Presidential scholarships for outstanding students

1.Background

Bar-Ilan University encourages outstanding students to pursue doctoral studies, including by offering specifically directed scholarships.

Those awarded this scholarship receive a subsistence grant and a waiver from tuition fees for four years, in which time they must complete their doctoral work. These outstanding PhD students may also obtain funding for presenting their research at an international conference based on fund matching by the faculty or the advisor.

Presidential scholars who are awarded a competitive external scholarship are eligible for a double scholarship, provided the total sum obtained does not exceed the maximum amount set. The advisor may also increase the scholarship amount out of available research grants, provided the total sum does not exceed the maximum amount set. If the sum is exceeded, the difference shall be deducted from the scholarship accordingly. A faculty or department may decide not to allow double scholarships, in which case the scholarship recipient will obtain the highest among the scholarships offered.

The annual scholarship is paid on a monthly basis. Scholarship recipients are not permitted to be salaried in any other way (other than academic work, or work required for research purposes, at a limited scope, and only upon prior authorization of the relevant committee), in order to dedicate their time to their research and complete it in the required time frame.

The School of Graduate Studies and the Presidential scholarship committee choose the doctoral students who will receive the scholarship and follow their academic progress. Scholarship recipients sign an agreement specifying terms and conditions, research requirements and circumstances for rescinding the scholarship. It also specifies the schedule for completing the PhD in accordance with stages of research.

2.   How to apply

Between March and April, an announcement is made calling on students to apply for the presidential scholarship.

Candidates who have completed a thesis-based master’s degree with honors at a university in Israel or in a foreign country may apply. In exceptional cases only, will applications be considered from outstanding bachelor's degree students who have recently completed their degree and who meet the requirements for the direct track to the PhD. The application must include an up-to-date transcript, confirmation of thesis grade and two letters of recommendations.

3.  Following student progress

At the end of each semester, scholarship recipients must complete a progress report on their work. In parallel, advisors must complete a tracking report on the work of their students. The reports are reviewed by the School of Graduate Studies and the presidential scholarship committee, who are authorized to terminate the study of a student who does not meet expectations.

Further details and the application form may be found at the presidential scholarship website for outstanding PhD students

The office handling the presidential scholarships is in Building 403, School of Graduate Studies.

Bar-Ilan University awards for PhD students

Bar-Ilan University seeks to encourage PhD students in the disciplines of Jewish studies, humanities, social sciences, law and interdisciplinary human sciences to publish academic articles in research journals during the course of their study. PhD students who have written an article, whether on the topic of their dissertation or on another topic, accepted for publication by a journal recognized by the Council for Higher Education, will be awarded a 3,000 NIS School of Graduate Studies Dean’s Prize. Acceptance for publication by a journal for which publication in it is recognized for international ranking of the university shall be awarded a President’s Prize of 4,000 NIS. Prize eligibility is contingent upon indicating Bar-Ilan University affiliation as the institution of the authors. The prize shall be granted for publication of any article, so that the prize may be awarded more than once in the course of degree study. For full policy and request form