American Councils for International Education in Ukraine is pleased to announce a new call for the BridgeUSA Ukrainian Academic Fellows Program (UAFP) and BridgeUSA Ukraine Program for Resilience and Reconstruction (UPRR).
BridgeUSA UAFP and BridgeUSA UPRR build links between Ukrainian and U.S. scholars for long-term collaboration in such areas as joint research, shared pedagogy, course development, and publications. The programs’ long-term goal is to help Ukrainian universities educate and train professionals critical to the country’s recovery and reconstruction through lasting, productive collaboration with U.S. institutions of higher education.
The BridgeUSA Ukrainian Academic Fellows Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) with additional funding provided by U.S. host institutions. The BridgeUSA Ukraine Program for Resilience and Reconstruction is a parallel program sponsored by the Public Diplomacy Section of the U.S. Embassy in Kyiv.
In the scope of both programs, fellows are matched with faculty mentors at a U.S. institution of higher education with whom they develop individualized, collaborative programs to meet their specific needs as researchers and educators seeking to strengthen Ukraine’s capacity to rebuild. The program includes a month-long visit to a U.S. university where scholars may engage in research, observe classes in their field of study, develop new courses or course materials, deliver presentations and lectures, explore U.S. higher education administrative policies and culture, and attend conferences in their academic fields.
The majority of scholars will visit their U.S. host institutions during the fall 2025 semester (in exceptional cases, some fellows may travel in late spring or summer of 2025). Fellows are expected to return to Ukraine empowered to help address the significant challenges facing Ukraine’s higher education institutions and strengthen Ukraine’s reconstruction efforts through teaching and research. As part of its efforts to support Ukraine’s revitalization, the BridgeUSA seeks to foster mutual understanding, educational ties, and professional networks between the United States and Ukraine.
Scholars of the BridgeUSA UAFP will be selected from the following academic fields:
- agricultural technology
- conflict resolution/peace studies
- engineering
- information technology (including combatting disinformation in an IT context)
- mental health
- pedagogy (including teaching and research in medicine/dentistry focused on wartime issues and needs)
- urban planning (including architecture)
BridgeUSA UPRR, in addition to the above academic fields, will also accept applications from scholars specializing in:
- environmental policy and management (including post-war environmental recovery; alternative energy and sustainable development; technologies for emergency situations management)
- health care and medicine at the time of war (including but not limited to prosthetics, rehabilitation; PTSD treatment and mental health; biomechanics).
Eligible applicants must be citizens and current residents of Ukraine who:
- Are employed as full-time instructors and/or researchers at an institution of higher education in Ukraine and who possess at least two years of university-level experience;
- Are proficient in spoken and written English at the time of application;
- Are committed to returning to Ukraine after their month-long visit to the U.S; and
- Are eligible to receive a U.S. J-1 Exchange Visitor nonimmigrant category visa.
Preferred candidates will demonstrate the following:
- Outstanding leadership or potential leadership within their university community,
- A strong commitment to teaching and/or research, and the development of new materials, courses, and programs to benefit Ukraine’s capacity to educate specialists in critically important fields;
- Strong potential to develop lasting collaborative relationships with U.S. academics.
The application deadline is January 5, 2025.
Apply today at https://ais.americancouncils.org/BridgeUSAUAFP
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E-mail: uafp@americancouncils.org