Summer 2025 Research and Mentoring Fellowship  Myanmar’s Borderlands: Past, Present, and Future      June 24-August 1, 2025

 

Application deadline: March 31, 2025, 11:59 PM (EST)

The Inya Institute is now accepting applications for a Fellow  to lead the Summer 2025 Research and Mentoring  program devoted to supporting the study of Myanmar’s borderlands.

The Fellow may be based in Thailand, India, Bangladesh, or Malaysia and will lead a series of online workshops sponsored by the institute with six groups of up to three Myanmar junior researchers. During the online workshop sessions, the Fellow will mentor the groups of Myanmar junior researchers on the development of their research papers. The first batch of online sessions (June 30-July 4) will focus on research design, selection of research methods, and preparatory work for data collection with all participating Myanmar researchers. The remaining weeks (July 7-August 1) will involve one-on-one online mentoring sessions with each of the six groups of Myanmar junior researchers. 

The Fellow will be expected to mentor the researchers whose work may address any of the following themes related to Myanmar’s borderlands:

• legacy of colonial knowledge on borderlands and their communities;
• ethno-history of borderlands;
• natural resources and challenges to environmental protection in borderlands;
• communities, networks, and trade across borders; 
• legal and illegal border migration;
• humanitarian relief to refugees and public health in borderlands; 
• formal and informal governance of borderlands;
• externalized economic development of borderlands;
• formal and non-formal education in borderlands;
• other themes related to borderlands.

The Inya Institute will cover international airfare (to Thailand, India,  Bangladesh, or Malaysia as per the Fellow’s proposed choice) and additional costs (including domestic travel, local accommodation, meals, internet costs). Within the limits of the time available outside of the Fellow’s mentoring duties, the Fellow is encouraged to engage in their own personal research work.

Following the Summer 2025 research and mentoring program, the Inya Institute will organize the 2026 International Interdisciplinary Conference on Myanmar’s Borderlands (2026 IICMB) in which both the Fellow and the groups of Myanmar junior researchers will be invited to participate and present their papers.  This builds upon the success of the 2024 International Interdisciplinary Conference on Myanmar’s Borderlands (2024 IICMB) held at Chulalongkorn University in Bangkok.

Eligibility

1. The fellowship is open to post-doctoral scholars whose past or current research interests and work align with the study of Myanmar’s borderlands (see list above);
2. The fellowship is open to: (1) U.S. citizens who obtained their PhD degree in the last 12 years from a U.S. university or a university overseas; (2) foreign nationals who obtained their PhD degree in the last 12 years from a U.S. university.

Application Requirements

1. Completed application form including information about the selected country, location for running the online mentoring sessions, and statement detailing past or current research on Myanmar’s borderlands, and its relevance to one or more of the topics listed above (max. 1,200 words);
2. Proposed Work Schedule showing how the online mentoring sessions will be conducted throughout the fellowship period;
3. Proposed Itemized Budget with Budget Narrative; Allowable costs include airfare, ground transportation (in the U.S. and selected country), lodging, meals and incidental expenses, and internet costs;
4. Curriculum Vitae;
5. One Academic Reference Letter; The applicant is responsible for notifying the referee of their request for letter and for ensuring the letter is submitted to the Inya Institute by the deadline.

All documents must be sent by email to the following email address: contact@inyainstitute.org

Fellowship Benefits

In addition to a stipend covering international travel, ground transportation, lodging, local subsistence, and internet costs, the Fellow will receive US $5,800 as teaching and mentorship fees.

Terms and Conditions

1. The Fellow must submit a five-page Final Report to the Inya Institute within a month of completing the fellowship as well as an account of the program experience and outcomes (no longer than 2,000 words) to be published in the institute’s quarterly newsletter.
2. The Fellow is responsible for obtaining the appropriate visa (if needed).
3. Air Travel from the U.S. must meet the conditions of the Fly America Act.

 Deadline, Selection, and Notification

Applications must be sent by March 31, 2025 (11:59 PM EST).

The fellowship will be awarded by a Selection Committee composed of academics with long-standing experience and recognized expertise on Myanmar. Applicants will be judged according to the following criteria:

• Merits of the statement, its significance, and relevance;
• Merits of the proposed work schedule and its potential for meeting the research needs of the Myanmar participants;
• Applicant’s qualifications and prior experience.

Award notifications will be sent by April 30, 2025.

Questions

For any inquiry, please contact us at: contact@inyainstitute.org.

We will also host virtual Q&A Sessions on the following days and time.

February 17, 2025, 09:00-10:00am EST

February 24, 2025, 08:30-09:30pm EST

March 3, 2025, 08:30-09:30am EST

Registration required at the following link: https://forms.gle/BB1LGS8tSjNRPUy47