The Scholarship Program

The Japan-IMF Scholarship Program for Advanced Studies (JISP) is a two-year program intended to help Japanese nationals obtaining Ph.D. degrees in macroeconomics and preparing them to work as economists at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The scholarship is funded by the government of Japan and administered by the IMF’s Institute for Capacity Development (ICD) with assistance from the Institute of International Education (IIE).

Up to seven scholarships are awarded annually on a competitive basis to students with a record of high academic achievement. All JISP scholars are required to apply to the IMF’s Economist Program (EP) upon completion of their doctoral studies and to accept an EP position if offered. Scholars who do not comply with this condition will be asked to repay the scholarship cost.

Please note that the IMF will not be able to accommodate all JISP scholars who apply for employment at the Fund since there are many applicants for each available position and the selection process is very competitive.

Eligibility & Application Procedure

To be eligible, an applicant must be:

• A Japanese citizen.
• Able to obtain a Ph.D.by age 34.
• Studying at, or applying to, a Ph.D. program in macroeconomics at a university outside of Japan. Only universities with a strong doctoral program in macroeconomics are eligible.
• Entering the 1st, 2nd or 3rd year of the Ph.D. program.

The application

is available online at www.iie.org/jisp. It must be completed in English and include the following:

• A personal statement focusing on the applicant’s background, career goals, and interest in working as an IMF economist;
• A complete university transcript for the applicant’s prior studies and, if already a graduate student, a current university transcript;
• GRE and TOEFL or IELTS scores;
• A copy of one application to a Ph.D. program; and
• Two reference letters.

The deadline for receipt of scholarship applications is January 31.

Scholarships are awarded in the spring, for studies starting in the fall of that same year. Candidates must apply directly to universities for admission.

Please note that no exceptions can be made regarding the scholar’s nationality, university location, or field of study.

Benefits

The JISP covers all reasonable expenses for two years of graduate study including:

• Full university tuition and fees;
• Medical insurance;
• Annual book allowance and monthly living allowance;
• Selected travel expenses; and
• Paid summer internship.

To cover the remaining years of study, JISP scholars are expected to secure another source of funding, usually through Research or Teaching Assistantship at their university.

Official Link: https://www.imf.org/external/np/ins/english/scholar.htm

Deadline: 31 January, 2017