Fulbright-Nga Pae o te Maramatanga Graduate Award |

The Fulbright-Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga Graduate Award is for a promising New Zealand graduate student to undertake postgraduate study or research at a US institution in the field of indigenous development. One award valued at up to US$33,000 is granted each year, towards one year of study or research in the US.

CLOSING DATE: 1 AUGUST ANNUALLY

This award is offered in partnership with Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga, the Indigenous Centre of Research Excellence funded by the Tertiary Education Commission (TEC) and hosted by the University of Auckland.

The award is available for study or research which fits within one of Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga’s research themes.


You may only apply for one award, and should apply for the award most relevant to your proposed field of study. Your application may, at the discretion of Fulbright New Zealand, also be considered for another of our graduate awards providing you meet the criteria of that award.

Eligibility

To be eligible, you must:

have completed the equivalent of four years full-time study at tertiary level and obtained a bachelor’s degree by the time you take up your award, but not yet hold a doctoral degree;
plan to undertake full-time postgraduate study or research which fits within one of Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga’s research themes at a US institution for a period of at least six months; and
meet the citizenship requirements for this award.

Citizenship requirements

You are eligible to apply for this award if you:

are a New Zealand citizen;
and are not a permanent resident or citizen of the US;
and are not currently living in the US.

Preference for Fulbright graduate awards is given to candidates who have not previously received a Fulbright graduate award, or had extensive recent experience in the US (ie. have not studied, taught, researched or worked in the US for a period aggregating more than nine months/one academic year during the past five years).

Preference for this award will be given to candidates who show promise in making further contributions in New Zealand in accordance with Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga’s vision and mission.

Candidates who wish to pursue studies as medical students are not eligible. Candidates with medical degrees may receive awards for advanced academic study, but not for internships or residencies. Awards shall not authorize activity for which a license to practice medicine or nursing is required.

Entitlement

Return airfare to the US;
A one-off payment of US$25,000 towards the cost of your study or research. The award will be reduced to US$15,000 if the recipient takes up a study or research programme of less than nine months duration;
Access to the Institute of International Education (IIE)’s University Placement Services to assist you with identifying the most suitable US university and academic programme, your application and applying for financial support; and IIE’s ongoing support whilst you are in the US;
Participation in a pre-departure orientation run by Fulbright New Zealand before your departure to the US, and enrichment seminars run by IIE throughout your stay in the US;
A basic health benefit plan covering a maximum of US$100,000 per sickness or injury.

The value of the Fulbright award is unlikely to fully fund your entire course of study. For this reason, you should investigate additional funding from any US institutions you plan on applying to and other scholarships and private sources while you await the outcome of your Fulbright application. Fulbright students can often source additional funding through the US institution they attend. We have also compiled a spreadsheet of complementary scholarships available in New Zealand which may be held concurrently to a Fulbright award, and encourage you to investigate these sources of additional funding.

Award conditions

Your award must be approved by the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board in Washington, DC;
Your award is conditional on acceptance into an approved institution and course of study or research;
The period of your award is one academic year (usually eight to ten months, not to exceed 12 months). Grantees may, on an exceptional basis, receive an award for a shorter period of not less than six months;
Your award must be taken up in the American academic year following official confirmation of the award, and no earlier than July of that year;
You will be required to undertake a full medical examination before applying for your visa;
You must travel on a New Zealand passport, and US immigration documentation must be completed from within New Zealand. Grantees must use the DS-2019 form provided by Fulbright New Zealand to obtain an Exchange Visitor (J) non-immigrant visa to enter the United States. You will be required to attend a visa interview at the US Consulate in Auckland in order to obtain your visa;
International travel will only be funded between New Zealand and the US, and must be on either an American or New Zealand carrier;
You may apply for an additional period of practical experience/academic training in the US for up to 18 months upon completion of your degree (conditions apply);
You may be required to fulfil some Fulbright New Zealand/Ngā Pae o te Māramatanga media requirements before your departure for the US, during your exchange and/or on return to New Zealand, and to give presentations to suitable fora of indigenous scholars and/or community groups;
You must provide Fulbright New Zealand with copies of any articles, research papers or theses resulting from your award. A final report must also be completed before you depart from the US;
Fulbright grantees must travel to the US on an Exchange Visitor (J) non-immigrant visa. A requirement of this visa is that you must return to your home country for a cumulative total of two years at the end of your exchange visitor programme before becoming eligible to apply to live in the US. This home-country foreign residency requirement is in keeping with the philosophy of the Fulbright exchange programme, that you return to New Zealand to share your experiences. Note that you will not be prohibited from travelling to the US for short-term visits on the visa waiver program or a non-immigrant visa.

Fulbright orientation

It was Senator J William Fulbright’s mission to build peace through the mutual understanding of cultures. Fulbright applicants and grantees are expected to understand and support this mission and be effective ambassadors for New Zealand. In addition to the monetary, educational and cultural exchange benefits made possible by the award, Fulbright grantees carry the prestige of the Fulbright programme along with them throughout their careers. Alumni are expected to succeed and be ‘thought leaders’ in their respective fields/careers, and to support and remain engaged with the Fulbright programme for the rest of their lives. To support their understanding of the Fulbright mission, New Zealand grantees are required to attend a pre-departure orientation programme held each June in Wellington.

Application process and forms

You must complete and submit an online application by the application deadline*;
You must also submit all required support documents to us by the application deadline;
Interviews will be held in Wellington on 27 & 28 September 2013. Fulbright New Zealand will pay the costs of travel to Wellington only for applicants residing in New Zealand. Applicants outside New Zealand who are unable to attend an interview in person may be disadvantaged;
We will advise you of the outcome of your application in early October.

* Note that if the application deadline falls on a weekend or public holiday, the deadline is extended to 5:00pm on the next business day.

You should begin researching US institutions as soon as possible while awaiting the outcome of your application, bearing in mind that the closing date for applications to many institutions will fall in December. You should also plan to sit GMAT or GRE tests as required by the institutions you intend applying to. Ideally you should sit the tests in time to include results with your applications (note that for paper-based GRE tests this means sitting the tests by October at latest).

Application form

Applicants must complete the official online application for the Foreign Fulbright Program, which requires support documents to be uploaded and the names and email addresses of three references to be registered. You must apply to the Fulbright Foreign Student Program, not the International Fulbright Science and Technology PhD Program.

Please download and refer to the instructions document within the online application, and refer to it as you complete your application for detailed guidance about what is and isn’t required from individual New Zealand applicants.