The Netherlands Fellowship Programmes (NFP) for PhD Studies

The Netherlands Fellowship Programmes (NFP) for PhD Studies

Netherlands Fellowship Programme (NFP) for PhD studies can be followed in the 21 Dutch universities and international education.

The PhD must be pursued according to a 'bread' or 'picnic' model, which means that at least a quarter of the PhD research will take place in the candidate countries of origin;
PhD scholarship is a maximum duration of four years;
The maximum budget available for NFP PhD studies is € 85.000. This amount is intended as a contribution to living expenses and to cover the cost of visas, travel, insurance, tuitionfee, thesis expenses, etc., as specified in the NFP Rules and regulations for scholarships, which can be downloaded at www. Nuffic.nl / nfp. PhD students are allowed to seek alternative funding sources.
Requirements
Candidate applying for an NFP fellowship for a PhD degree program must:
a mid-career professionals with relevant work experience of at least three years;
be a national of and working and living in a developing country in the NFP country list valid at the time of application;
nominated by her employer, who promised to continue paying salaries and guarantee the prospective candidate will be able to return to an equivalent position after the end of the fellowship period8;
must be unconditionally admitted to the university in the Netherlands as a PhD student. This means that the student has met all academic requirements set by the Dutch universities or institutions;
has not been received NFP PhD fellowship;
is not an employee:
multinational companies (for example Shell, Unilever, etc.) or
large national and / or commercial organizations or
bilateral donor organizations (eg USAID, DFID, Danida, Sida, FinAid, AusAid, ADC, SwissAid etc.) or
multilateral donor organizations, (eg UN agencies, World Bank, IMF, Asian Development Bank, African Development Bank, IADB, etc.) or
an international NGOs (eg Oxfam, Plan, Care, etc.)
has completed and filed NFP PhD fellowship applications with all necessary documents before the NFP scholarship application deadline;
employed in areas where the research will contribute to relevant information;
- Having a clear, functional relationships with relevant organizations and are in a position to introduce the newly acquired skills and knowledge into the organization;
available full time to pursue the PhD without interruption, and physically and mentally able to take part in the entire program;
support the goals and objectives of the NFP. NFP goals are not achieved if the holder of the fellowship did not return to his own country. Nuffic would like to encourage recipients to return to their home countries after completing the course or program to meet NFP objectives in the most effective.

Fellowship application procedure
As stated above, to be eligible for an NFP fellowship, candidates need to be admitted as a PhD student by one of the Dutch institution.

Gain admission as a PhD student
The first candidates apply for admission directly to the Dutch provider of their choice. Registration requests must be directed to the Dutch. Senior academic staff or a specific PhD committee decides whether the candidate will be accepted. Typically, admissions decisions are based on research proposals submitted by the candidate.

Dutch institutions will assess the application and decide whether or not to admit the candidate as a PhD student. Candidates will receive a letter notifying them if they have received. Nuffic has no part in the process of academic acceptance. Candidate applying for an NFP fellowship must have been unconditionally admitted to the university in the Netherlands for a course or program which the candidate applies for NFP fellowship. This means that the student has met all academic and administrative requirements set by the Dutch institution.

Candidates are strongly encouraged to apply as early as possible to go to the Dutch because these institutions requires sufficient time to process all applications for entry in time.

Academic entry deadline
Academic admissions process for PhD studies is the individual tracks. Candidates who want to be recognized as a PhD student should check with the Dutch agency if applicable academic entry deadline.

Applying for an NFP fellowship
Candidates can apply for PhD scholarship after the research proposal has been agreed between the candidate and Dutch institutions. Candidates can only apply for a scholarship for PhD studies per scholarship application deadline. Being admitted to more than one PhD studies with a scholarship application deadline is the same means that candidates can only apply for a scholarship to study a PhD.

Scholarship applications must be submitted through Online (SOL). Through SOL candidate can apply for scholarships online and they can check the status of the application. Other parties such as the Dutch institutions, embassies and consulates will use SOL to assess the NFP fellowship applications.

SOL can be accessed via www.nuffic.nl / nfp. This page contains further instructions on registering online.

What is an NFP PhD fellowship application consist of?

NFP fellowship completed online applications submitted via SOL9;
employer's statement nominating candidates for NFP fellowships;
copy of valid official identification document;
Statement of Authority (if applicable10);
motivation of why you want to pursue PhD studies;
motivation on the relevance to your organization (how your organization will benefit from the research that you want to do?);
motivation on the relevance to your country (state how you benefit from the research that you want to do?);
plan of action (how do you put your new skills and knowledge to work when you return to your organization use?).

For more information and the format of the documents requested visit www.nuffic.nl / nfp.

Fellowship application deadlines
Two fellowship application deadlines have been introduced to apply for a PhD scholarship.

Applications for scholarships for PhD studies from the academic year 2012-2013 must be submitted prior to the following scholarship application deadline: February 7, 2012 & October 2, 2012

The deadline for scholarship applications papers are always one month before the online registration deadline. The deadline for fellowship applications papers are: January 1 2012 and 1 September 2012.

Scholarship application or additional documents are received after deadline scholarships are not considered.

What happens after the application is filed?
The Dutch will propose in the online scholarship if the candidate has been accepted. Each application will be assessed against the eligibility criteria listed above and, if formulated, to the country-specific priorities.

The selection procedure
Nuffic selects the candidates who will receive PhD fellowships based on the relevance of the proposed research for the organization to hire the candidate and the country of origin. Nuffic gives priority to applicants who:

PhD studies suggest that used to be supervised by an agency in developing countries;
have a connection with other activities funded by the NFP or the Dutch government-funded activities;
submitted by female candidates;
submitted by candidates from sub-Saharan Africa;

Finally, Nuffic awards a grant to the Dutch institution to cover the fellowship holders' expenses, including tuition fees. The Dutch would make logistical arrangements and pay the fellowship holder a monthly allowance for PhD studies. The Dutch also manage and provide guidance to scholarship recipients.

Selection procedures have a very tight time. Between 10 to 16 weeks after the fellowship application deadline candidates must respond to requests for availability. Indicates the availability of means that if the chosen candidate is still available for NFP fellowship. Participants must respond within 7 days after the request has been sent.