The Humphrey Fellowship Program provides young and mid-career professionals from around the world with an opportunity to enhance their professional capacities. The program offers participants a specialized 10-month non degree program at selected U.S. universities. The Humphrey Program was launched in 1978 to honor the memory and accomplishments of the late U.S. Senator and Vice President, Hubert H. Humphrey.
Program Objective
During their stay at a host American university, Humphrey Fellows are invited to take graduate courses relevant to their professional interests. However, as the Humphrey Fellowship
is not a degree program, participants spend a considerable portion of their time engaged in professional development activities including: consultations and affiliations with U.S. faculty and experts, field trips, workshops, research projects and the development of practical useful
Strategies that could be applied in the Fellows’ home countries.
General Information
Fields of Study
The Public Affairs Office of the U.S. Embassy offers to qualified candidates, Humphrey Fellowship opportunities in the following fields:
Sustainable Development
- Agricultural and Rural Development
- Economic Development
- Banking and Finance
- Natural Resources, Environmental Policy, and Climate Change
- Urban and Regional Planning
Democratic Institution Building
- Communications/Journalism
- Law and Human Rights
- Public Policy Analysis and Public Administration
- Trafficking in Persons Policy and Prevention
- Technology Policy and Management
- Human Resource Management
Education
- Educational Administration, Planning and Policy
- Higher Education Administration
- Teaching of English as a Foreign Language
Public Health
- Public Health Policy and Management
- HIV/AIDS Policy and Prevention
- Substance Abuse Education, Prevention, and Treatment
General Fellowship Requirements
- Candidates must hold at least a first-level university degree (equivalent to a B.A. or B.S.) to enable them to undertake graduate level study in the U.S.
- Candidates must be proficient in English as measured by the Test of English as a Foreign
Language (TOEFL), with a minimum score of 71 ITB
- Humphrey Fellows are expected to be resourceful and display initiative. Their Applications should indicate how they and their home institutions and countries could benefit from experiences to be acquired under the program
Specific Eligibility Requirements
Prospective applicants must:
- Be a Paraguayan Citizen living in Paraguay
- Be a graduate of an accredited university or college and hold a bachelor’s degree or its equivalent
- Have five (5) years of substantial professional experience
- Show leadership ability and broadly defined commitment to public service
- Be proficient in English
- Be committed to returning to home country after completing the program
Those Ineligible for Consideration Include:
- Recent university graduates (even if they hold significant positions)
- University teachers with no management or policy responsibilities, except for teachers for English as a foreign language and specialists in drug abuse prevention and treatment
- Individuals who have attended a graduate school in the U.S. for one academic year or more during the seven years prior to the date of application
- Individuals with recent U.S. educational or work experience (more than six months During the five years prior to the date of application)
Process and Selection Criteria
Humphrey Fellowships are highly competitive, and applicants must fulfill the eligibility criteria outlined above. After a pre-selection process by the Selection Committee, who is composed of Embassy Officials and former awardees who have completed their studies and are now engaged in various endeavors in their country. The names of selected applicants are then sent to the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board (FSB) in Washington, D.C for final approval. Candidates who meet the above criteria are encouraged to fill out the application form.
Required Documents:
- Complete application form: http://apply.embark.com/student/humphrey/fellowship/
- A copy of applicant’s Undergraduate degree issued by your academic institution
- Translation of the degree by a certified public translator
- Official University transcripts
- Translation of the transcripts by a certified public translator
- Two Recommendation Letters in English or translated into English by a certified public translator
- English Language Assessment Form. Please request the form at EducationParaguay@state.gov
- CV in English
Note: After evaluation of the application and associated documents, qualified candidates will be invited to take the Test of English Language Proficiency (TELP). Those candidates that score high enough in this exam will be interviewed by the Embassy Selection Committee for final Recommendation.
Program Calendar
The dates given here are approximate. Please refer to our website periodically for exact dates.
March, 2016 Announcement of the Program
June 1st, 2016 Deadline for Application
July, 2016 Interviews
August/September, 2016 Finalist take the English Proficiency Test (TOEFL)
February, 2017 Approval of candidates by J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board
March, 2017 Announcement of awards of Fellowships – July
August /September, 2017 Pre-departure orientation for grantees -July – August Fellowships begin
The Humphrey Fellowship Program provides the following benefits:
- Costs of standardized tests required for admission at those universities
- Pre-departure Orientation
- Assistance in obtaining the J-1 visa (Exchange Program Visa)
- Economy class round-trip airline ticket
- Medical Insurance provided by the Government of the United States, which fulfills the minimum requirements established by the J-1 visa and by the Fulbright Program
- Living expenses, which vary depending on city of destination. The Fellowship does not cover the expenses of the grantee’s accompanying family members.
- Pre-academic orientation program in the U.S.
Visas
In order to make sure that the country continues to receive the benefits of this exchange program and meet U.S. visa requirements, visitors under an exchange program return to and remain in the CITIZENSHIP COUNTRY FOR A MINIMUM PERIOD OF TWO YEARS AFTER COMPLETION OF THEIR PROGRAMS. The Commission will assist grantees in obtaining visas for their spouses and minor children, though the grantees are responsible for their living expenses.
Additional Information
For more information please contact Jazmín Ramírez at educationparaguay@state.gov or visit www.humphreyfellowship.org