africa.harvard.edu South Africa Fellowship Program : University Center for African Studies

Organization : Harvard University Center for African Studies
Fellowship Name : Harvard South Africa Fellowship Program
Applicable For : South African citizens
Closing Date : February 28, 2017

Website : http://africa.harvard.edu/south-africa-fellowship-program/
HSAFP Application Form : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/5453-HSAFPApplicationForm-.pdf
HSAFP Recommendation Form : https://www.southafricain.com/uploads/5453-HSAFPRecommendation-Form.pdf

Harvard South Africa Fellowship Program :

** President Derek Bok established the Harvard South Africa Fellowship Program (HSAFP) in 1979 to address the needs of South Africans who were denied access to advanced education by the apartheid system.

Related : SOL Plaatje University Apply for Admission : www.southafricain.com/5442.html

** This program was established, and is still intended, for mid-career professionals educationally disadvantaged by past laws and resource allocations in South Africa.

Eligibility :
** The HSAFP was conceived largely to provide educational enrichment for men and women in mid-career, that is, individuals in various occupations who have shown considerable skill in their chosen fields and leadership and are expected to benefit from advanced training.

** Thus candidates who have just completed, or who have not yet completed, a first degree are not selected unless this degree has been pursued concurrently with, or subsequent to, experience in the workplace. Fellows usually range in age from 30 to 45 years. Fellows must be South African citizens.

** Fellows submit their applications directly to the Harvard South Africa Fellowship Program at Harvard University.
** A committee of HSAFP alumni, Center staff and the CAS Faculty Director will interview the short-listed applicants in South Africa.

** Successful candidates must then apply to and be admitted at the specific Harvard school where they intend to study.
** Applicants should determine well in advance whether, if awarded a fellowship, they can be granted leave by their employers for Harvard’s academic year.

** They should generally plan to be in residence at Harvard from September until June.
** However, some programs require fellows to begin residence on July 1st.
** No candidate should accept an interview unless assured that such leave will be granted.
** The Center does not wish to assign fellowships to anyone who subsequently finds it impossible to use the opportunity.

2018-2019 Application Timeline :
** December 15, 2016 – HSAFP application opens
** February 28, 2017 – HSAFP applications DUE (at 11:59pm EST)

** March 6 – April 23, 2017 – Applications are reviewed by on-campus committee at Harvard University
** Early May 2017 – Applicants notified if they have been selected for an interview
** May – June 2017 – Expected timing for interviews in South Africa

** Late August 2017 – Interviewed candidates are notified if they have been selected as a Harvard South Africa Fellow finalist
** September 2017 – December 2017 – Selected finalists apply directly to the Harvard program they are interested in attending

** January – April 2018 – Candidates typically hear about their admissions decision from the Harvard School to which they applied
** Beginning July – August 2018 – Most Harvard South Africa Fellows’ academic programs at Harvard begin
** May 2019 – Fellows at Harvard for one-year programs complete their academic year at the University

Transcripts :
** Submit transcripts from all post-secondary institutions you have attended. You may upload these or have them mailed directly.
** Transcripts must show the grades and course titles for all your post-secondary coursework. Copies of diplomas are NOT required.

Letters Of Recommendation :
** Two letters of recommendation must be submitted.
** Letters of recommendation should be attached to the HSAFP Recommendation Form.
** Letters can be submitted by email to africa AT harvard.edu

Admission to Harvard :
** Candidates who are awarded fellowships must apply and receive admission to their specific Harvard program for the following year.
** For example, if you apply for a fellowship during the 2017 application cycle and you are selected, you must then apply for admission to your program for the following academic year of 2018-2019.

** If admitted to the program, your fellowship will be awarded for 2018-19.
** If candidates who are awarded fellowships do not apply and receive admission to a specific Harvard program, the fellowship is void.

** While the relevant admission offices are consulted when reviewing applicants to be invited for interview, applicants are advised to consult program websites (below) to ensure that the program to which they apply matches their academic and professional qualifications as well as career aspirations.

** Admission to a formal Harvard degree or other program remains solely within the authority of the Admissions Committee of the particular Harvard school or program and not with the Center for African Studies.

** Harvard’s Law School, School of Public Health, and Kennedy School of Government all offer one-year master’s degree programs open to holders of the relevant bachelor’s degree. Admissions committees for master’s degrees may require candidates to take the Graduate Records Examination or the equivalent professional test.

** The deadlines for submission of all admission materials to Harvard vary from mid-December to early January.

** Unlike most South African universities, Harvard’s MBA is a two-year degree program and, therefore, not available through this fellowship program. Harvard Business School offers Executive Education programs that candidates may wish to consider.

** It should also be noted that Harvard offers no programs, degree or otherwise, in several areas commonly taught at other institutions (e.g. Nursing, Library Science, or Social Work).
** Furthermore, the largest Harvard school, the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, does not offer a one-year Master’s degree.

However, the Graduate School or Arts and Sciences (GSAS) does offer fellowship-eligible non-degree programs :
** Special Students or Visiting Fellows status.
** Applicants for either of these programs should submit a well-developed plan that illustrates how access to Harvard faculty, courses and research resources will further their studies or research.