News Details

FULBRIGHT POSTDOCTORAL PROGRAM
Scholarship Application: OPEN
Application Deadline: 22 Sep 2021
Duration: One academic year
Category: Postdoctoral Research


OVERVIEW

• The Fulbright Postdoctoral Program is designed for young scholars who would like to conduct research in their academic field in the USA. Scholars will be granted a research scholarship by the Turkish Fulbright Commission for the 2022-2023 academic year.
• The aim of the Fulbright Postdoctoral Program is to enable young scholars to conduct research in the USA, taking advantage of the expertise of senior faculty members in their own fields, and to promote scientific interaction between the two countries.
• This program covers scholars’ living expenses during the grant period, professional allowance, health insurance (Accident and Sickness Benefit Program for Exchanges) and a round-trip plane ticket.
• Scholars selected for this grant are required to begin and complete their research in the USA following the year they apply for this Program. It is mandatory that the research is done in the academic year stated and it should start in the Fall of 2022. The Grant cannot be postponed from one academic year to the next. Grant period is one academic year only (approximately 9 months).
• The grant is non-refundable. However, copies of published work that is produced from research conducted in the USA through this Program should be provided to the Turkish Fulbright Commission. It should be specified that work has been completed within the scope of the Fulbright Postdoctoral Program.
• Grants do not require mandatory service, however, after completion of the program in the USA, grantees are required to return to Turkey pursuant to the U.S.A J-1 visa (International Exchange Visitor) rule.

 
Academic Honesty
 
Applicants must demonstrate maturity, dependability, integrity, and professionalism. Plagiarism at any time during the application or grant period is grounds for selection withdrawal or grant termination.


APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

• Turkish Republic citizenship is required. Those who hold United States citizenship / Green Card or whose Green Card status has been officially granted and has started the approval process cannot apply.
• At the time of application for the program, candidates must have completed their PhD dissertation defense and be able to document it.
• Candidates must be holders of a PhD degree for five years at the most at the time of application (For those who have received their PhD degree prior to the last 5 years may apply to the Fulbright Visiting Scholar Program).
• A good command of the English language is required in order to be able to conduct research at the US universities and research centers and to attend cultural events. Please refer to the application criteria under "How Can I Apply?" tab.
• This program requires young scholars to design and propose a research project which has been launched in Turkey. The project must have potential to contribute to the academic world in Turkey and research materials, resources or primary sources needed to complete the research project should only be available in the USA.
• Candidates who currently reside in the USA or are planning to reside in the USA right after the application process ends and/or scholars who currently work in the USA cannot apply for this program.
• Applications of those who have resided in the United States for one academic year (9 months) or more in the last five years for education, research, or work will not be prioritized.
• Those who have resided in the United States for five or more consecutive years in the six-year period preceding the date of application are not eligible to apply (who has lived in the United States for nine months or more during a calendar year is deemed to have resided in the United States for that year).
• Nominees of Medical Sciences, Dentistry, Veterinary Medicine and Psychology, who are studying in the clinical sub-fields which require direct contact with patients are not eligible to apply. Other sub-fields of these fields are accepted for application.
• Medical Doctors can apply within five years after the completion of their specialization in order to be eligible for the program.

HOW CAN I APPLY?

Application Deadline: For the 2022-2023 academic year Postdoctoral Program, applicants are required to prepare an “Application Package” and mail or bring it to the Turkish Fulbright Commission’s Ankara Head Office.
 
Hand-delivered Packages: The Application Package must be delivered by 17:00 on Wednesday, September 22, 2021 at the latest to our Commission’s Ankara Head Office.
Mail-delivered Packages: The Application Package must be shipped on September 22, 2021 and received by our Commission’s Ankara Head Office by Friday, September 24, 2021, at the latest. 
 
We recommend you to use a private courier to ship your application package. Application packages that are received after September 24, 2021 will not be evaluated.
 
All the necessary documents must be sent all together in your application package. Documents sent after the deadline to be included in your application package will not be accepted.
 
Documents that must be included in the application package are listed below:
 
Initially, you need to create an account on the online Slate system and fill out the application form.
 
1. Application Form: The application form for the Postdoctoral Program is completed using an online system. This online system can be reached via the “Apply” button at the top of this page. Applicants are required to click on “Create an Account” and register by using an e-mail address and creating a password. It is recommended to use a universal e-mail address (gmail, hotmail, yahoo, etc.) instead of an institutional/university e-mail address. Applicants may then log into their account and update information at different times. After submitting this application using the online system, a printout of the application must be added to the application package.
 
IMPORTANT: For the “Program” please select “Fulbright Visiting Scholar Program”; for the category of the grant on the "Country Information" page please select “Postdoctoral Program”.
 
2. Project Statement (Research Proposal): Applicants must explain their research proposals in detail in English, including what has been accomplished so far regarding the proposed research, the previous and upcoming steps needed to complete the research, as well as how they plan to conduct the ongoing research in the USA.
A brief summary of the research project must also be typed in the “Project Proposal” section of the Application Form. The category of grant on the “Project Proposal” section must be selected as "Teaching/Research". 
The research proposal must be maximum five pages long and must not exceed 3,500 words.
 
3. Resume/CV in English: Applicants should include their academic publications (if available) on their resumes.
 
4. Letter of Invitation: A Letter of Invitation is required from the host university, where research will be conducted. This document is not required at the time of application; however, it will be required after the selection process.
Please list all institutions that you have contacted or are planning to contact on your application form. You may also submit letters if you have already been invited by a US institution.
 
5. Bibliography: Please add a list of resources you used when preparing your research proposal.
 
6. Diploma: Applicants should provide a certified copy of their doctorate diplomas or an official document stating that the dissertation defense has been conducted successfully.
 
7. PhD Dissertation: A copy of your PhD dissertation must be present in the application package.
 
8. TOEFL or IELTS scores: Fluency in English is mandatory and should be demonstrated by a score of no less than 75 on the Internet Based TOEFL or a 6 overall score on the IELTS Academic. TOEFL iBT's Special Home Edition is also acceptable and the minimum score for the Home Edition format is 75, same as the TOEFL iBT test format taken at test centers. 
You need to attach an original or official certified copy of your test result to your application package. Photocopy results are not accepted.
 
If you are newly registering to TOEFL or IELTS exams, you may:

• Use our institution code B126 for the TOEFL iBT,
• Or select our Commission from the list of “IELTS Recognising Organizations” for the IELTS examination,

to direct your official test result to our Commission.
 
If you send your score using our institution details, instead of sending a hardcopy result, please include an explanation in your application package. Those who apply to the program must take either TOEFL or IELTS before September 22, 2021.
For tests already taken, the test results must be valid until the application deadline (the TOEFL and IELTS exams are valid for 2 years).
You may e-mail a scanned copy of your test result to our Commission at advising@fulbright.org.tr to have us check the validity of your document and get is attested.
 
English proficiency test results are not required for applicants, who have completed their doctoral studies in the USA, Australia, UK, Ireland, Canada, or New Zealand, or who are faculty member at a university of department with English as the language of instruction. Please attach a petition and an official document to your application package indicating your status.
 
9. National Identity Card: Photocopy of the national identity card (front and back) is required.
 
10. Reference Letters: Applicants should provide three reference letters in English. One of the letters must be from the chair of your defense committee. These letters can be presented in two ways:

• Electronic Reference Letter: Those who are asked to write an applicant reference letters can send the letter by filling in the reference letter form online via Slate application system. If the reference provider’s email address is registered into the system when the initial application form is completed, an Electronic Reference Letter form will be automatically sent to the indicated individual’s e-mail. It is recommended to use a universal e-mail address (gmail, hotmail, yahoo extension) instead of the institutional/university e-mail address of the referee.
• Hand-delivered Reference Letter: The applicant may obtain the reference letter personally and send it with the application documents. Please download the reference letter form and utilize the format for the letter. Reference letters must be sealed and signed by the individual who has written the reference across the envelope’s seal.

Any other format besides the designated two formats cannot be used for this grant application. Applications missing reference letters will not be evaluated. All reference letters must be written in English.
 
11. Photograph: One current photograph with the applicant’s name written on the back of the photograph must be provided.
 
Below is a list of documents which can also be found on the Slate online application system. These documents are not required at the time of application, but will be required after the selection process:

• Financial Support/Budget
• Passport
• Letter of Support From Home Institution

 
IMPORTANT: Documents delivered to the Turkish Fulbright Commission for application will not be returned under any circumstances.



POST APPLICATION PROCESS

• The evaluation process of the applications will be carried out between October and December 2021.
• Applications to be invited for interviews will be determined after the evaluation of the application documents.
• Feedback on the application status of each applicant will be made by e-mail at the end of the evaluation process.
• A meeting will be organized for selected nominees, where details of the candidacy process will be shared. Participation to this meeting will be mandatory.