Fulbright in China

Fulbright Grants for U.S. Citizens

The Fulbright Program in China for Americans includes both Lecturers in American Studies and Researchers and Students in China Studies.  The current budget allows for up to 20 Lecturers and about 30 Researchers and Students per year.  CIES in Washington and the U.S. Embassy in Beijing in conjunction with the Chinese Ministry of Education and the China Scholarship Council (CSC) coordinate recruitment and placement of U.S. Lecturers, while the New York and Beijing Offices of IIE alongside CSC work together to attract and negotiate Chinese university affiliation for Fulbright Students.  The Educational Exchanges Office, part of the Public Affairs Section of the U.S. Embassy, strives to manage and maintain the quality of the entire Fulbright Program in China through its own staff and its contracted agencies.
 
The Fulbright Senior Specialist Program is a relatively new program that supports short-term travel for specific projects.  While the Council for Internationl Exchange of Scholars (CIES) manages this program, the U.S. Embassy in Beijing and its Consulates submit their final recommendations. 

American Studies

Traditional U.S. Scholar Program (Lecturer)
U.S. Lecturers come to China not only to teach courses, advise students, work closely with Chinese faculty, and enrich the American Studies programs of participating universities, but also to learn more about the country, its people and its culture so that they may return to the United States better able to teach others about China.  To fulfill the goals of the program, this mutual exchange must benefit both the host university and the U.S. Lecturers. 
 
A total of 18 U.S. Lecturers taught in China during academic year 2004-05 for either the full year or one academic term.  They lectured on American Constitutional Law, Marketing, Public Administration, American History and American Literature on campuses in Xi’an, Chengdu, Beijing, Guangzhou and  For award details, please visit the Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES) website.

Senior Specialists Program
The Fulbright Senior Specialists Program provides short-term grants of two to six weeks for U.S. faculty and professionals to collaborate on curriculum and faculty development, institutional planning and a variety of other activities with their host institution(s).
 
To be eligible for an award, the scholar must first apply to be included on the Fulbright Senior Specialist Program. The potential host university must then initiate an award application requesting a specialist for a particular project.  Up to 10 Senior Specialists grants to China are awarded each year.  Interested Chinese universities should contact the appropriate U.S. Embassy or Consulate for more information.  Scholars should contact CIES.

China Studies

Traditional U.S. Scholar Program (Researcher)
Up to 9 U.S. Research Scholar grants are awarded each year for research in China. They are typically from two months to an academic year.  Fields include history, political science and literature. Check out the CIES website for program details.

U.S. Student Program (Recent Graduate and Graduate Students)
The U.S. Student Fulbright Program is designed to give recent B.S./B.A. graduates, master’s and doctoral candidates, and young professionals and artists opportunities for personal development and international experience. Most grantees develop their own projects.  Projects may include university coursework, independent library or field research, classes in a music conservatory or art school, special projects in the social or life sciences, or a combination. 

In academic year 2004-05, the Fulbright Program awarded 25 Recent Graduates, 11 Graduate Students and 1 Students in the Arts with grants to study and conduct research in China.  Sample projects include “Local Government Responses to Pension Reform in China”,  “Girls’ Access to Junior Secondary Education in Rural Northern China,” and “Chinese-Western Fusion Concertos” at schools in Beijing, Shanghai, Kunming, and Shenyang.  For more information about the U.S. Student Fulbright Program, please visit the IIE website.