Graduate Fellowships from Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research & Technology

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Graduate Fellowships – MIT Alliance for Research & Technology

The Singapore-MIT Alliance for Research and Technology ( SMART ) has a four-year fellowship scheme for new doctoral students at either Nanyang Technological University ( NTU ), National University of Singapore ( NUS ), Singapore Management University ( SMU ) or Singapore University of Technology and Design ( SUTD ), who will conduct their research at the SMART Centre.

The Fellowship Programme is intended to attract to NTU, NUS, SMU and SUTD the best and most talented doctoral students from Singapore, the region and beyond, and educate them to be future leaders in science and technology for Singapore and beyond. The Fellowship will provide an opportunity to be involved in the strategic research programmes at the SMART Centre and provide the opportunity to be co-advised by an MIT faculty member. The student may spend up to six months doing research at MIT.

Graduate Fellowship Awards

  • up to four years of full tuition and school fees at the student’s home university;
  • a monthly stipend of S$3,500 ( CPF contribution for Singapore citizen );
  • eligible to conduct a one-time research residency at MIT for up to six months;
  • and co-supervision by an MIT and NTU / NUS / SMU / SUTD faculty.

There is no bond associated with this fellowship.

Note : If you are awarded the SMART PhD Fellowship, and you have a tuition bond from MOE, you will be required to provide a Banker’s Guarantee.

Guidelines for Awarding of Graduate Fellowship :
  1. A student must be successfully admitted to NTU, NUS, SMU or SUTD.
  2. A student who applied to one university will only be considered for that university.
  3. If the student is admitted to NTU, NUS, SMU or SUTD the student has the option to select the university through which to accept the PhD Graduate Fellowship.
  4. If a student has identified more than one potential SMART IRG, the student has the option to select which IRG he / she would like to work for provided he / she have been awarded the Fellowship to both IRGs.
  5. If a student has more than one potential research advisor from SMART-NTU or SMART-NUS or SMART-SMU or SMART-SUTD, the student has the option to select the advisor provided the SMART-MIT advisor has a collaborator with that particular university.
  6. A student who is not awarded the Fellowship will be considered for other fellowships within the university provided that they indicated this on their application and applied directly to that particular fellowship.

Graduate Fellowship Eligibility 

A student must:

  • have graduated with an undergraduate degree with first class or second-upper ( or equivalent );
  • be an incoming new PhD student not currently enrolled in a PhD programme;
  • have a research interest that fits within one or more of the projects currently being carried out in a SMART Interdisciplinary Research Group ( IRG ).

Graduate Fellowship Application Requirements 

In order for your Fellowship application to be reviewed by the Selection Committee, your application must include the document listed below. Failure to adhere to this may jeopardize your application.

1. Application Form : Fill out the Fellowship application form from the SMART portal.

NOTE: Please visit the university website for their admission form.

2. SMART IRG : Select the SMART Interdisciplinary Research Group (IRG) that you would like to work with.
  • Future Urban Mobility (FM)
  • Low Energy Electronic Systems (LEES)3. Project List

3. Project List :Select a project from the IRGs Project List that fits your research interest.

4. Research Statement :Provide a research statement based on the research project you selected.
5. Referee

NTU / NUS / SMU / SUTD requires your referee to submit an online referee report form. The deadline to submit the form is 31 December 2017. Recommendation letters will NOT be accepted in lieu of the referee report.

If you are applying to NTU / NUS / SMU / SUTD, and choose to provide the same referee, your referee must fill out four (4) separate referee report forms; one (1) for NTU. one (1) for NUS, one (1) for SMU, and one (1) for SUTD.

Note : It is the student’s responsibility to inform their referees they must fill out four (4) separate forms.

Provide the name and institutional e-mail address of two (2) academic referees. Your referee(s) must either be a faculty member from your undergraduate university or a faculty member from where you obtained your most recent degree.

If you are currently employed, your principal investigator, senior academic advisor or supervisor can serve as your referee.

NOTE: Please contact your referees at least one (1) month prior to filling out the application form to ensure your referees have sufficient time to fill out the referee report form.

6. Supporting Documents :
Documents must be in English. Submit the supporting document in PDF format except for the passport photo (JPEG).
a. Transcript or Grade Sheet : Provide a scanned copy of your academic transcript(s). If your transcript is not available, submit a copy of your degree audit or latest academic record. [ Once you receive confirmation of your admission to the University, you will be required to submit a certified true copy of your transcript(s) directly to the University. ]
b. GRE /GATE : If you are applying to NTU / NUS : Submit a copy of your GRE / GATE ( or an equivalent ) score. GRE score is valid for 5 years and GATE score is valid for 2 years from the date you took the test.

If you are applying to SUTD : GRE is required for Architecture and Sustainable Design ( ASD ), and Engineering Systems Design ( ESD ). Optional for Engineering Product Development ( EPD ), and Information Systems Technology Design ( ISTD ).

c. TOEFL/IELTS : Required if your native language is not English. TOEFL and IELTS score is valid for 2 years from the date you took the test.

[ Note on items b and c: A student who received their undergraduate degree from NTU or NUS is exempt from this requirement.]

If you are scheduled to take the GRE / GATE / TOEFL / IELTS test after the application deadline, you must indicate the name of test and date of the test on the academic qualifications page of the application form.

Submit your score sheet(s) to SMA3@smart.mit.edu on or by 31st December, 2017.

d. Photo: Upload your most recent passport-size photograph in JPEG.
e. Optional :
  • Master / Degree certificate(s) or Diploma certificate(s);
  • Copies of awards (not more than 5);
  • A chronological list of research publications / journals, stating all the authors, titles, publishers/journals, first and last page number ( DO NOT send copies of your publications );
  • Resume / CV / Biodata

Graduate Fellowship Important Dates

S.NoEventsDate
1Application Intake 201823rd October, 2017 to 31st December, 2017
2Deadline for referees to submit the referee report31st December, 2017
3GRE / GATE / TOEFL / IELTS score report submission deadline31st December, 2017
4Review Period2nd January, 2018 to 15th March, 2018
5Notification of Awardees by SMART16th March, 2018 onwards

JEE Main

Application Form Submission 16 Dec 2020 to 16 Jan 2021.