PrintPeace Scholar Application Information
Application Process
Photo Caption: Current Peace Scholar, Yelena Biberman, at a seminar on “Understanding Pakistan” with Indian and Pakistani scholars and government officials in Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi.
Thank you for your interest in the Jennings Randolph (JR) Peace Scholarship Dissertation Program! The United States Institute of Peace is dedicated to supporting advanced research from top academics in a variety of fields that contribute to a wider understanding of international peace and security.
Each year the program awards approximately ten Peace Scholar Fellowships. Fellowships last for 10 months, starting in September. Fellowships are open to citizens of any country. Dissertation projects in all disciplines are welcome.
The 2013 – 2014 Peace Scholar Competition is now CLOSED. The new application for the 2014-2015 will be open by late spring, 2013.
If you are considering applying to the program next year, please read more about the application process below and also be sure to explore the components of the fellowship application.
Eligibility Requirements and Competition Process:
- Eligible Candidates
- Selection Process
- Selection Criteria
- Terms of Award
- Components of a Successful Proposal
- Letters of Reference
The JR Program for International Peace awards Peace Scholar Dissertation Fellowships to students enrolled in U.S. universities who are researching and writing doctoral dissertations on topics related to peace, conflict and international security. Proposals from all disciplines are welcome.
Proposals should be consistent with the Institute's mandate and present a research agenda with clear relevance to policy issues. Historical topics are appropriate if they promise to shed light on contemporary issues. Area studies projects and single case studies will be competitive if they focus on conflict and its resolution, apply to other regions and cases, or both.
Peace Scholar awards may not be made for projects that constitute policymaking for a government agency or private organization, focus to any substantial degree on conflicts within U.S. domestic society, or adopt a partisan, advocacy, or activist stance.
Citizens of any country may apply. Applicants must be enrolled in recognized doctoral programs (for example, Ph.D., S.J.D., Ed.D., Th.D.) in accredited universities in the United States. Successful candidates must have completed all course work and examinations towards their doctoral degrees by the time their fellowships begin.
Peace Scholar applications are vetted through a rigorous, multi-stage review that includes consideration by independent experts and professional staff at the Institute. The final authority for decisions about Peace Scholar awards rests with the Institute's Board of Directors.
Selection of fellowship candidates is based on the following factors:
- Project Significance. Does the project address an important topic of relevance to the USIP mandate and the field of international peace, conflict, and security studies?
- Project Design. Is the project soundly conceived? Does it identify a key problem to be analyzed, and does it have a clear methodology?
- Potential as a Peace Scholar. What is the applicant's record of achievement and/or leadership potential? What is the applicant's capacity to benefit from and make professional use of the fellowship experience in subsequent years?
Peace Scholar Awards are currently set at $20,000 for 10 months and are paid directly to the individual. Peace Scholar awards may not be deferred. They generally may not be combined with any other major award or fellowship except in special circumstances and with the written approval of the Institute.
Peace Scholars carry out their fellowship work at their universities or other sites appropriate to their research. They are expected to devote full attention to their work and provide periodic reports to the Institute. Peace Scholars may be invited to give a presentation at the Institute and to participate in Institute workshops, conferences, and other activities.
5. Components of a Successful Proposal
There is no single formula for preparing a sound proposal. However, many successful applications for USIP Jennings Randolph Senior Fellowships have certain elements in common. These elements are outlined in the document attached below.
Peace Scholar applicants must submit three reference letters with the online application. In the Reference Letters section, you will list the names and emails of your three referees, and as soon as you submit your application the system will generate automatic emails to them with links they open to upload their letters to your application. Letters are accepted up to one week after the application deadline. However, because it is possible that these notifications will be sent to spam filters, please contact your referees to confirm that they have received the emails. If a referee did not receive the email and is unable to submit electronically, he or she must email the letter as a PDF attachment with the applicant's name in the subject line to Elizabeth Cole, the Senior Program Officer for the Jennings Randolph Fellowships Program, at: ecole@usip.org
If you have additional questions or would like further information about the fellowship program, please contact the JR Program at: jrprogram@usip.org