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Southeast Asia Program

SEAP Top-Off Award for Einaudi Center Research Travel Grant for Graduate Students

The deadline for this opportunity has passed.
Application Deadline: March 7, 2025
Application Timeframe: Spring
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Details

Einaudi Center Research Travel Grants for Graduate Students to Southeast Asia are reviewed by SEAP faculty. Therefore, we expect everyone who is eligible to apply for this funding as a priority. We ask that any SEAP student applying for these funds email a budget using THIS TEMPLATE to SEAP Program Manager Colin Peterson (crp88@cornell.edu) so that SEAP faculty can award supplemental funding beyond airfare, as well as cover significant gaps in research needs. Historically, top-off awards have ranged from $300 to $750.

This top-off award is only available to doctoral and master's students who are core members of SEAP, which is determined at the discretion of SEAP core faculty based on a student’s commitment to Southeast Asian scholarship as demonstrated through factors such as: whether a SEAP core faculty member is on a student's academic committee; the active participation of a student in SEAP programming and events; research focus; language learning; and coursework.

Please direct any questions to SEAP Program Manager Colin Peterson (crp88@cornell.edu).

Additional Information

Funding Type

  • Travel Grant

Role

  • Student

Program

SEADL Undergraduate Paper Award

The text "Southeast Asia Digital Library Undergraduate Paper Award 2025," superimposed over a shadow puppet, with a black-and-white photograph of two people standing outside a building below it.
April 7, 2025

Submit your undergraduate papers by July 31

The Southeast Asia Digital Library Paper Award seeks papers from undergraduates concerning original research in Southeast Asian Studies. The first-place winner will receive their choice of two books from the Cornell University Press catalog. Both first- and second-place winning papers will be published on the Southeast Asia Digital Library (sea.lib.niu.edu).

Applicant Eligibility

Applicants must be current undergraduate students at Southeast Asia Digital Library (SEADL) affiliated institutions* at the time of submission. Applicants must agree that, should they win, their papers will be made openly accessible and published online on SEADL.

Paper Eligibility

Eligible papers must be within the field of Southeast Asia Studies and reference primary source materials. Papers may be written for a class or independent study within the past three academic years: Spring 2022 - Spring 2025. Papers must be between 2,000 and 10,000 words, excluding references.

Evaluation Criteria

Winning papers will demonstrate the student's ability to support original research with analysis of primary source materials. Papers that reference materials held in SEADL collections will be given increased consideration.  

Submission Materials

Submission packets should include a cover page containing the paper title, author name, author email, institutional affiliation, and date. Papers should be submitted as a separate PDF document listing only the title. No author information should be included in the paper itself to allow for blind evaluation.

Email submission packets to seadl@cornell.edu by July 31, 2025

*SEADL Affiliated Institutions:  

Arizona State University; The City University of New York; Columbia University; Cornell University; Duke University; Harvard University; Indiana University, Bloomington; King’s University College at Western University; McGill University; Michigan State University; Northern Illinois University; Ohio University; The State University of New York; Université de Montréal; Université Laval; University of British Columbia; University of California, Berkeley; University of California, Los Angeles; University of California, Riverside; University of Hawai’i at Manoa; University of Michigan; University of Saskatchewan; University of Toronto; University of Victoria; University of Washington; University of Wisconsin-Madison; Yale University; York University 

Additional Information

Thai Conversation Hour

November 18, 2025

6:00 pm

Join us on Zoom to practice your Thai skills and meet new people. Conversation Hours provide an opportunity to use the target language in an informal, low-pressure atmosphere. Have fun practicing a language you are learning! Gain confidence through experience! Just using your new language skills helps you learn more than you might think. Conversation Hours are open to any learner, including the public.

Join Thai Conversation Hour on Zoom!

Additional Information

Program

Southeast Asia Program

SEAP Research Grant for Doctoral Candidates

Application Deadline: April 15, 2026
Application Timeframe: Spring
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Details

Purpose

SEAP offers research funding to PhD candidates who applied for and did not receive major external research awards.* 

This grant is only available to SEAP PhD candidates who have completed their A-Exams, with preference given to those in the fourth and fifth years of their programs. To apply, students must submit a revised version of a rejected research proposal addressing feedback from committee members and/or external reviewers. The student's Committee Chair must also provide a brief statement of justification for this research proposal, focusing on degree progress and efforts to secure funding. Students may also submit proposals that are pending review.

*Examples of major external awards: Fulbright US Student Program; Fulbright-Hays Program; Mellon/ACLS Dissertation Innovation Fellowships; Wenner-Gren Dissertation Fieldwork Grants; Wenner-Gren Engaged Research Grants; NSF Graduate Research Fellowships Program (GRFP); NSF Doctoral Dissertation Research Improvement Grants (DDRIG)

Amount

Up to $10,000

Eligibility

This grant is only available to SEAP PhD candidates who have completed their A-Exams, with preference given to those in the fourth and fifth years of their programs. To apply, students must submit a revised version of a rejected research proposal addressing feedback from committee members and/or external reviewers.

Applicants must be core members of SEAP, which is determined at the discretion of SEAP core faculty based on a student’s commitment to Southeast Asian scholarship as demonstrated through factors such as: whether a SEAP core faculty member is on a student's academic committee; the active participation of a student in SEAP programming and events; research focus; language learning; and coursework.

Timeline

Applications due April 15

Questions?

Please direct any questions to SEAP Program Manager Colin Peterson (crp88@cornell.edu).

How to Apply

Please use the “Apply” button below to create and submit an application using the Einaudi Center Funding Application website (Cornell NetID login required). Required materials include:

  • A revised version of your original research proposal. The document should include an addendum that describes the feedback you received on the original research proposal from your committee members and/or external reviewers, and how you have incorporated the feedback. Proposals pending review are also acceptable.
  • Budget using THIS TEMPLATE
  • Other sources of funding
  • Letter of recommendation
  • Statement of justification from your committee chair for this research proposal, focusing on your degree progress and efforts to secure funding

 

Additional Information

Funding Type

  • Award

Role

  • Student

Program

SEAP Flexible Research Travel Grant

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Details

Purpose

If, for some reason, a SEAP graduate student has research travel needs for which applying for the Einaudi Center Research Travel Grant for Graduate Students is not possible, SEAP provides up to $3,000 in funding. This award is available for research that is off-cycle (primarily due to a student's matriculation date), either independently or as part of a class.

Students should not use this award in lieu of the Einaudi Center Research Travel Grant + SEAP Top-Off Award funding that is part of the annual spring semester application cycle. The SEAP Flexible Research Travel Grant is intended for extraordinary research needs, which you must present in writing along with your budget. Receiving this award requires submitting applications for the Einaudi Center Research Travel Grant and the Graduate School Research Travel Grant, if possible.

Terminal master’s degree students whose studies/research involve fieldwork or archival work on Southeast Asian topics and demonstrate a need for funding support may also use this award for a master’s thesis/project on any time frame with a budget up to $5,000.

Amount

Up to $3,000 for graduate students for off-cycle research/study

Up to $5,000 for terminal master's degree students for research on any time frame

Eligibility

This grant is only available to doctoral and master's students who are core members of SEAP, which is determined at the discretion of SEAP core faculty based on a student’s commitment to Southeast Asian scholarship as demonstrated through factors such as: whether a SEAP core faculty member is on a student's academic committee; the active participation of a student in SEAP programming and events; research focus; language learning; and coursework. To receive this award, students must also apply for the Einaudi Center's Research Travel Grant for Graduate Students, the Graduate School's Research Travel Grant, and any departmental awards.

Timeline

Fall applications are reviewed on October 15.

Spring applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. 

Questions?

Please direct any questions to SEAP Program Manager Colin Peterson (crp88@cornell.edu).

How to Apply

Please use the “Apply” button below to create and submit an application using the Einaudi Center Funding Application website (Cornell NetID login required). Required materials include:

  • Project proposal. The proposal should contain a title, abstract, objectives, activities, timeline, and outcomes.
  • Budget using THIS TEMPLATE
  • Other sources of funding
  • Letter of recommendation

 

Additional Information

Funding Type

  • Travel Grant

Role

  • Student

Program

Indonesian Conversation Hour

April 24, 2025

3:15 pm

Stimson Hall, G25

Come to the LRC to practice your language skills and meet new people. Conversation Hours provide an opportunity to use the target language in an informal, low-pressure atmosphere. Have fun practicing a language you are learning! Gain confidence through experience! Just using your new language skills helps you learn more than you might think. Conversation Hours are open to any learner, including the public.

Additional Information

Program

Southeast Asia Program

Vietnamese Conversation Hour

April 30, 2025

4:00 pm

Stimson Hall, G25

Come to the LRC to practice your language skills and meet new people. Conversation Hours provide an opportunity to use the target language in an informal, low-pressure atmosphere. Have fun practicing a language you are learning! Gain confidence through experience! Just using your new language skills helps you learn more than you might think. Conversation Hours are open to any learner, including the public.

Additional Information

Program

Southeast Asia Program

Ware Rotary Award for International Graduate Professional Development

Application Deadline: January 31, 2026
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Details

International students: Do you plan to travel to a U.S. conference or networking event related to your field of study?

The W. Barlow Ware Rotary Award for International Graduate Student Professional Development provides three awards annually to international graduate and professional students at Cornell. The awards ($650 maximum) support domestic travel and attendance costs for conferences or professional events promoting international graduate students' professional development.

Amount

Up to $650. Award recipients will have funds directly deposited through the Cornell Bursar system. Per U.S. Internal Revenue Service guidelines, 14% of the funds may be withheld for tax purposes. 

Eligibility

Graduate students and students enrolled in Cornell’s professional schools are eligible. In addition, you must be:

  • An international student with citizenship outside the United States (nonresident on a Cornell-sponsored student visa)
  • Actively engaged with the Mario Einaudi Center for International Studies or one of our regional and thematic programs

Requirements

  • In your application, you must clearly explain the value of your proposed conference or networking experience—as well as the alignment of your research or professional studies—with one or more of the Seven Rotary Causes:
    • Promoting peace
    • Fighting disease
    • Providing clean water, sanitation, and hygiene
    • Saving mothers and children
    • Supporting education
    • Growing local economies
    • Protecting the environment
  • Ware Rotary awards support domestic airfare or train/bus, hotel, and other associated costs for attendance at an event directly related to your dissertation, thesis research, or planned professional career.
  • The proposed conference, meeting, or event must be held in the United States, with your travel beginning and ending in the U.S.
  • You must attend the conference or event described in your application. Awards are not transferable.
  • Travel must take place between March 1 and August 15, 2025, and cannot be funded retroactively.

Reporting

Post-event reporting is mandatory for all award recipients. By applying, you agree to complete the following reporting no later than August 29, 2025:

  • Provide proof of event attendance, such as a registration email and a copy of the conference program.
  • Provide a testimonial stating how your attendance benefited your professional development and promoted one or more of the Seven Rotary Causes.
  • Photos of you attending your event are appreciated! Please sign this multimedia release before submitting photos.

Questions?

Email the Einaudi Center.

 

Additional Information

Funding Deadlines Approaching 

A blue and yellow auto rickshaw in Thailand, in front of the Grand Palace.
February 5, 2025

Opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students

Several deadlines for funding opportunities are approaching!

Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships

Application Deadline: February 19, 2025

  • For U.S. citizens and nationals to achieve language fluency and area studies expertise
  • Fellowships are available for both the summer and the academic year
  • Applicants must be at the intermediate or advanced level of language study or be starting a second regional language

More information here.

Rare and Distinctive Language Fellowships

Application Deadline: February 19, 2025

  • For summer language study at any level
  • If you are a U.S. citizen or permanent resident studying a language of Southeast Asia, you should apply for a FLAS Fellowship instead
  • *For the Summer 2025 RAD Language Fellowship competition cycle, SEAP students who are ineligible for a Summer FLAS Fellowship should apply to the RAD Language Fellowship regardless of the intended language of study (including Burmese, Indonesian, Khmer, Thai, Tagalog/Filipino, or Vietnamese)

More information here.

Milton L. Barnett Scholarship for Malaysian Studies

Application Deadline: March 7, 2025

  • For students focusing their academic studies on Malaysia and/or Malaysian students focusing on any part of Southeast Asia

More information here.

SEAP Top-Off Award for Einaudi Center Research Travel Grant for Graduate Students

Application Deadline: March 7, 2025

More information here.

Research Travel Grants for Graduate Students

Application Deadline: March 7, 2025

  • *All SEAP graduate students seeking funding for international research are required to also apply for this award*
  • Requires also submitting a budget to SEAP to be considered for a SEAP Top-Off Award

More information here.

Amit Bhatia ’01 Global PhD Research Awards

Application Deadline: March 7, 2025

  • For PhD students who have passed their A-Exams

More information here.

Ware Rotary Award for International Graduate Professional Development

Application Deadline: February 21, 2025

  • For international graduate students to travel to a U.S. conference or networking event

More information here.

Additional Information

Lao Buddhist Portraits: Making Merit in Memory of Eminent Monks in Luang Prabang.

February 7, 2025

3:00 pm

Kahin Center

In this talk, Conan Cheong investigates the desire of eminent Lao Buddhist monks to photograph and be photographed by examining the monk portraits kept in the Buddhist Archive of Luang Prabang, Laos. The Archive, housed in a Buddhist monastery, preserves over 35,000 photographs taken and collected by monks from 1890. It was founded in 2005 by Sathu Nyai Khamchan Virachitta Maha Thela, head of the Sangha in Luang Prabang (1953-2007), and a German photographer, Hans Georg Berger.

Conan addresses monks’ photographic practices in relation to other objects collected in Buddhist temple contexts which may be described as “sacred” (Lao: sing saksit) — bone relics, Buddha images, ritual offerings, and particularly the life-sized monk portrait statues modeled naturalistically in wax, resin, or bronze.

Monks are indispensable in Buddhist ritual as the “highest field of merit (anuttaraṁ puññakkhettaṁ)”, where ritual giving (dāna) to them produces the highest level of soteriological benefit for the devotee. Drawing from his doctoral field research in Laos, Conan opens up a discussion on how the photographs of Luang Prabang monks might be seen as expressions of this meritorious giving, corresponding with Buddhological research into how the Buddha, as the quintessential monastic, is made a living presence in material things.

Additional Information

Program

Southeast Asia Program

Einaudi Center for International Studies

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