Deadline: 30-Nov-22
The U.S. Embassy in Bangkok is inviting applications for the summer 2023 Study of the U.S. Institutes for Scholars. The program will take place over the course of five-to-six weeks beginning in June 2023.
Study of the U.S. Institutes for Scholars (SUSIs) are intensive post-graduate level academic programs that provide foreign university faculty and other scholars the opportunity to deepen their understanding of U.S. society, culture, values, and institutions. The program goal is to strengthen curricula and to enhance the quality of teaching about the United States in academic institutions abroad.
Study of the U.S. Institutes for Scholars will take place at various colleges, universities, and academic institutions throughout the United States over the course of five-to-six weeks beginning in or after June 2023. Each Institute includes a four-week academic residency component and, if possible, up to two weeks of an integrated study tour to another region of the United States.
Institute Themes
- The Institute on American Politics and Political Thought will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced and highly motivated foreign university faculty and practitioners insight into how intellectual and political movements have influenced American political institutions and American democracy. The Institute will explore the shaping of American identity and the chemistry between that identity and U.S. history, politics, and the democratic process.
- The Institute on Contemporary American Literature will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced and highly motivated foreign university faculty and practitioners with a deeper understanding of U.S. society and culture, past and present, through an examination of contemporary American literature. The Institute will examine how major contemporary writers, schools, and movements reflect the U.S.
- The Institute on Journalism and Media will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced and highly motivated foreign journalism instructors and other related specialists with a deeper understanding of the roles that journalism and the media play in U.S. society.
- The Institute will examine the role of journalists in recognizing and preventing disinformation and will explore strategies for media and information literacy to counter disinformation. Additionally, the Institute will examine best practices in journalism by discussing the rights and responsibilities of the media in a democratic society, including editorial independence, journalistic ethics, legal constraints, and international journalism.
- The Institute on U.S. Culture, Identity, and Society will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced and highly motivated foreign university faculty and other specialists with a deeper understanding of U.S. society, culture, values, and institutions through the lens of diversity and national unity. The Institute will examine the ethnic, racial, social, economic, political, and religious contexts in which various cultures have manifested in U.S. society while focusing on the ways in which these cultures have influenced social movements and American identity throughout U.S. history.
- The Institute on U.S. Economics and Sustainable Development will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced foreign university faculty, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers with a deeper understanding of key components and structures of the U.S.
- The Institute on U.S. Foreign Policy will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced and highly motivated foreign university faculty and practitioners with a deeper understanding of new approaches to U.S. foreign policy and how U.S. foreign policy is formulated and implemented.
Program Funding
Through an award given to the University of Montana (UM), the Department of State will cover all participant costs, including program administration; travel allowances, domestic travel and ground transportation; book, cultural, mailing and incidental allowances; and housing and subsistence, as well as arrange and pay for participants’ international and visa travel costs and travel allowances within set limits. If the program is conducted virtually, we will work with UM to provide a technology stipend to all participants.
Eligibility Criteria
- Study of the U.S. Institutes for Scholars are highly competitive. Priority will be given to candidates who have firm plans to enhance, update, or develop courses and/or educational materials with U.S. studies focus or component; who have no prior or limited experience in the United States; and who have special interest in the program subject areas as demonstrated through past scholarship, accomplishments, and professional duties.
- Candidates should be mid-career, typically between the ages of 30-50, highly motivated, experienced scholars and professionals generally from institutions of higher education or research-focused organizations (not-for-profits, think tanks, etc.). While the educational level of participants will likely vary, most should have graduate degrees and have substantial knowledge of the thematic area of the Institute or a related field.
- Ideal candidates are individuals whose home institution is seeking to introduce aspects of U.S. studies into its curricula, to develop new courses in the subject of the Institute, to enhance and update existing courses on the United States, or to offer specialized seminars/workshops for professionals in U.S. studies areas related to the program theme. While the nominee’s scholarly and professional credentials are an important consideration, the potential impact and multiplier effect from their participation in the Institute is equally important. Ideal candidates will have little or no prior experience living in or visiting the United States.
- U.S. citizens and permanent residents (green card holders) are not eligible for these programs.
For more information, visit https://th.usembassy.gov/announcement-2023-susi-scholars/