Included here are grants and fellowships available to students of Asian Studies and students wishing to pursue research or language study in Asia.
Graduate Student Grants and Fellowships
Asia Center Graduate Summer Research Grants
The Harvard University Asia Center offers grants to support graduate research during the summer in or relating to any country in Southeast Asia and Japan. IMPORTANT: Asia Center funds for research in China, Korea and South Asia are distributed by the Fairbank Center, the Korea Institute and the South Asia Initiative, respectively. Students applying for funding for any of these countries should apply to the relevant centers and not to the Asia Center.
The Asia Center competition is open to graduate students from all schools at Harvard at all stages of their academic careers. Grants will generally not exceed $3,000. Recipients are required to submit upon their return, a brief report on their work over the summer.
Applicants should mail or submit 1 copy (original) of the following materials by Friday, February 12, 2010 to Jorge Espada, RE: AC Graduate Summer Research Grants, CGIS South Building S118A, 1730 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02138.
Application and instructions available at http://www.gsas.harvard.edu/current_students/graduate_summer_standard_application.php.
Fairbank Center Graduate Summer Research Grants
The Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies offers grants to support graduate research during the
summer in or relating to China and Taiwan. The competition is open to graduate students from all
schools at Harvard at all stages of their academic careers.
Grants will generally not exceed $3,000. Recipients are required to submit upon their return, a brief report on their work over the summer.
Applicants should mail or submit 1 copy (original) of the following materials by Friday, February 12, 2010
to Jorge Espada, RE: Fairbank Center Graduate Summer Research Grants, CGIS South Building S118A, 1730 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02138.
Application and instructions available at http://www.gsas.harvard.edu/current_students/graduate_summer_standard_application.php.
Graduate Summer Language Grants for East, South and Southeast Asian Language Study (Harvard University Asia Center, the Fairbank Center for Chinese Studies, the Korea Institute, and the Reischauer Institute of Japanese Studies)
These grants are for students enrolled in a master’s or doctoral program at Harvard in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences or any of its professional schools for study during the summer of an East Asian language (including the Altaic languages), or of one of the languages of South or Southeast Asia. Study should take place at accredited programs outside of the United States, but exceptions may be made when this is not possible. Priority will be given to advanced study in a primary language, to the study of a secondary language that is necessary for the completion of the degree, or to the study of a secondary language that is necessary for advanced research. Grants will normally not exceed $6,000.
Students are encouraged to budget realistically and, when appropriate, to seek support from other sources, which may be combined with GSLG funds. Students seeking support for the study of South Asian languages should also consult the grant programs offered by the South Asia Initiative. Students should also apply for the Reischauer Institute Summer Language Study Grants for Doctoral Students if appropriate. Students applying to a Harvard Summer School language program should first explore submitting an application for a tuition waiver from GSAS. Students should consult their academic departments for application procedures and deadlines.
Applicants should mail or submit 1 copy (original) of the following materials by Friday, February 12, 2010 to Jorge Espada, RE: Graduate Summer Language Grants, CGIS South Building S118A, 1730 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02138.
Application and instructions available at http://www.gsas.harvard.edu/current_students/graduate_summer_standard_application.php.
Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships for East Asia (Graduate School of Arts and Sciences)
The University administers the FLAS graduate fellowships for East Asia. The FLAS is a federal program which supports the study of modern languages and related area courses. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents, be engaged in the study of an eligible foreign language and related area courses, be preparing for a career in teaching or in public service in which proficiency in the language of application is necessary or highly desirable and be engaged in full-time study during the entire award period. Fellowships are available both for the summer and for the academic year. Eligible East Asian languages are Mandarin (at least two years' prior study), Japanese (at least two years' prior study), Korean, Tibetan, and Vietnamese.
Applications for both the summer and academic year FLAS are due by December 22, 2009. For application and instructions, go to http://www.gsas.harvard.edu/current_students/flas.php.
Korea Institute Summer Research Travel Grants
The Korea Institute offers a limited number of travel grants for summer research and/or fieldwork in Korea for graduate students. Proposals from graduate students must relate to their doctoral or masters theses. Typically, the amount of the award is limited to the cost of travel in the research project; additional support for the cost of materials and other ancillary expenses also may be sought, but only in exceptional situations does the amount of the summer research award exceed the actual cost of travel. In the case of graduate students, priority is given to doctoral candidates. Graduate degree candidates in all social sciences or humanities fields are eligible. Graduate students must have at least three years of Korean language training or equivalent proficiency. Applications are available at the GSAS Fellowships Office website at:
http://www.gsas.harvard.edu/current_students/graduate_summer_standard_application.php
Please follow the “INSTRUCTIONS TO APPLICANTS” in the GSAS Graduate Summer Standard 2010-11 Application, as well as, the Korea Institute instructions.
Application deadline: February 12, 2010 by 4:00 p.m. in room S233.
Korea Institute Dissertation Completion Fellowships
The Korea Institute at Harvard University is pleased to offer Dissertation Completion Fellowships to Harvard doctoral candidates in the final stages of dissertation writing in any field of Korean Studies in the humanities and social sciences for academic year 2010-11. Applicants must have exhausted all other sources of funding and require one more year in which to complete their research and/or thesis writing. Students applying to the Korea Institute are required to apply for funding elsewhere as well. Applications are available at the GSAS Fellowships Office website at: http://www.gsas.harvard.edu/current_students/dissertation_completion_standard_application.php. Please follow the “INSTRUCTIONS TO APPLICANTS” in the GSAS Doctoral Dissertation Completion Fellowships 2010-11 Standard Application, as well as, the Korea Institute instructions.
Application deadline: February 19, 2010 by 4:00 p.m. in room S233.
The International Communications Foundation (ICF) Graduate Student Fellowships in Korean Literature at the Korea Institute, Harvard University
The Korea Institute at Harvard University provides fellowships to support Harvard graduate students whose research focuses on translations of Korean literature. The main purpose of this initiative is to provide funding to students who are no longer eligible to receive funding from GSAS financial aid, to free the students from teaching during the fellowship period in order to focus on their work, and to foster the growth of young scholars working on Korean literature and translation. Funding is provided by the International Communications Foundation (ICF) of Seoul, Korea; the fellowship program is housed and administered by the Korea Institute at Harvard University. Proposals from Harvard doctoral students entering their third or fourth year of study are welcome to apply. Priority will be given to students most strongly committed to Korean literature translation projects, and who have some prior experience in translating Korean literature.
Application deadline: Feb 12, 2010 by 4:00 p.m. in room S233.
Reischauer Institute Supplementary/Completion Dissertation Grants for 2010-2011
Provides limited support to Harvard doctoral candidates in the dissertation RESEARCH or COMPLETION stage in any field of Japanese studies in the humanities or social sciences. (Grants up to $20,000. Students may receive a grant in each of these two categories only once.)
Deadline: FEBRUARY 19, 2010 (Fri.)
Please see the Reischauer Institute website for more details: http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~rijs/fellowships/graduate.html
Reischauer Institute Summer Research Grants for Graduate Students
Supports Harvard graduate students in the humanities or social sciences whose work is focused on Japan. In addition to doctoral candidates, continuing students in Harvard Masters programs will be considered, as will graduating Harvard Masters students who will enter a Harvard PhD program in the following year. Awards are normally for summer research travel from Harvard to Japan, and return. (Grants up to $4,000.)
Deadline: FEBRUARY 12, 2010 (Fri.)
Please see the Reischauer Institute website for more details: http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~rijs/fellowships/graduate.html
Reischauer Institute Summer Language Study Grants for Doctoral Students
Supports PhD candidates in the humanities or social sciences for language study, directly related to a doctoral dissertation in Japanese studies, which cannot be conveniently pursued during the academic year. (Grants up to $5,000.) Deadline: FEBRUARY 12, 2010 (Fri.)
Please see the Reischauer Institute website for more details: http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~rijs/fellowships/graduate.html
South Asia Initiative Graduate Study Grants
These grants are available to Harvard graduate students across all disciplines and schools of the University whose master's or doctoral theses are focused on and involve research or field work in South Asia. Grants are available only to students continuing at Harvard in the 2009-10 academic year.
There are two deadlines during each academic year. Deadlines for the current year are: Friday, November 14th, 2008, and Friday, February 27th, 2009. Grantees may use their award any time during the academic year following receipt of the SAI grant. To apply, please complete the GSAS Standard Application here. Please note that although the form uses the term 'Summer', this is the correct form to use for both the November and February grant cycles. Additionally, on page 2 of the application, please check the "Asia Center" box for the SAI grant.
Applicants should submit the application form (including budget sheet) along with a current resume/CV, current offical transcript, a statement of purpose, and two letters of recommendation. Full details of these are offered on the application's cover page. Applications must be submitted to Ian Jackson, Program Coordinator, South Asia Initiative, CGIS S427, 1730 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (sainit@fas.harvard.edu) by 12:00 noon on the deadline date. Letters of recommendation sent directly from recommenders are accepted for a week after the deadline.
South Asia Initiative Graduate Student Associate Program
The South Asia Initiative announces its Graduate Student Associates Program for the academic year 2008-2009. Harvard graduate students are invited to apply for these positions designed to support original and independent research on South Asia towards a Ph.D. or equivalent advanced professional degree. Up to eight such positions are offered for 2008-2009. SAI invites proposals in any discipline or field of South Asian studies and encourages work on all countries and regions of the subcontinent as well as the study of South Asia in larger connective contexts. GSAs are expected to participate in weekly meetings to discuss graduate students’ dissertations in progress and to attend other SAI seminars, workshops and conferences. Each GSA will receive a carrel on the 4th floor of CGIS South Building, a computer, funds for SAI letterhead and business cards, and a research stipend of up to $3,000. Doctoral degree candidates from all Harvard academic departments and professional schools are eligible to apply. Applicants from the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences should have completed their General Examinations and commenced research on their dissertation. Applicants from professional schools should be conducting a major research project related to South Asia. Applicants should submit a letter of application, curriculum vitae, a 1000-word description of the thesis or research project, current transcript of grades, and two letters of recommendation from faculty members familiar with the student’s work by May 27, 2008, to Ian Jackson, South Asia Initiative, CGIS S427, 1730 Cambridge Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (sainit@fas.harvard.edu).
Please note the information above pertains to the 2008-9 academic year; details of the 2009-10 program will be made available in early 2009, with a specific spring application deadline to follow.
Student Organization Grants
The Asia‐related centers at Harvard University offer grants to undergraduate and graduate student organizations for projects relating to individual countries or spanning multiple countries in Asia. These grants are offered on an ongoing basis; however, organizations are encouraged to apply as early as possible as funds are limited. To apply to any one or multiple centers, please use this form and submit it to Jorge Espada at jespada@fas.harvard.edu or CGIS South S118A. Please do not submit individual applications to each center. Please note that the Asia Center does not have funds for student organization grants for the 2009-2010 academic year but will still collect and distribute the common application for all of the Asia-related centers.
Funding for Asia Center grants is made possible by the following funds:
Robert M., ’41, & Ellen E. Boyd Memorial Fund; William E. Braden 1941 Travel Fund; Roger A. Brooks Japan Travel Fellowships; Richard M. Cashin Jr. Fund for Asian Studies; Linda Tao & Julian & Simon Cheng Travel and Research Fund; Carlos Cordeiro Asian Initiatives Fund; Dow Nang Fan Travel Grant; Lee Merritt Folger Research Fellowships; Victor and William Fung Fellows Fund; Elise Fay Hawtin Travel and Research Fund; Stephen A. Orlins Fund; William H. Overholt, ’68, Research Fund in Honor of Ezra Vogel; Rokubei Nakajima Undergraduate Travel & Research Fund; William Morgan Palmer Fund for East Asian Studies; Ezra F. Vogel Travel Fund; NCR Corporation Endowment for East Asian Studies; Yellow Leaf Travel & Research Fund; Harvard Asia Center Endowment Fund |
 Common Application Process
Harvard International SOS (PDF)
To view past grant recipients, click here |
