Support Programs

The applicant must meet the following conditions:

1. He/she is a current or past recipient of a Sylff fellowship.
2. He/she is currently enrolled in a doctoral program at any institution of higher learning or received a doctorate on or after April 1, 2020.
3. He/she is at an advanced phase of research implementation at the time of application, having completed a literature review, established a research design and methodology, and investigated precedents.
4. He/she is engaged in high-quality research with high potential for advancing academic discourse.
5. When international travel is required for field research, he/she will do so at his/her discretion and responsibility and agree to submit a written pledge prescribed by the Sylff Association secretariat.

SRG supports research activities whose primary objective falls into one or several of the following categories:

• Data collection
• Hiring of one or more research assistant(s)
• Domestic fieldwork by the applicant
• International fieldwork by the applicant
• Outsourcing of tasks requiring special knowledge or skill that the applicant does not possess
  (software analysis / large-scale or remote data collection / language translation / honoraria for interview with experts)

This grant supports research activities conducted during the period between November 1, 2023, and October 30, 2024.

An award of up to US$5,000 is provided per successful applicant.

1. Eligible expenses:
   

   Category (A): Data collection

   • Data, database access fee
   • Database subscription

   Category (B): Hiring of one or more research assistant(s)

   • Salary, wages
   • Transportation
   • Lodging

   Category (C): Domestic fieldwork by the applicant

   • Transportation
   • Lodging

   Category (D): International fieldwork by the applicant

   • Transportation
   • Lodging
   • Wi-fi
   • Insurance

   Category (E): Outsourcing

   • Software analysis
   • Large-scale or remote data collection
   • Language translation
   • Honorarium for interview with experts
2. An SRG award cannot be used to cover expenses not listed above.
3. An SRG award cannot be used to cover expenses whose necessity and description (unit price, number of purchases, name of service, etc.) are not detailed in the application.
4. Applicants may seek additional funding from other sources. When such funds are used, please provide the name of the funding institution and the amount received in the application.

Applications should be completed in English.

In principle, applications must be submitted via the online system, which can be accessed only during the application period. Please be sure to submit all required information by the respective deadlines, which are indicated in Japan Standard Time (JST). Applications sent by email or those that are either incomplete or late will not be considered. All applicants are required to read “5. Screening and Evaluation Criteria” carefully prior to submitting their applications.

There are two steps in completing the application process.

FIRST STEP: Preliminary registration

The first step is preliminary registration. The applicant should provide basic information about himself/herself and answer some eligibility questions via the online form. The form will be available on the SRG page between May 15, 2023, and June 15, 2023, 11:59 p.m. JST.

SECOND STEP: Application submission

After screening the basic information provided in the first step, eligible applicants will be informed of a web link enabling them to proceed to the second step to submit their formal applications via an electronic application system.

The Sylff Association secretariat strongly encourages applicants to prepare a draft of their application and recommendation letter in advance, as explained below. Your application will be evaluated on the quality of the written responses and relevance to the information requested. Access to the system, meanwhile, will be limited to the period between August 15, 2023, and August 31, 2023, 11:59 p.m. JST.

[Applicants Must Submit the Following]

1. Online Form
   • Cover Letter (300 words)
     Please summarize your “detailed proposal” and “budget proposal and research activities” in a clear and convincing way.
   • Detailed Proposal (total 1,000 words)
     • Discipline (field of study)
     • Issue(s) addressed (200 words)
     • Objective (200 words)
     • Methodology, approach, research plan (400 words)
     • Expected outcomes (200 words)
   • Budget Proposal (use prescribed form) and Research Activities
     For which research activity or activities will the SRG grant be used? Check all that apply. 
     • Data collection
     • Hiring of research assistant(s)
     • Domestic fieldwork
     • International fieldwork
     • Outsourcing
2. Letter of Recommendation
   The applicant should request a letter of recommendation from an academic authority with a good understanding of the applicant’s area of research (academic supervisor, expert, etc.) (use prescribed form). The letter should be scanned and submitted in PDF or JPEG format and have the digital or physical signature of the referee.
   Only those sections of the letter referring to the significance of the applicant’s research project will be reviewed.
3. Written Pledge
   All applicants are asked to sign and submit a pledge agreeing to take full responsibility if and when they need to travel to a foreign country for their research (use prescribed form).

The Sylff Association secretariat will first screen applicant’s eligibility following preliminary registration. Only those confirmed to be eligible for the program will be invited to submit their formal applications.

Applications will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

• Research issue(s), goal(s), and outcome(s) are clearly articulated.
• Research methodology and approach adhere to generally recognized doctoral standards.
• Research plan is feasible in terms of schedule and methodology.
• Budget proposal has direct relevance to research plan.
• Budget proposal adheres to the SRG expenses policy, and the amount for each budget item is explained in the application.

Note: The cover letter plays an important role in the evaluation process, and it should provide a succinct, compelling, and well-thought-out summary of your research plans.

The Sylff Association secretariat will not consider applications if they are:

• Turned in late
• Not accompanied by required documents
• Raise ethical concerns (use of slurs or other inappropriate expressions)

• Announcement of the Call for Applications: May 15, 2023
• Preliminary registration: May 15, 2023 – June 15, 2023, 11:59 p.m. JST
• Eligibility notification: July 31, 2023
• Application submission: August 15, 2023 – August 31, 2023, 11:59 p.m. JST
• Notification of selection outcomes: November 1, 2023
  (Successful applicants may start their proposed research after receiving this notification.)
• Disbursement of funds: End of December 2023

<IMPORTANT>

• An agreement shall be signed between the awardee and the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research (Sylff Association secretariat) for award disbursement.
• The award will be remitted by the Tokyo Foundation for Policy Research to the bank account designated by the awardee, which should be able to accommodate foreign transfer in US dollars.
• The awardee is responsible for clearing any legal requirements in receiving the award and for covering any associated costs.
• The award will NOT be remitted for any reason to a third party, such as a research assistant, family member, outsourcing company, etc.

1. All awardees must submit narrative and financial reports along with associated receipts within 30 days after the completion of the proposed research.
2. Recipients are asked to cooperate with the Sylff Association’s public relations activities, agreeing to have their name, photo, and program report (either in full or in part) published on the Sylff website and/or in print publications.
3. Recipients are expected to actively cooperate with Sylff Association activities, such as by participating in surveys and follow-up activities. They are also encouraged to post their profiles on the Sylff website at https://www.sylff.org/fellows/.

Sylff Association secretariat is pleased to announce the successful applicants of Sylff Research Grant.

SRG recipients for FY2022