote mutual understanding between the United States and Israel is an important evaluation criterion.

Conditions of award

• Funding is for one year only.
• Grantees are responsible for making their own travel arrangements.
• Grantees must travel on a J-1 Exchange Visitor visa sponsored by the Fulbright program.
• It is a condition of the visa that after completion of their Fulbright program, including any transfer of visa sponsorship, grantees must return to Israel and reside in the country for two years before being eligible to immigrate to the US, to take up permanent residence there, or to enter the US with a work permit. The purpose of the two-year home residency requirement is to ensure that exchange visitors return home and fulfill the exchange objectives of the Fulbright program.
• Holders of J-1 student visas who have departed from the United States after a stay of six or more months may be required to remain abroad for up to twelve months before being allowed to re-enter the United States with a J-1 professor/research scholar visa.
• The above restrictions do not apply to re-entry to the United States as the holder of a J visa in another category (short-term scholar, specialist, international visitor), or as the holder of a student or tourist visa.
• Dependents of grantees will enter the US as holders of J-2 visas. Many conditions applying to the grantees as holders of J-1 visas, such as the two-year home residency requirement and other restrictions, also apply to the holders of J-2 visas.
• Unless they have received a waiver of the two-year home residence requirement, Fulbright Students, holding J-1 visas, are ineligible to change their status from J-1 to J-2 while in the US. Similarly, accompanying dependents, who possess J-2 visas, are ineligible to change their status from J-2 to J-1 while in the US, unless they have received a waiver of the home residence requirement.
• Grantees must begin their studies in the United States no later than the spring semester, 2012.  Awards cannot be deferred to the following academic year.

Instructions on the preparation and submission of applications

• All required documents must be submitted in English.
• Each application must include the following material: typed application form; passport picture; official grade transcripts in English; biographic statement; curriculum vitae.
• Candidates must mail three complete hard copy of their application to the Foundation's office. The application should be stapled on the left side.  Please do not bind the application in a folder.
• The earliest date for submission of applications is December 1, 2009. The final date for submission of applications is February 15, 2010. The address for submission of applications is: United States-Israel Educational Foundation, POB 26160, Tel Aviv, 61261 or 10th Floor, Migdalor Building, One Ben Yehuda Street, Tel Aviv. Faxed or e-mail copies of applications are not acceptable.
• Three letters of reference written in English on institutional letterhead paper, together with reference forms, should be sent directly to USIEF by those providing references before the final date for submission of the application.   Do not submit more than three references.
  • All references should be from persons qualified to evaluate the applicant's work and with whom s/he has studied in her/his academic field.  If the applicant has received a Master's degree, one reference should be from the faculty supervisor of his/her Master's program.
  • Only those who are well acquainted with the applicant's qualifications should be requested to provide references. A pro-forma letter from a well-known scholar, a contact abroad, or a prominent government official will carry less weight than a realistic assessment of the candidate's abilities from someone who knows him/her and his/her work well.
  • Faxed or emailed references will be accepted. It is the applicant's responsibility to ensure that all references are submitted by the deadline so that his/her application may be properly processed.
• Certified, official copies of the record of courses and grades received for the entire period of the applicant's university and/or professional school studies must be submitted. A full and accurate English translation of any document whose original is not in English must be provided.
• Applicants should submit, if available, documentary evidence of their affiliation to an accredited university in the United States. It is not necessary to have proof of affiliation and evidence of financial support at the time of submitting the application.
• The applicant's name should be given exactly as it appears on the applicant's passport with family (last) name underlined.
• Where dates are requested, the name of the month should be given, rather than the numerical figure.
• Those separated, divorced, or widowed should indicate their family status as "single".
• Curriculum Vitae: A detailed curriculum vitae should be submitted. The c.v., describing academic and other achievements, should include details regarding:
  • education (universities attended and degrees held)
  • work experience
  • courses taught
  • publications
  • other professional activities, such as workshops, seminars, consultations
  • membership, leadership and other activities in professional associations
  • professional honors, awards and fellowships
  • community service and leadership
• Biographic Statement: The biographic statement is a narrative giving a picture of the applicant as an individual.
  • It should touch on the applicant's family background; main events in the applicant's personal history; influences affecting his/her intellectual development; and educational and cultural opportunities to which the applicant has been exposed, or the lack thereof. The statement should detail special interests and abilities, career plans and life goals.
  • It should present briefly the topic which the applicant plans to explore in his/her doctoral thesis, and should explain how a year's study at a US university will contribute to the successful completion of the applicant's doctoral program at his/her home university in Israel.
  • It should point out any factors in the applicant's background which show that he/she will be able to adapt well to an unfamiliar socio-cultural environment. The statement should also detail those factors in the applicant's background which indicate that he/she will be able to promote a greater understanding of Israel in the United States and a greater understanding of the United States in Israel, in keeping with the goals of the Fulbright program.
  • The statement should not exceed 3 pages in length.

  Fulbright One-Year Doctoral Fellowships
Timetable for 2011/2012

Application form

To download the application form, click here.

If you experience difficulties downloading the document, please write to USIEF, specify which document you need, and we will email it to you. 

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