Fully-Funded Wadsworth African Fellowship Awards for African Scholars

The 2020 Fully-Funded Wadsworth African Fellowship Awards for African scholars is open for Africans to enrol. The fellowship has the objective of supporting African students who are passionate about acquiring a Ph.D. degree and further their career in a South African university capable of providing them world-class training in anthropology which will include biological anthropology and archaeology. Students applying to study at the University of Witwatersrand or the University of Cape Town will be given priority preference.

The Wadsworth African Fellowship awards is intended to help relieve the scholar of travel, living expenses, books, research expenses, insurance, tuition as well as other important expenditure while undergoing the studies at the University. The fellowship, if after successful completion of the preceding year can be renewed for two more years and also opportunity will be given for a separate application for extra year of funding to cover dissertation writing.

Fellowship Sponsor(s): Wenner-Gren Foundation

Fellowship Type: Full Fellowship

Fellowship level:  Postgraduate (Ph.D.)

Fellowship Worth: $17,500

Subject Eligibility: Anthropology, Biological Anthropology, Archaeology

Country/Candidate Eligibility: Fellowship is for African Scholars

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Fellowship Eligibility and Selection Criteria:

• The fellowship is for young scholars from the African continent who may not be capable of pursuing a doctoral studies in anthropology. Applicants must be below 35 years of age as at the time of taking up the fellowship and must be citizen and resident of an African country at the time of application for the fellowship.
• Applicants are to state the reason for choosing the Host institution. Currently, applications into the University of Cape Town and the University of Witwatersrand are given priority.
• Applicants should be aware that a Host Institution can have only two active Wadsworth African fellows. Since anthropology can be taught in a variety of departments including Social Anthropology, Archaeology, Anatomy, etc., it is expected that there will be only one active fellow per department at any time.
• Applicants may have already begun their training for the doctoral degree at a South African university but they must show why their funding circumstances have changed and why they now do not have sufficient funding to complete their degree.
• Applicants who have advanced beyond their first year of doctoral studies/training are not eligible to apply for the fellowship.
• Applicants at the time of submission of their application must have an application for doctoral admission awaiting at a South African institution that will provide training.
• Applicants must have a Host Sponsor, or supervisor, who is a member of the South African institution at which the candidate plans to pursue training. The Host Sponsor must be willing to assume responsibility for overseeing the candidate’s training. A Host Sponsor cannot sponsor more than one applicant per funding season.
• The applicant must have a Home Sponsor who is a member of the institution at which the applicant received his or her prior degree/s. The Home Sponsor must be prepared to supply a letter of reference for the applicant. In some cases, the Host Institution may be the same institution where the applicant received his or her prior degree/s. If this situation applies, the Home Sponsor should be the Head of a relevant department at the Host Institution or another member of the academic staff who is familiar with the applicant, but who will not be acting as the Host Sponsor.
• Applicants may submit only one application per funding season. They may not apply through two or more Host Institutions/Departments at the same time.
• If the Foundation receives more than one application for a single South African department, the Foundation will contact that department to have them prioritize their applicants for potential funding.
• Applicants who are only seeking support for fieldwork expenses and/or dissertation write-up need not apply. Applicants should apply to the Dissertation Fieldwork Grant program for fieldwork expenses. The Foundation only funds dissertation write-up for Wadsworth African Fellows who have received funding for training purposes from the Wenner-Gren Foundation prior to undertaking their fieldwork.
• Applicants must be able to demonstrate that they have sufficient funds in addition to the Wadsworth African Fellowship to complete their training at the Host Institution.
• Successful applicants of the Wadsworth African Fellowship must agree to comply with the Requirements and Conditions of the Wadsworth African Fellowship.

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1. 2020 OAD/DARA Big Data Fellowship Award for Researchers in Africa
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Application Procedure for the Fully-Funded Wadsworth African Fellowship Awards for African Scholars, 2020

How-to-apply

• Applicants are to adhere strictly to the procedures for completing the application as the application for the Fellowship is highly competitive.
• Applicants must ensure that they submit all application forms and other required application materials online. In the event that online submission is not possible as a result of inadequate internet access, applicant must notify the Foundation using the email ([email protected]) at least one week before the deadline to arrange for an alternative method.
• The online application portal will be open for applications two months before the deadline.
• The Foundation will consider only one application for each South African university department each year. If the Foundation receives more than one application per department, the Department Head will be asked to prioritize their candidates for the fellowship.
• Applicants are to prepare and send their applications and all supporting materials such as CVs, transcripts, etc. in English language.
• Applicants are to supply general information about the applicant, the Home Institution and Sponsor, and the Host Institution and Sponsor.
• The answers to three questions about your background and your proposed plan of study, your research interests, and your professional goals or plans. Applicants are advised to read the questions and instructions carefully as they develop their answers.
• Applicants are to give a detailed budget needed for the Fellowship
• Applicants must provide copies of official transcripts from his/her Home Institution and also provide a translation if they are not in English.
• Where applicable, the applicant must provide evidence of competency in the language of the institution in which he/she will be pursuing training
• Curriculum vitae for the applicant and Host Sponsor

Other Important Information

• Letters from Sponsors. The applicant should request letters from both the Home Sponsor and the Host Sponsor, to be sent directly to the Foundation by the application deadline.
• Applicants are to note that actual copies of travel permits, visas, and/or certificates of language competency are not required at the application stage. If an application is successful, the Foundation will expect that the necessary permits, visas, and certificates are in hand. Fellowship funds will not be awarded until the Foundation has received copies of all relevant permits, visas, and certificates.
• Applicants should not send any other material, such as additional letters of recommendation, computer disks, manuscripts, publications, photographs, or recordings to the Foundation in support of your application. This material will not be used in the review process and cannot be returned.
• Applicants are advised to read the information on US tax issues if he/she is intending to be present in the US during the fellowship period before application submission.

Official Scholarship Link

Scholarship Deadline: 15^th December, 2019