The Korea Foundation

2024-25 KF Fellowship for Postdoctoral Research

*Important Notice: This call for applications is for applicants from North America, Europe, and Japan.

Applicants from other nations are invited to apply when a new call for applications is issued in the fall of 2024.

Program Outline

The KF Fellowship for Postdoctoral Research (PF) is designed to support the full-time research of emerging scholars who have recently obtained a Ph.D. in a Korea-related research topic at a university or research institution located outside of Korea.

Eligible Applicants

Scholars who have recently obtained or will soon hold a Ph.D. in the humanities, social sciences, arts & cultural studies, or any other relevant field with a Korea-related research topic and fulfill the following criteria:

- Have obtained a Ph.D. within the past five years from the start date of the fellowship period, OR

- Ph.D. candidates scheduled to receive their degree before the start of the fellowship period

- Have not been awarded a university position equivalent to or exceeding that of a full-time lecturer, or a senior researcher position at a research institution  

- Hold citizenship or permanent residency status in a country outside of Korea*  

*Applicants who are Korean citizens must have already obtained permanent residency status in a country outside of Korea as of February 2024.

Fellowship Period

1 year (starting from either the 2024 Fall semester or the 2025 Spring semester)

- The fellowship agreement should be established within six months from the date of the notification for successful applicants.

Fellowship Support

Stipend to support postdoctoral research

The amount of the stipend will be determined based on the screening committee’s review of applicants’ proposals and on the circumstances of the region in which the affiliated institution is located.

Application Schedule

- Application Submission Period: February 28 to April 3, 2024 (18:00 KST)

- Reference Letter Submission Deadline: April 8, 2024 (18:00 KST)*

 *Please note that any letters submitted after this deadline will not be accepted.

- Notification of Results: July 2024 (subject to change without prior notice)

Required Documents

1. Online application

2. Supplemental documents (to be uploaded together with the online application, except for reference letters, which are to be submitted directly by referees)

① Research proposal

- Complete the form available on the online application portal.

- Free narrative proposal, including but not limited to: detailed descriptions of the proposed research topic, research goal, significance of the research in contributing to the field of Korean studies, suggested research methodology and materials, planned research schedule, and reasons for conducting the research at the proposed affiliated institution. Applicants are required to include a separate bibliography.

② Curriculum vitae

- Information about applicants’ educational experience (including the title of applicants’ dissertation and the date on which they obtained or will obtain their Ph.D.), professional experience, scholarship and grant award history, research accomplishments, and publications.

③ Copies of letters to affiliated institutions

- Copy of letter(s) sent by applicants to the proposed affiliated university or research institution at which they hope to conduct research during the fellowship period.

- Maximum of three (3) letters

- No changes of institution(s) are permitted after the submission of the application.

④ Copy of acceptance letter from the affiliated institution (if available*)

- Copy of acceptance letter from the affiliated institution, if the request for a postdoctoral stay has been accepted before the submission of the application

*If the request is accepted after the submission of the application, a copy of the acceptance letter must be submitted as soon as it is available.

⑤ Details about doctoral dissertation

- Dissertation abstract, table of contents, chapter summaries, sample chapter, and publication plan (free form)

⑥ Copy of academic transcripts of graduate degrees

- Academic transcripts of M.A. and Ph.D. degrees

⑦ Copy of Ph.D. degree certificate (if available*)

- Copy of Ph.D. degree certificate, if the degree has been obtained before the submission of the application

*If applicants have not yet obtained their Ph.D. upon submitting their application, a copy of the degree certificate must be submitted before the start of the fellowship period.

⑧ Reference letters*

- Three (3) letters of recommendation (including one from the applicant’s doctoral supervisor).

*How to submit reference letters?

• Clicking on “Send email to request recommendation” within the online application form will automatically send emails to the indicated referees asking them to submit reference letters for the respective applicant.

• If the application is submitted without clicking on “Send email to request recommendation,” emails will be sent automatically to the indicated referees upon submission of the application.

• Reference letters must be prepared in a designated form and directly submitted by referees via an upload link, as explained in the email that is sent to them.

⑨ Proof of nationality or permanent residency status

- Copy of picture ID indicating nationality, residency permit, or any other relevant details

- Please note that any "Unique Identifiable Information (UII)" in the copy, such as Passport No., Social Security No., shall be masked or covered according to the Personal Information Protection Act. Even if the application is submitted, applications containing UII may be rejected.

How to Apply?

Sign in to the portal as an individual member and submit online application form by clicking on the “Apply” button at the bottom of this announcement.

- If you are inactive for more than 30 minutes, you will be automatically logged out for safety reasons, so please use the "Temporary Save" button frequently.

- The application and all required documents should be submitted in either Korean or English. Any documents that are in another language must be accompanied by translations in either Korean or English attached to the original copy.

Important Reminders about the Program

1. Recipients may be awarded with a KF Fellowship for Postdoctoral Research only once. Previous recipients cannot reapply for the program.

2. Fellowship recipients may not receive any other concurrent grants or fellowships provided by the KF or other Korean institutions. Breach of this condition will result in the suspension of the fellowship, and the fellow will be required to return their grant to the KF.

3. During the fellowship period, fellowship recipients must conduct research at a university* or institution located outside of Korea, where Korean studies programs are offered or faculty members and research materials for their Korea-related research field are available. During the fellowship period, fellowship recipients must stay in the country where the university or institution is located, devote the fellowship period entirely to their research, and actively participate in Korea-related academic activities.

*Recipients may not conduct research at the university from which they obtained their Ph.D.

4. Fellowship periods may not be deferred to the following year.

5. Fellowship grants will be awarded in three installments:

- The first installment (50% of the total grant) will be disbursed after all required documents are verified and the fellowship agreement is concluded.

- The second installment (40% of the total grant) will be disbursed after the interim report is submitted to and reviewed by the KF.

- The third installment (10% of the total grant) will be disbursed after the final report is submitted to and reviewed by the KF.

6. Fellowship recipients are required to submit an interim report after six (6) months have passed from the beginning of the fellowship period, and a final report detailing the progress made within seven (7) days of the end of the fellowship period, using the KF’s standard report forms.

7. Fellowship recipients must revise their doctoral dissertation during the fellowship period and publish it as book or research paper within three (3) years after the end of the fellowship period. A statement that the research was supported by the KF must be clearly visible on the publication. Recipients must also inform the KF about any major academic achievements and activities they are involved in, as well as any appointments to academic positions, even after the fellowship period has ended.

The KF will monitor recipients’ research progress annually for three (3) years following the conclusion of the fellowship period. Fellows who do not fulfill the above outlined responsibilities will be ineligible for future support from the KF.

Important Reminders about the Application

1. All personal information included in the application form will be exclusively used for the program’s purposes. By submitting the application, applicants agree to the collection of their personal information by the KF.

2. All applicant actions (log-in, data entry, button clicks, etc.) are saved as real-time logs and it is the applicant's responsibility to complete the document within the dealine. To ensure fair deliberation, all applications not submitted within the deadline will be disqualified without any exception.

Inquiries

Attached: FAQs