IEEE Control Systems Society Graduate Collaboration Fellowship

To promote and provide support to initiate collaborative research with a hosting faculty member of well-established institutions in the area of Systems and Control for outstanding graduate students in developing geographical regions by visiting leading institutions in countries outside their own.

Historical Background:

Established in 2022

Prize:
Up to ten fellowships will be awarded annually. Each awardee receives a plaque and a funding of maximum of $10,000 USD.
Funding:
Funded by the IEEE Foundation through the Control Systems Society Fund.
Presentation:
Announced at the Awards Ceremony of the CSS.
Basis for Judging:
Applications are evaluated based on the novelty and expected technical impact of the proposed study, relevance of the topic to systems control, the quality of writing and presentation, the need for financial support, and applicant's performance during his/her studies.
Eligibility:
→ A full-time graduate student pursuing a Ph.D. degree in the area of Systems Control at a nationally accredited university in a developing country.
→ Candidate’s advisor must be a member of the IEEE and the CSS at the time of nomination. (There is no requirement of IEEE membership for the candidate.)
→ No more than one nomination per graduate advisor will be considered.
→ A hosting faculty member can serve as a host only once within a 3 year time-window.
→ A one-time awardee may apply for the second time for continuing the collaboration with the same host in the case exceptional progress can be evidenced and further significant impact can be expected by continuing for another year.
→ IEEE has identified developing countries based on data released by the World Bank. (Priority for acceptance to this program will be given to applicants from the countries marked with an asterisk on this page): https://www.ieee.org/membership/join/emember-countries.html
→ The candidate and the graduate advisor should find a host in a different country not in the list https://www.ieee.org/membership/join/emember-countries.html with whom they can pursue research collaboration. They must gain consent that the candidate can visit the host’s group for at least three months in the event of receiving the fellowship. The visit should in principle start within one year after the fellowship awardees are announced.
→ The funding will be sent to each awardee directly in two or more instalments upon positive evaluation by the Award Committee of intermediate and final progress reports providing evidence of achieved impact and deliverables.
Nomination Details:

Nomination packages are due by May 15 and must be submitted using the IEEE Control Systems Society Awards nomination system at http://awards.paperplaza.net. The following documents should be included in the package. The Nomination Form (available from the link below) and the rest should be prepared in separate PDF files to be uploaded through the online nomination system.

  1. Nomination Form filled by the candidate's graduate advisor.
  2. Support letter from the potential host in another country stating that research collaboration can be pursued and the candidate will be able to visit their group for at least three months.
  3. One letter of recommendation from faculty members (other than the nominator) familiar with the candidate’s research and education qualifications.
  4. One-page biographical summary of the candidate.
  5. Two-page maximum professional/academic summary CV of the graduate advisor. Include his/her IEEE membership number.
  6. Unofficial copies of the candidate's transcripts from all colleges/universities attended. Include an explanation of the grading system.
  7. One page (single-spaced) statement, written by the candidate, outlining the education and research goals and accomplishments. This can include summer internship experience, undergraduate, and graduate work.
  8. Research proposal, no more than 5 single-spaced pages, that specifically provides the following information:
    • Title page containing the title, university name, and contact information of the faculty member submitting the nominating package and the candidate. Include email addresses and phone numbers.
    • Research proposal describing the work to be completed by the application. Objectives, approach, potential impact, and estimated start and completion dates should be included.
    • Timeline for the visit, plans for preparation and follow-up periods. Any variation during the timeframe of the grant support should be discussed/approved by the Award Committee Chair.
    • Budget for the project. Explicitly outline how the funds from this fellowship will be allocated. The fund should be used mainly for costs of the visit. If needed, it can be spent on attending conferences and workshops, purchase of hardware/software, and publications. The need for financial support should be described.
  9. A letter of support from the faculty member’s department/institution administrator must be submitted. This letter must include an explicit statement about the fact that no institutional indirect cost (of any type) will be assessed by the recipient’s institution.
     

Any inquiries regarding the CSS Graduate Collaboration Fellowship and the nomination process should be addressed to Hideaki Ishii, VP Diversity, Outreach, and Development, by email at [email protected].

Nomination Form