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Funding Opportunities for Students

Conference Travel Grant


This grant awards up to $700 each to affiliated faculty members and graduate students who present a paper or organize a panel at the Middle Eastern Studies Association annual conference. Awards must be claimed by May 15 each year.

Bharati Memorial Award


Established in honor of Agehananda Bharati, world-renowned expert in the cultural anthropology of South Asia and former Ford-Maxwell Professor of South Asian Studies, the Bharati Memorial Award funds one to five Syracuse University doctoral students each year to support research on South Asia. Awards range from $500 - $1,500.

John and Mabel de Sardon and Joan de Sardon-Glass Assistantships


This award supports nationals of Peru, Bolivia, Ecuador and other Andean-region countries who wish to pursue professional degrees at the Maxwell School and then to return to public service in their home countries.

The de Sardon-Glass program typically provides academic tuition and a stipend to cover living expenses while in Syracuse. As part of their award responsibilities, recipients are required to participate in one or more of the Moynihan Institute’s research programs.

Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships


Syracuse University is one of only nine universities in the United States to offer the Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships, funded by the U.S. Department of Education for study in South Asia.

This award, which ranges from $2,500 to $20,000, assists students in acquiring a high level of competence in one or more modern languages spoken in South Asia and of the areas, regions or countries where that language is commonly used. Students who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents enrolled in a relevant Syracuse University program are invited to apply.

Goekjian and Perryman Program Grants


This grant program supports Syracuse University graduate students research to support research for a master's thesis or doctoral project related to the regional areas below. Award amounts range from $500-$2,500.

  • Africa
  • East Asia
  • Europe
  • Latin America and The Caribbean
  • Middle East

South Asia Center Graduate Student Travel Grant


This travel grant provides partial funding to Syracuse University graduate students presenting South Asia-related research at national conferences.

Awards of up to $500 are provided to help defray the cost of attending academic conferences.

Study Abroad Awards


The Middle Eastern Studies Program will grant $250 to students taking study abroad courses in the Middle East. Please note that MESP doesn't offer funds for courses that have their own funding.

Undergraduate Research Assistant Fellowships


To support research collaborations between MESP faculty and undergraduate students, the program awards two Undergraduate Research Assistant (RA) Fellowships each academic year for $1,500. The fellowships are awarded to Syracuse University faculty working on Middle Eastern studies-related research projects to hire undergraduate students to work as RAs. Interested faculty should submit their applications by February 15.

Young Scholar Prize in Middle Eastern Studies


This annual essay contest is open to all Syracuse University undergraduate and graduate students. The Young Scholar Prize is awarded to the best two essays dealing with any aspect of the Middle East written by one undergraduate and one graduate student. The authors of the winning papers are presented with an award of $500 and a certificate. The submission deadline is April 1 each year.

Funding Opportunities for Faculty

Conference Travel Grant


This grant awards up to $700 each to affiliated faculty members and graduate students who present a paper or organize a panel at the Middle Eastern Studies Association annual conference. Awards must be claimed by May 15 each year.

Global Education Faculty Fellowship


In collaboration with Cornell University’s area studies programs, we offer faculty of schools of education in Upstate New York the opportunity to prepare our region’s future teachers to teach about diverse countries and cultures.

We seek projects that integrate global and intercultural experiences into teacher training curricula. Each project must engage with one or more world area, with preference given to projects that engage with South Asia or Southeast Asia.

South Asia Curriculum Enhancement Grant for Faculty


This grant supports curricular projects that integrate South Asia into courses offered by Syracuse University faculty.

We offer one grant of up to $1,500 each year to a full-time faculty member who offers a course where at least 25% of the curriculum is dedicated to South Asia-related teachings. Courses that consider South Asian geopolitics or sustainability are of particular interest.

Teaching Recognition Award


This award recognizes a Middle Eastern Studies Program affiliated faculty member for their quality of teaching, number of courses taught in the past three years and excellence in the full range of pedagogical and curricular activities in which our faculty are engaged. The recipient receives a plaque and monetary gift of $500. The nomination deadline is April 1 each year.

Moynihan Institute of Global Affairs
346 Eggers Hall