[CLOSED] Second call for applications for the 2022 ArCS II Overseas Fellowship Program

Information Call for Applications

June 24, 2022

*Application closed.

In accordance with the objectives of the Arctic Challenge for Sustainability II (ArCS II) project we implement programs for the support of early career professionals. The ArCS II project provides funding to graduate students, early career researchers belonging to Japanese universities and other research institutions, as well as young practitioners from public and private institutions, to support their participation in international conferences for making presentations and collecting information, as well as their stay at overseas universities and research institutions for conducting research and expanding contacts along with fieldwork trips. We expect that these programs will stimulate further research and other activities by early career professionals and will help them expand their personal networks at the international level.

Although it is expected that the COVID-19 pandemic will continue to affect academic collaboration in FY 2022, in addition to short-term travel programs we started accepting applications for mid-to-long-term travel programs (1 to 6 months) at the first call in FY 2022. At the second call we will only accept applications for short-term travel programs. We will also support participation in international conferences held online or in Japan.

You can visit the web page containing the interviews of the previous participants of this program (in Japanese). We hope the stories of their experience will be instructive.
Voices of the participants of the Overseas Fellowship Program (in Japanese)

International conferences to be held in FY 2022 (including online conferences)

*As of June 2022. Please check the latest information on the relevant websites.

ICES Annual Science Conference 2022 19–22 September 2022 (Dublin, Ireland)
PICES 2022 Annual Meeting 23 September – 2 October 2022 (Busan, Korea)
2022 Arctic Circle Assembly 13–16 October 2022 (Reykjavík, Iceland)
AGU Fall Meeting 2022 12–16 December 2022 (Chicago, U.S.A.)
Arctic Science Summit Week 2023 17–24 February 2023 (Vienna, Austria)

Application period

2nd call
Application period: 24 June 2022 – 25 July 2022, 3 p. m. (JST) [closed]
Travel period: mid-September 2022 – late March 2023

* Note that if after the selection following the 2nd call for applications restrictions related to COVID-19 prevent the successful candidates from traveling, their programs will be terminated. For the latest COVID-19 information on your destination’s immigration and movement restrictions after entering the country from Japan please visit the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan website, the web page on overseas travel safety:
https://www.anzen.mofa.go.jp/masters/explanation.html
https://www.anzen.mofa.go.jp/covid19/pdfhistory_world.html (in Japanese)

Research fields, project types, travel period

(1) Research fields

All fields related to the Arctic

(2) Project types

Short-term programs

Visiting overseas academic, public, or private organizations etc. related to the Arctic for discussions, information exchange,
Participation in international conferences, taking courses for collecting information, building contact networks, acquiring new knowledge and skills etc.

* In FY 2022, participation fees for international online conferences and other events are also covered.
* Generally, researchers applying for funding to participate in an international conference are expected to give a presentation at the conference in question.

(3) Program period

Short-term program: generally, up to 1 month.

Number of fellowships to be awarded

Approximately one for practitioners and one for researchers / graduate students.

Selection criteria and notification of the results

The ArCS II Priority Subject 1 working group “Capacity Building and Research Promotion” assesses the applications and makes the selection. The applicants will receive notification of the results approximately one month after the end of the application period by e-mail (sent to the e-mail address specified in the application form).

Contacts

ArCS II Overseas Fellowship Program Secretariat
Arctic Research Center, Hokkaido University, Northern Campus Area Research Bldg. No. 2 (Frontier Research Center for Advanced Material and Life Science) 2F
001-0021, Japan, Hokkaido, Sapporo City, Kita Ward, Nishi 11 chome, Kita 21 jo
E-Mail：

Outline of the short-term program

	2022 Short-term program
Program period	Generally, up to 1 month.
Project types	(1) Participation in a conference / course for collecting information and networking * Participation fees for international online conferences and courses, along with international conferences to be held in Japan are also covered. * Researchers applying for funding to participate in an international conference are expected to give a presentation at the conference in question. (2) Joint research and collaboration with partners from the host academic, public or private organization(s) (3) Field studies, data analysis etc.
Eligibility	(1) Graduate students 1 (2) Researchers with master’s / PhD degrees obtained less than 10 years ago (from the date of 1 April 2022) 2 (3) Practitioners who belongs to public and private organizations etc. (including self-employed individuals) who are under the age of 40 at the time of application 1 Undergraduate and research students may also apply if they expect to become graduate students by the start of the program. 2 The 10-year term excludes maternity / parental leave taken after obtaining the degree.
Required documents	• Application form • Travel schedule and budget plan • Degree certificate or enrollment certificate • Certificate of employment (if applicable) • Residence card or other certificate of the residence status (for foreign nationals only) • Documents related to the project (such as the host’s letter of acceptance, observation plan, conference / course outline, presentation abstract (a draft is also acceptable) etc.) • Information on the destination travel restrictions for travelers from Japan
Selection criteria	• Is the application consistent with the purpose of the program? • Does the application provide a detailed description of the research objectives and plan? • Is the applicant well prepared to carry out the project described in the application? • Is the budget consistent with the research objectives and plan? • Is the applicant’s project, if supported by this program, likely to further their career in the Arctic-related field? • Does the applicant have sufficient language and communication skills?
Participant’s obligations after the program	• Submit a report • Depending on the plan for the presentation of the results session, submit the presentation materials or take part in a panel discussion etc.