Schlumberger Foundation: Faculty for the Future Grant Program

The Schlumberger Foundation's Faculty for the Future Grant Program aims to empower women from developing countries to pursue advanced STEM research abroad. By providing fellowships of up to $50,000 for PhD candidates and $40,000 for postdoctoral researchers, the program supports women's education and encourages their return to home countries to advance local STEM fields. Since 2004, it has awarded 863 fellowships, fostering gender equality in STEM and enhancing community development through increased female participation in scientific careers.

NOTE:
Full Proposal Deadline #1 - This represents the deadline to submit an application for NEW and RENEWAL applicants.Full Proposal Deadline #2  -  This represents the deadline to submit Reference Letters.
Since its inception, the Foundation has focused on funding a variety of programs in scientific educational all over the world.
The program’s long-term goal is to accelerate gender equality in STEM by generating conditions that result in more women pursuing scientific careers through alleviating some of the barriers they encounter when enrolling in STEM disciplines. The program is committed to gender parity in science in the interests of sustainable development and recognizes that full access to and participation in a STEM curriculum is essential for the empowerment of women and girls. By accelerating gender equality in STEM, the talent and capacities of these women can be developed for the benefit of their local communities, regions and nations.
The program awards fellowships for advanced research in STEM at leading research institutes abroad. Faculty for the Future Fellows are expected to return to their home countries upon completion of their studies to contribute to the economic, social and technological advancement of their home regions by strengthening the STEM teaching and research faculties of their home institutions as well as through their leadership in science-based entrepreneurship. They are also expected to contribute to the public sector where their newly acquired technical and scientific skills can help provide evidence-based support for STEM policy making, including topics of gender representation.
This program acts as a catalyst for these women to further tap into their potential. Through heightened motivation, sharpened self-awareness and a lasting passion for science they in turn capture the imagination of other women and girls around them to regard scientific pursuits as a necessary means towards advancement and growth.
Since its launch in 2004, 863 women from 90 countries have received Faculty for the Future fellowships for PhD and Post-Doctorate STEM research programs. Through interactive online tools and in-person meetings, the program provides a platform for these women to take joint action in identifying and unravelling the impediments that are holding back equal opportunities in STEM education and careers in their local communities and home countries.
Criteria
A successful application will have gone through four selection rounds, with the reviewers paying particular attention to the following criteria:

• Academic performance;
• Quality of references;
• Quality of host country university;
• Level of commitment to return to home country;
• Commitment to teaching, STEM entrepreneurship or policy making;
• Relevance of research to home country;
• Commitment to inspiring girls and women into STEM.
• Funding

Faculty for the Future grants are based on actual costs for eligible expenses up to a maximum of USD 50,000 per year for a PhD and maximum of USD 40,000 per year for a Post-doc and may be renewed through to completion of studies. Renewal grants are subject to performance, recommendations from supervisors and strong evidence of re-integration plans in the home country.

Eligibility

To be eligible to apply for this Fellowship applicants must meet the following criteria:are a female and are a citizen of a developing country or emerging economy where women are underrepresented in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) disciplines*. You are not eligible to apply if you hold dual citizenship of which one is citizenship of a developed country. (N.B. If you have been awarded a Faculty for the Future grant and after the award you obtain citizenship of a developed country, the grant will be discontinued as of the date of such additional citizenship);
are preparing for a PhD degree or post-doctoral research in a STEM discipline. If you are applying for a sandwich course the final degree must be awarded by the Host University abroad or jointly (i.e., but not solely from the home country university);
hold an excellent academic record;
are committed to go back to your home country or region upon completion of your studies to contribute to its socio-economic development; - have a proven record of teaching experience in your home country and can demonstrate your commitment to going back home to:an academic or research position in a STEM faculty; and/orto using your knowledge to become a STEM entrepreneur to help resolve regional challenges in your local community/region; and/orto demonstrating leadership by contributing to the public sector using your scientific skills to help provide evidence-based support for STEM policy making, including topics of gender representation;
can demonstrate leadership skills, active community outreach and have a track record in encouraging girls and women into STEM. If you do not meet the above criteria, please do not apply for a grant, as your application will not be retained in the selection process. Faculty for the Future focuses on developing and emerging countries where women are underrepresented in STEM disciplines. Qualifying a country as advanced, developing or emerging, is a complex and often controversial topic. Faculty for the Future does not draw on one single source or list but constitutes its eligible country list from a number of sources which allows incorporation of development status with regard to science, gender and education for example. The most significant sources drawn upon are the UN Human Development Index (HDI), the UN Gender Inequality Index (GII), the UNESCO institute of Statistics (UIS), Female and Education Ratio (FER) including indicators of female participation in STEM in tertiary education and the UIS STEM enrolment in Tertiary Education. The Faculty for the Future country list is reviewed every year and as levels of development fluctuate, a country may be on the list one year and not on the list the following year, and vice versa.

Ineligibility

The Faculty for the Future program does not fund Master level studies; - are enrolled, admitted or have applied to a host university/research institute abroad (applications are no longer accepted where a candidate has not yet applied to a university.You are not eligible to apply if you hold dual citizenship of which one is citizenship of a developed country.If you have been awarded a Faculty for the Future grant and after the award you obtain citizenship of a developed country, the grant will be discontinued as of the date of such additional citizenship.