I. Introduction

“The Belt and Road” Master Fellowship Programme is launched in connection with the International Outreach Initiative of Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).   

It provides opportunities for the students/scholars from the countries along the Silk Road Economic Belt and the 21st-Century Maritime Silk Road (the Belt and Road) to pursue Master degrees at the University of Science and Technology of China (USTC) up to 3 years (up to 30 young scientific talents annually).

II. Courses and Programmes

For USTC, please refer to the English-instructed Master’s Degree Programs List for International Students and the Master’s Programs in Chinese for International Students.

III. Funding Range and Duration

Stipend range:

1. Tuition fee exemption by USTC;

2. Monthly stipend to cover accommodation, local transportation expenses, health insurance, and other basic living expenses (Reference: RMB 4000 per month).

Fellowship Duration:

The funding duration of the fellowship is up to 3 years (36 months), divided into:

•    Maximum 1 year study of courses and participation in centralized training at USTC, including 4 months compulsory courses in Chinese Language and Chinese Culture;

•    Practical research and completion of degree dissertations at colleges and schools of USTC. 

IV. General conditions for applicants

1. Citizens from the Belt and Road countries other than China;

2. Be maximum age of 30 on 31 December 2019

3. Hold a baccalaureate degree or equivalent educational degree;

4. Get approval for application from a host supervisor in CAS and the institute/school that the supervisor is affiliated with;

5. English or Chinese language proficiency. Applicants whose native language is not English should provide unexpired TOEFL or IELTS scores. TOEFL scores should be 90 or higher, and IELTS scores should be 6.5 or higher. Applicants are not required to submit a TOEFL or IELTS score only if their:

a) Native language is English, or

b) Major undergraduate courses are conducted in English/Chinese, which should be stated in transcripts, or

c) HSK test has passed level 3 or level 4

6. Have not accepted any other sponsorship at the time of application and should not accept any other sponsorship during the funding period of this fellowship.

V. Application Procedure

In order to successfully apply for the CAS “The Belt and Road” Master Fellowship, applicants are requested to follow a few key steps that are indicated below:

1. CHECK ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:

You should verify that you are eligible and meet ALL the eligibility criteria specified in the “General conditions for applicants” section of this call (e.g. age, master degree, etc).

2. FIND AN ELIGIBLE HOST SUPERVISOR AFFILIATED WITH COLLEGES AND SCHOOLS OF UCAS/USTC, OR CAS INSTITUTES THAT AGREES TO ACCEPT YOU.

See here for a list of eligible schools/institutes and supervisors of USTC.

You are highly suggested to contact an eligible supervisor and get his/her approval before applying for the Fellowship. Please send him/her an explanatory e-mail together with your CV, research proposal and any other required documents when establishing the contact with the supervisor.

After successfully get a host supervisor, please send him/her the Supervisor’s Comment Page and request him/her to send scanned form to you, and you need to submit the scanned copy in the online application system.

If you fail to find a supervisor for accepting you by yourself, please first complete your online application (Step 3) and USTC will help to send your file to professors in relating fields (only if your online application for Step 3 is complete).

3. SUBMIT YOUR ADMISSION APPLICATION VIA THE ONLINE SYSTEM OF USTC:

•    For admission application to USTC, you MUST also submit your information and required documents via USTC online system following its instruction.

4. SUBMIT ORIGINAL APPLICATION DOCUMENTS

After applying online, applicants must submit to Office of International Cooperation of USTC by post mail or in person (application materials submitted by email will not be accepted). Application materials arriving after April 10, 2019 will not be accepted.

Application materials

a.  Application form Application Form for CAS The Belt and Road Master Fellowship.

b.  Photocopy of passport (ordinary passport with validity of at least 1 year).

c.  A study or research proposal (no less than 800 words).

d.  CV.

e.  Two letters of recommendation from full professors or associate professors (with phone number and email address).

f.  Photocopy of Foreigner Physical Examination Form(Right click to download).

g.  Chinese or English language certificate (the photocopy of valid HSK, IELTS or TOFEL result or other proof of their English proficiency (except those whose mother tongue is English).

h.  Photocopy of degree certificate and academic transcript for both Bachelor’s Degree and Master’s Degree (if have) notarized by Ministry of Education or equivalent authority in your country.

l  If applicants are university students, they must provide official documents showing their status as university students and stating clearly when they will obtain the degree certificate;

l  If applicants already graduated but have not yet obtained the degree certificate, they must provide official documents explaining the reasons and stating clearly when they will obtain the degree certificate;

l  If applicants are already employed, they must provide official documents showing their status as on-post employees and permission of release.

※ Documents in languages other than Chinese or English must be attached with notarized translations in Chinese or English.

※ Application materials will NOT be returned regardless of the application result.

※ Please make sure you send out the complete set of all the required documents and specify on the envelop "Application for CAS The Belt and Road Master Fellowship".

Postal address: Office of International Cooperation, Old Library, 229, University of Science and Technology of China, 96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei, 230026, Anhui, China

Ⅵ. Application Deadline

March 31, 2019

Ⅶ. Notification of Decision and Visa Application

The admission decisions will be published o USTC website (http://isa.ustc.edu.cn), normally in May to June. The offers of admissions, award letters and other documents will be conveyed afterwards.

Awardees shall take the following documents to the Embassy or Consulate of the People‘s Republic of China, and apply for a student visa (X1/X2 visa):

•  personal passports as used for application

•  Admission Notice

•  Visa Application Form (JW202)

•  Physical Examination Record for Foreigners

•  other original reports from the physical examination

Please keep safe of the original Admission Notice and Visa Application Form (JW202). They are essential in the application for the Permanent Residence Permit upon registration. Please do not apply for visa waiver or other types of visa.

Additional Information

1. For applicants:

•  Applicants CANNOT submit the application documents to more than one supervisor.

•  USTC do not accept switch of major or supervisor after registration, regardless of the reason. Please make a careful and thoughtful application.

•  A lack of application documents or unsatisfactory documents will not be accepted. None of the documents will be returned regardless of the applicant’s admission status.

2. For awardees:

•  Awardees must register at the time and place indicated in the Admission Notice. Otherwise, they should apply for extension of their registration.

•  The duration of the fellowship is stated explicitly in the Admission Notice. It can be retained for no longer than 2 months since the deadline of the registration.

•  Awardees receive monthly stipend from USTC since the registration day. Those who register before the 15^th of a given month (including 15^th) receive a full-month stipend, while those register after the 15^th of a given month receive a half-month stipend.

•  Registered awardees must abide by relevant rules and regulations of the universities, and attend reviews and examinations, such as the qualifying tests on time. Awardees who fail review or examination will be deprived of their fellowship or their fellowship will be suspended.

•  Any work produced and published by the awardees during the funding period of the fellowship must be credited to the institute/school and the university where the awardees are enrolled. Awardees are also required to acknowledge “Sponsored by CAS the ‘Belt and Road’ Master Fellowship Program and CAS President’s International Fellowship Initiative (PIFI)” in written dedication.

Contact Information

International College, Office of International Cooperation

University of Science and Technology of China

96 Jinzhai Road, Hefei, Anhui, 230026 China

Coordinator: Ms. Lin Tian (Linda Tian)

Email: presidentfellow@ustc.edu.cn