2025-2026 Fulbright-Kalam Climate Fellowships for Doctoral Research

The fellowships provide J-1 visa support, a monthly stipend, an Accident and Sickness Program for Exchanges per U.S. Government guidelines, round-trip economy class air travel, applicable allowances and modest affiliation fees, if any. No allowances are provided for dependents. There needs to be more than a grant to support family members.

The Fulbright-Kalam Climate Fellowships are designed to build long-term capacity to address climate change-related issues in India and the U.S. for Indian scholars registered for a Ph.D. at an Indian institution. These fellowships last for six to nine months.

Fulbright-Kalam Climate Fellowship fields include, but are not limited to clean energy technologies and energy transition; climate and health; climate finance; climate justice and equity; climate resilience, mitigation, and adaptation; climate-smart agriculture; climatology; critical and emerging technology (including applied AI for climate/agriculture, harnessing high-performance computing/quantum computing for climate mitigation, and biotech); critical minerals supply chains; disaster resilience; green mobility, green buildings and construction; oceanography; renewable energy; and sustainability.

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The selected candidate must be affiliated with one U.S. host institution. USIEF strongly recommends all applicants identify institutions with which they wish to be affiliated and to correspond, in advance, with potential host institutions. If the applicant has secured a letter of invitation from a U.S. institution, it should be included in the online application. The invitation letter should indicate the duration of the visit, preferably with dates. Selected scholars will have opportunities to audit non-degree courses, conduct research and gain practical work experience in suitable settings in the United States.

The fellowships provide J-1 visa support, a monthly stipend, an Accident and Sickness Program for Exchanges per U.S. Government guidelines, round-trip economy class air travel, applicable allowances and modest affiliation fees, if any. No allowances are provided for dependents. There needs to be more than a grant to support family members.

Eligibility Requirements:

In addition to general prerequisites (check updated guidelines on the website), the applicant should have done reasonable study on their research objectives, especially in identifying resources in India and the United States. Applicants must be registered for a Ph.D. at an Indian institution on or before November 1, 2023. On the online application form, one of the recommendations should be from the Ph.D. supervisor, which comments on the applicant’s research and need for the fellowship and must indicate the Ph.D. registration date and topic.

This grant is intended for Ph.D. students to conduct research essential to their dissertations/thesis. Therefore, the expected Ph.D. thesis submission date should be three months after the Fulbright-Kalam grant end date. For example, if May 2026 is the grant end date, the applicant can only submit their thesis after August 2026. The PhD registration date and the expected PhD thesis submission date should be noted in the Applicant Annexure.

If the applicant is employed, they must follow the instructions carefully regarding the employer’s endorsement. If applicable, the applicant must obtain the endorsement from the appropriate administrative authority on the “Employer’s Endorsement Form”. The employer must indicate that leave will be granted for the fellowship period.

The applicant must also upload a copy of the original published/presented paper or extracts from the Master’s/M.Phil.’s thesis in the online application form (not to exceed 20 pages). It should be noted that these fellowships are for pre-doctoral level research.

Applicants with Ph.D. degrees or those at the final stage of Ph.D. thesis submission will not be considered.

To apply, applications must be submitted online at: https://apply.iie.org/ffsp2025. Application instructions should be reviewed carefully before starting your online application. The Application Checklist should also be checked carefully before the application is submitted. Finally, you must also complete the FK-DR Applicant Annexure and the Employer’s Endorsement Form (if applicable), and upload them as part of your application form..

The deadline to submit your application is July 15, 2024, 23:59:59 (IST). For any queries, please contact: ffsp@usief.org.in