Funding for International Students Applying

General Information

• International students who are applying to a graduate program in the Department of Agricultural Economics may request that they be considered for a departmental research assistantship. Competition for assistantships is strong, however, and only a few can be offered each year to international students.
• MSU does not offer any full scholarships specifically for international students.
• At present, we have very little information on scholarship sources for students from Asia.

Applying for Financial Assistance

• There is no special form for requesting financial assistance; simply check the appropriate box on the front of the application form
• International students may submit their applications to our department without filling out the statement of financial proof. However, MSU will not issue the I-20 or DS-2019 (formerly IAP-66) forms until the financial proof requirement is met either through a departmental assistantship or through funds provided by the applicant or the applicant's scholarship sponsor outside MSU.

Scholarship Sources for International Students

Foreign Fulbright Graduate Student Program

• Within the U.S., this program is administered by the Institute of International Education (IIE). Outside the U.S., the program is administered in 50 countries by a Binational Commission, and in the remaining countries by the U.S. Information Service (USIS).
• Please Note: All applications must go through the home country Commission or USIS post. IIE does not accept applications.
• More detailed information on the Foreign Fulbright Graduate Student program is available through IIE's Web site, which includes a program overview, list of frequently asked questions, and list of individual country contacts.
• Note: the list of country contacts is worth consulting, since the Fulbright program in your country may not provide support for M.S. or Ph.D. degree training
• Other information is available from:

  Placement Administrator
  Institute of International Education
  Foreign Fulbright Programs Division
  809 United Nations Plaza
  New York, NY 10017-3580
  Tel.: 212-883-8200
  Fax: 212-984-5452

LASPAU--Academic and Professional Programs for the Americas (www.laspau.harvard.edu/)

LASPAU, a nonprofit organization affiliated with Harvard University, administers a wide variety of academic exchange programs, mostly at the graduate level, which are available to students in Latin America and the Caribbean who wish to pursue studies at North American universities. These include scholarship programs offered by the United States Information Agency, the United States Agency for International Development, public- and private-sector institutions such as Venezuela's Fundación Gran Mariscal de Ayacucho, and programs funded by the World Bank, the Inter-American Development Bank, and the Organization of American States (OAS) in conjunction with the Inter-American Agency for Cooperation and Development.

Contact:
Sonia Wallenberg
Program Advisor, LASPAU
25 Mount Auburn St.
Cambridge, MA 02138-6095 USA
Tel.: 617-495-0456
Fax: 617-495-8990
E-mail: sonia_wallenberg@harvard.edu

A list of contacts by program is also available.

U.S. Graduate Study Program for Latin American and Caribbean Citizens

The Inter-American Foundation (IAF) was created in 1969 by the United States Congress to fund the self-help initiatives of the organized poor in Latin America and the Caribbean and the groups that directly support them. To complement its effort, the IAF has reinstated its fellowship support for dissertation work by candidates for Ph.D. degrees from United States universities. IAF's fellowships are intended to increase awareness of grassroots development efforts while building a community of professionals and scholars knowledgeable in the subject. Fellows examine the efforts of the rural and urban poor to improve their lives, their methods of organization and production, and the policies and programs designed to alleviate their poverty. The IAF disseminates research findings of its fellows to a broad audience concerned with development.

Academy for Educational Development (www.aed.org)

• Works in partnership with donor agencies, foreign governments, and private sector firms to address work force training needs that have an impact on economic development. Manages scholarship programs providing long-term academic and short-term technical training for more than 1,500 foreign students and professionals each year in-country, internationally, or in the United States.
• Many AED programs involve short-term training, but some projects (e.g., Botswana) provide support for long-term degree studies.
• For information on fellowship programs: http://www.aed.org/education/edu_scholar.html
• Address:

  Academy for Educational Development
  1875 Connecticutt Ave., N.W.
  Washington, DC 20009
  Tel: 1-202-884-8000
  Fax: 1-202-884-8400
  E-mail: admindc@aed.org

Rockefeller Foundation (www.rockfound.org)

• The Rockefeller Foundation occasionally provides support for M.S. or Ph.D. degree training. Applications must be made through the Rockefeller Foundation office in the region or country concerned.
• Based on the number of Rockefeller Fellows admitted to the MSU Agricultural Economics Department, it appears that most such fellowships are available to students from Sub-Saharan Africa.  Rockfeller has established relationships with several African Universities.

Institute of International Education   (www.iie.org)

• IIE, an independent non-profit organization founded in 1919, is a world leader in the exchange of people and ideas. IIE administers over 200 programs serving more than 20,000 individuals each year. It maintains live links to many scholarship opportunities.   Click here to learn more about IIE.

Ford Foundation International Fellowships Program (www.fordifp.net)

• The Ford Foundation International Fellowships Program (IFP) was launched by the Ford Foundation in 2000 to provide opportunities for advanced study to exceptional individuals who will use this education to become leaders in their respective fields, furthering development in their own countries and greater economic and social justice worldwide. To ensure that Fellows are drawn from diverse backgrounds, IFP actively seeks candidates from social groups and communities that lack systematic access to higher education.

W. K. Kellogg Foundation (www.wkkf.org)

• Grants are made in four areas: 

  • Health
  • Food Systems and Rural  Development
  • Youth and Education
  • Philanthropy and Volunteerism

  Geographic Priorities

  These areas are addressed in our programming in the United States, Latin America and the Caribbean, and southern Africa. Programming in these interest areas is tailored to meet the needs of each geographic region. In our hometown of Battle Creek, Michigan, we focus the programming to fit the needs of Greater Battle Creek.

American Association of University Women International Fellowships

International Fellowships are awarded for full-time study or research to women who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents. Both graduate and postgraduate study at accredited institutions are supported. The Foundation will award about 50 fellowships per year. Deadline is December 1st, for programs covering the year.

World Bank Graduate Scholarship Program

This program awards scholarships to individuals from World Bank member countries to undertake master's-level studies at universities renowned for their development research and teaching. Eligible applicants must be between the age of 25 and 45, have at least 2 and preferably 4-5 years of professional experience, have earned a bachelor's degree is a development-related field. They may not be currently residing, working, or doing graduate study in an industrialized country, or have already earned a graduate degree from an institution in an industrialized country, unless they have spent at least three years in their home country or another developing country. For more eligibility information . . .

Last Updated September 5, 2008 by Scott Loveridge

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