Applications > Associate Applications
Associate Applications
Qualifications of applicants
Our goal is to ensure that we admit the best possible group of Associates. We seek applications from highly motivated men and women with well conceived research projects that will illuminate key issues in U.S. Japan relations, individuals with leadership qualities who demonstrate strong potential for contributing to the international dialogue on Japan's relations with the rest of the world. We favor candidates who enjoy working independently and will make the best possible use of their time at Harvard for their personal and professional growth. Because a high level of English competence is necessary to derive the maximum benefit from study at Harvard, we are also concerned with the language skills of non-native speakers of English.
The application form
Completed forms of all applicants except scholars must reach the Program on U.S.-Japan Relations by December 1.* Be sure to retain a copy for your own records. A selection committee will choose who is to be admitted to the Program, and its decisions will be announced in February.
The financial form
Applicants should submit a financial form along with their application. Please contact the Program (us_japan@wcfia.harvard.edu) to request the financial form. Individuals applying for admission as Academic or Professional Associates may also apply, on a competitive basis, for fee waivers. Fee waivers are normally granted only to individuals with established research records, so applicants for fee waivers should submit one or two examples of their published work.
Although preference is given to non-Japanese scholars early in their professional careers, those applicants who seek to become Academic Associates and do not have funding to cover their living expenses may apply for one of the limited number of Advanced Research Fellowships that the Program awards each year.
*Scholars with their own funding may apply by either December 1 (the deadline for Associates) or February 1 (the deadline for Advanced Research Fellows). Applications that do not arrive by December 1 will not be considered until after February 1. Scholars who seek funding from this Program (whether a fee waiver or an Advanced Research Fellowship) should not apply until February 1.