The National Science Foundations East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes Program

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The National Science Foundations East Asia and
Pacific Summer Institutes Program
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What is the National Science Foundation?

• Independent federal agency created in 1950 to
  promote scientific discovery, advance national
  welfare, and secure national defense
• Manages over 6 billion annual budget for basic
  research, financial support for students , and
  science education
• Annually awards about 10,000 research grants
• Career-long presence in most researchers work

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NSF Supports Graduate Summer Research in East
Asia-Pacific Region

• Spend 8 weeks (June-August) surrounded by
  research and culture in Australia, China, Japan
  (10 weeks), Korea, New Zealand, Singapore, or
  Taiwan through the EAPSI program.
• 190 student awardees in 2008, with overall 35
  applicant success rate

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EAPSI Foreign Co-Sponsoring Organizations

• Australian Academy of Science
• Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology
• Chinese Academy of Sciences
• National Natural Science Foundation of China
• Japan Society for the Promotion of Science
• Korea Science and Engineering Foundation
• Royal Society of New Zealand
• National Research Foundation of Singapore
• National Science Council of Taiwan

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Award Highlights

• 8-10 week program at foreign host institute, with
  an introduction to their language and
  cultureNSF Contributions
• Pre-departure orientation in Washington, D.C.
  area in April
• 5,000 summer stipend
• Roundtrip air ticket to location
• Foreign Co-Sponsors Contributions
• In-Country Opening and Closing Activities
• In-Country Culture Orientation
• In-country living expense (Housing, Food,
  Professional travel. Etc)

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EAPSI Program Goals

• Introduce students to research in science and
  engineering in the East Asia-Pacific region
• Help foster student-initiated personal
  relationships that facilitate future
  international collaborations

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More Benefits

• Network with awardees at and after pre-departure
  orientation
• Get new ideas for your research
• Access to cutting-edge facilities and regional
  expertise
• Mentoring by top researchers in the East Asia and
  Pacific region
• Site and professional visits at host location
• And more!

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Eligibility

• U.S. citizen or permanent resident
• Enrolled in a research-oriented master's or
  Ph.D. degree program (including joint degree
  programs)
• Enrolled at a U.S. institution in the United
  States
• Field of study in science and engineering
  research and education supported by the NSF
• Previous EAPSI awardees may apply, but only to
  a new host location

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EAPSI-Supported Fields

• Biological Sciences
• Computer and Information Science Engineering
• Education (Science, Mathematics, Engineering,
  Technology)
• Engineering
• Geosciences
• Mathematical Physical Sciences
• Social, Behavioral, Economic Sciences
• Multidisciplinary Research
• Joint science-professional degree programs
  (MD/PhD and JD/PhD) however, research must be
  carried out for non-professional degree

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Application Materials
All submitted electronically through FastLane

• 1) Cover Sheet
• 2) Application Form
• Indicate your preferred host location (limited to
  one only)
• Identify foreign host institution (s) and foreign
  host researcher (s)
• 3) Two Letters of Recommendation
• One from current research advisor, academic
  advisor or department chair 
• No references from proposed foreign host
  researchers
• Recommendation-letter writers submit letters
  using FastLane

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Application Materials

• 4) Undergraduate and Graduate Transcripts
• Unofficial copies acceptable to upload
• 5) Current Graduate Enrollment Statement
• From advisor, registrar's office, dean, or
  department chair (e-mail statements acceptable to
  upload)
• 6) Demonstrate that applicant has initiated
  contact with potential hosts (e-mails accepted)
• 7) Biographical Sketch
• Two or less single-spaced pages
• Include academic and professional background,
  research experience, international experience,
  list of publications, etc.

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Application Materials

• 8) Project Description
• Up to 5 single-spaced pages with 1 in margins
• Intellectual Merit and Broader Impacts of
  proposed research and of participation in Summer
  Institute
• Specific expertise of proposed host researcher
  and capability of the host institution
• Value to research career in gaining cultural and
  scientific experience
• Qualification to conduct research in
  international setting
• Proposed research achievable within 6-7 week time
  frame Japan 8-9 week time frame

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Biographical Sketch Project Description
Understand impact and importance of experiences
and proposed research on the real world
Discuss ideas with experts, mentors, family and
peers
Construct materials give to experts, mentors,
family and peers to review
Address review criteria pertaining to experience
and proposed research
Polish to create final draft
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NSF Intellectual Merit Review Criterion
NSF Definition How important is the proposed
activity to advancing knowledge and understanding
within its own field or across different fields?
How well qualified is the proposer (individual or
team) to conduct the project? (If appropriate,
the reviewer will comment on the quality of the
prior work.) To what extent does the proposed
activity suggest and explore creative and
original concepts? How well conceived and
organized is the proposed activity? Is there
sufficient access to resources?
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NSF Broader Impacts Review Criterion
NSF Definition How well does the activity
advance discovery and understanding while
promoting teaching, training, and learning? How
well does the proposed activity broaden the
participation of underrepresented groups (e.g.,
gender, ethnicity, disability, geographic, etc.)?
To what extent will it enhance the infrastructure
for research and education, such as facilities,
instrumentation, networks, and partnerships? Will
the results be disseminated broadly to enhance
scientific and technological understanding? What
may be the benefits of the proposed activity to
society?
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Additional Review Criteria Specific for EAPSI
Program

• EAPSI Program Definition (1) Qualification of
  applicant, including potential for continued
  growth and the probable effect of participation
  in the Summer Institute on the applicants
  career (2) resources and capabilities of the
  proposed host institution(s) and researcher(s),
  and/or the current stature of research in the
  students field of interest in the chosen
  location (3) merit, complementarities, and
  expected mutual benefits of the proposed
  international collaboration

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Review Process

• Applications evaluated by field-specific panels

• - Application should be strong to both
  disciplinary expert and scientifically literate
  lay reader outside your field

• Panelists complete rating sheet

• NSF requests panelists to provide constructive
  comments regarding review criteria
• Evaluated by at least 3 panelists

• NSF recommends individuals to foreign
  co-sponsoring organizations based on panel input
• - Final selection of participants is dependent
  on mutual agreement between NSF and the
  counterpart foreign agencies

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Important Points

• Start the process early
• Read the solicitation thoroughly
  www.nsf.gov/eapsi
• Address review criteria in application materials
• Be clear, concise, confident, and truthful
• Follow up with reference writers
• Check for speling an grammatical errors
• Verify materials upload correctly AND are in
  appropriate place
• Press Submit button
• Ensure application completely received

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Approximate Program Cycle

• Now - Develop research plans, explore potential
  host sites and researchers
• December - Application deadline
• January - NSF review panels
• February - NSF nomination of candidates to
  counterpart organizations and notification of
  tentative acceptance to students
• March/April2-day orientation in Arlington,VA
• May - Official NSF awards
• June to August - Summer programs occur

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Additional Information
Questions about Application Process Telephone
866.501.2922 Email eapsi_at_asee.org A copy of
this presentation can be found at
http//www.nsfsi.org/

• NSF East Asia and Pacific Summer Institutes
• Program Solicitation, Online Application and
  Deadlines
• http//www.nsf.gov/eapsi

• Helpdesk-Related Questions
• http//www.nsfsi.org