Israel-Asia Leadership Fellowship: FAQs
The Israel-Asia Center is an independent, non-profit organization dedicated to building a shared future between Israel and Asia.
We develop and invest in the future leaders of Israel-Asia relations, and are growing dynamic networks to maximize their continued engagement and build new paradigms of cooperation.
Applications for the 2021-22 program will open in May 2021. The deadline for applications is July 15, 2021. Applications will be reviewed by the selection committee. Candidates who advance through to the second stage of the application process will be interviewed. Candidates who are already in Israel will be interviewed in person. Candidates who are not yet in Israel will be interviewed over video call. The final selection of candidates will be made in mid-August 2021. Unsuccessful applicants will be notified by email.
For those applicants who are working, a letter of consent from the applicant’s employer, granting permission for the candidate to attend all mandatory fellowship programming over the course of the fellowship year will be required. This will be requested in the advanced stages of the application process.
All fellows must develop a practical project through the course of the fellowship that promotes Israel-Asia relations in their chosen fields and which enables them to expand their contacts network and knowledge of operating in the Israel-Asia arena. The choice of project is the choice of each fellow (subject to approval by the program manager), and fellows will receive guidance, advice and professional mentors to help them develop their projects. Projects can be completed during the fellowship or take the form of longer-term initiatives that can be initiated during the fellowship and continued after the fellowship.
Examples of projects developed by past fellows include:
- A conference to explore the geo-economic impact of China’s increasing role in the Middle East.
- A Japanese language news site – Israel Medtech Post – on Israeli medtech and biotech news.
- Working with health authorities in Israel and China to explore applications of Israel’s family healthcare models and policy in China to prevent diabetes.
- Launch of China’s She Loves Tech competition in Israel – promoting women in tech and tech for the female market
- An event to promote Israel-India cybersecurity cooperation.
- An event to promote Israel-India trade relations.
- A series of video tutorials in Vietnamese, sharing Israeli agritech expertise to help Vietnamese farmers maximize crop yields.
- A series of interviews with Israeli innovation and business leaders published in Korea’s leading business daily.
- A blog in Korean on Israeli innovation and technology.
- An online platform to promote ideas-share and cooperation between Israeli and Indian NGOs.
- A Japanese pop culture event and film screening at Haifa Cinematheque.
- A series of documentary shorts to mark 50 years of Israel-Korea relations.
- Coordination of launch events for the Israel Research Center at Sichuan Academy of Social Sciences.
- Publication and launch of Start-Up Nation book in Indonesian.
- Deals connecting / facilitating investment by Asian investors in Israeli technologies / start-ups.
- Designing strategic programs for Israeli government ministries to strengthen Israel-Asia economic cooperation.
- Connecting Israeli health professionals to hospitals in China as part of a medical exchange program.
- A series of blogs in The Times of Israel on Israel-India relations.
Yes, we do accept a limited number of Israeli students. Applications to the 2021-22 program will open in May, 2021. For more details, see Applications Process.
October – January: Mandatory fellowship activities are held two-three Sundays a month. Additional optional activities are coordinated for the fellows during the year which are not mandatory. Fellowship activities will not be scheduled during students’ university exam periods.
February: No Mandatory programming is scheduled in February.
March – May: Each fellow is required to develop a project during the year that promotes Israel-Asia relations in their field of choice. This time should be dedicated to developing that project. There will be additional meetings taking place on some Sundays (one-two times a month). A final event will be held at the end of the program in May.
The Israel-Asia Leaders Fellowship is made possible through the generous support of the Israel-Asia Center’s donors. The subsidized cost to successful candidates is a $500 acceptance fee, payable on acceptance to the program. Please see Application Process for more details.
No. This is a part-time fellowship for young leaders and students. Accommodation should be arranged independently or via your university or college.
No. This is not a scholarship. The program provides 8-months of high-impact leadership training and high-level professional development through seminars, skills workshops, professional mentors, one-on-one coaching, events/conferences, projects and contacts development. While the cost of the program is covered by the Israel-Asia Center’s supporters, fellows are required to pay a $500 non-refundable acceptance fee once accepted to the program.
Yes. Due to the large number of applications we received last year, regrettably we were unable to accept many good applicants onto the program. If you applied last year or in a previous year but your application was unsuccessful, we welcome you to apply again this year.
If you will be studying in Israel over the academic year, students applying for the Israel-Asia Leaders Fellowship may be enrolled on any academic program in Israel during the duration of the fellowship and must have a valid visa for this time. Programs could include but are not limited to:
- Bachelors programs
- Graduate Programs
- Exchange Programs
- Special 1-year programs
- PhD and Post-doctorate programs
Applicants to the fellowship do not need to be enrolled as students in Israel, but must be resident in Israel and – if not Israeli – hold a valid visa during the course of the program.
We are seeking candidates from a variety of fields. These include, but are not limited to:
- Business/Management/Entrepreneurship
- Non-Profit Management
- International Development
- Environmental Science/Cleantech/Energy
- Political Science/Middle Eastern Studies
- Economics
- Science & Technology
- Agriculture
- Bible/Jewish Studies/Hebrew
- Communications/Media/Journalism
- Disaster Management/Public Health
- Performing Arts
- Law
- Food & Culture
Candidates from other fields are also encouraged to apply.
For Israeli applicants, preference will be given to candidates from the fields of Asian studies, business/economics and international relations.
Candidates from countries in East, South and Southeast Asia are eligible to apply for the program.
The program is conducted in English. Candidates should have an excellent command of spoken English, and be able to communicate at a high level.
The next program will begin with a mandatory orientation in October, 2021 (exact date to be confirmed), in Israel. Participation is mandatory for all fellows. Fellows must make sure to arrive in Israel no later than the evening before the orientation.