U.S. Embassy in Singapore

About the Study of the U.S. Institutes Program 

The Study of the U.S. Institutes (SUSI) for Scholars are intensive post-graduate level academic programs that provide university faculty and other scholars around the world the opportunity to deepen their understanding of U.S. society, culture, values, and institutions. The ultimate goal of the Institutes is to strengthen curricula and enhance the quality of teaching about the United States in secondary schools and other academic institutions abroad.

Program Format 

Study of the U.S. Institutes for Scholars will be conducted by various colleges, universities, and academic institutions throughout the United States ​over five-to-six weeks in Summer 2024 (between late-May and early-July 2024; EXACT dates for each Institute will be communicated in spring 2024). Each Institute includes a four-week academic residency component and, if possible, up to two weeks of an integrated study tour to another region of the United States.  Prospective applicants are encouraged to visit https://exchanges.state.gov/non-us/program/study-us-institutes-scholars to obtain general information about the Institutes.

Participants are expected to fully engage in all aspects of the program, to include attending all lectures and organized activities and completing assigned readings. Family members and/or friends may not accompany participants on any part of the U.S. components of the program.

Please note that should health, safety, and travel conditions pose significant challenges, SUSI will pivot to a virtual format.

Program Tracks 

There are six different program tracks to cater to different areas of interest/ research/ teaching:

• The Institute on American Politics and Political Thought will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced and highly motivated foreign university faculty and practitioners insight into how intellectual and political movements have influenced American political institutions and American democracy.  The Institute will explore the shaping of American identity and the interaction between that identity and U.S. history, politics, and the democratic process.  The Institute will cover a broad range of American experiences that have influenced and been influenced by American national identity.  The Institute will provide a deeper understanding of major currents in U.S. political thought, from the colonial period to the present, and explore contemporary U.S. political and social debates and public policy, relating them back to U.S. political thought and American identity.  The University of Montana will administer this program while the University of Massachusetts in Amherst, Massachusetts, will host this Institute.
• The Institute on Contemporary American Literature will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced and highly motivated foreign university faculty and practitioners with a deeper understanding of U.S. society and culture, past and present, through an examination of contemporary American literature.  The Institute will examine how major contemporary writers, schools, and movements reflect the traditional and evolving U.S. literary canon.  The Institute will also explore the diverse communities and voices that constitute the American literary landscape and expose participants to writers who are establishing new directions for American literature.  The Institute will cover a variety of contemporary American writers and texts and suggest how the themes explored reflect larger currents within contemporary U.S. society and culture.  The University of Montana in Missoula, Montana, will administer and host this Institute.
• The Institute on Journalism and Media will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced and highly motivated foreign journalism instructors and other related specialists with a deeper understanding of the roles that journalism and the media play in U.S. society.  The Institute will examine the role of journalists in recognizing, pointing out and preventing disinformation and will explore strategies for media and information literacy to counter disinformation.  Additionally, the Institute will examine best practices in journalism by discussing the rights and responsibilities of the media in a democratic society, including editorial independence, journalistic ethics, legal constraints, and international journalism.  The program will also highlight the impact of technology in journalism, including the influence of the digital economy, globalization of the news media, shifting business and funding models, and other changes that are transforming the profession.  The University of Montana will administer this program while Arizona State University in Tempe, Arizona, will host the Institute.
• The Institute on U.S. Culture, Identity, and Society will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced and highly motivated foreign university faculty and other specialists with a deeper understanding of U.S. society, culture, values, and institutions through the lens of diversity and national unity.  The Institute will examine the economic, ethnic, gender, political, racial, religious, and social contexts in which various cultures have manifested in U.S. society while focusing on the ways in which these cultures have influenced social movements and American identity throughout U.S. history.  The program will draw from a diverse disciplinary base and will provide a model of how a foreign university might approach the study of American culture and society.  The University of Montana will administer this program while Seattle University in Seattle, Washington, will host the Institute.
• The Institute on U.S. Economics and Sustainable Development will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced foreign university faculty, researchers, practitioners, and policymakers with a deeper understanding of key components and structures of the U.S. economy.  Using a multidisciplinary approach, the program will explore various topics of socioeconomics such as how financial institutions, investors, and businesses interact to support sustainable economic development, innovation, and growth; and increasing diverse and equitable employment through institutional regulation, social inclusion strategies, and private and public policies.  Throughout the Institute, participants will examine the interplay of climate change, U.S. business innovation, corporate regulation, entrepreneurship, and economic theory.  Participants will have opportunities to learn about key institutions and stakeholders in the U.S. economy and meet with a diverse range of business leaders and small business owners, among others.  The University of Montana will administer this program while the Institute for Training and Development (ITD), in conjunction with Suffolk University, will jointly host the Institute in Amherst and Boston, Massachusetts.
• The Institute on U.S. Foreign Policy will provide a multinational group of 18 experienced and highly motivated foreign university faculty and practitioners with a deeper understanding of new approaches to U.S. foreign policy and how U.S. foreign policy is formulated and implemented.  The Institute will include a historical review of significant events, individuals, and philosophies that have shaped U.S. foreign policy.  The program will explain the role of key influences on U.S. foreign policy including the executive and legislative branches of government, the media, the U.S. public, think tanks, non-governmental organizations, and multilateral institutions.  The Institute will also examine the current U.S. foreign policymaking landscape and emerging trends that are shaping policy.  The University of Montana will administer this program while the University of Delaware will host the Institute in Newark, Delaware.

Award Information 

Selected participants will be awarded the following:

• International airfare
• Housing and subsistence while in the U.S.
• Book, cultural, mailing, and incidental allowances
• Health insurance while in the U.S.
• U.S. visa support

Eligibility and Preferred Qualities: 

• Singaporean citizens or Singaporean permanent residents
• Scholars and professionals with at least six years of experience and substantial knowledge of the thematic area of the Institute (Participants are generally aged 30-50 and come from institutions of higher education or research-focused organizations such as non-profits and think-tanks)
• Ideal candidates are individuals whose home institution is seeking to introduce aspects of U.S. studies into its curricula, to develop new courses in the subject of the Institute, to enhance and update existing courses on the United States, or to offer specialized seminars/workshops for professionals in U.S. studies areas related to the program theme.
• Dedicated to their field of expertise as demonstrated through past scholarship, accomplishments, and professional duties
• Little to no experience in the U.S. is preferred

Timeline 

• October 4, 2023: Competition Opens
• November 3, 2023: Application Deadline
• Week of November 20, 2023: Interviews with Shortlisted Candidates
• Week of December 11, 2023: Notification of Candidacy by the Embassy
• Late-March 2024/ Early-April 2024: Selected Participants are Notified
• Late-May 2024 or Later: Program Commences