Fulbright Police Studies Fellowships

Award Description

The Fulbright Police Research Fellowships are offered to enable British police officers and civilian staff to spend between three and six months in the US developing their professional expertise and gaining experience of American policing. Applicants must submit a proposal for research to be completed during the period of the Fellowship and applications must be endorsed by the applicant’s chief officer or Head of HR. Awards are for £7,500.

Deadline

The deadline for application for Fulbright Police Research Fellowships for academic year 2008-2009 has now passed. Please cheack back after May 2008 for announcment of the 2009-2010 awards cycle.

Selection Criteria

The Fellowships are open to all ranks of police officers and civilian staff. Female and ethnic minority staff are particularly encouraged to apply. Applicants should be able to demonstrate the following:

• The relevance of their application to their own work and their home force

• The wider implication for national policing

• Their ability to undertake independent research in the US

• A clear plan for transferring their newly acquired expertise on their return to the UK, including the submission of a detailed report of their research for distribution to their Chief Officer, ACPO and the Home Office.

A selection panel, drawn from the Home Office, ACPO, the FBI, Centrex and the Fulbright Commission will short-list applicants for interview in March 2008. Final approval of selected candidates will be given by the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board (FSB) in Washington DC.

Academic Affiliation

Candidates for the Police Research Fellowship are not required to follow a course, but should have an academic affiliation during the award period. Candidates should investigate possible affiliation with an academic institution(s) in the area in which they wish to be based. This contact should be supplemented with contact with local police forces for assistance in practical matters. US universities with courses in the following subject areas may be suitable for the fellowship: Police Science, Law Enforcement, Criminology, Criminal Justice, and Corrections.

The Educational Advisory Service (EAS) at Fulbright House has postgraduate-level course directories that list all American university courses by subject area and geographic location. EAS is open to the public on Mondays 1.30 to 7.00 pm and on Wednesdays and Fridays 1.30 to 5.00 pm.

Relevant institutions in the US are usually also willing to allow Police Fellows to participate in classes if appropriate and to have contact with those working in Police Research. In return, the Police Fellows can be a resource for the Department by offering to speak to students and faculty about policing in the UK.

Please refer to our list of past Police alumni for ideas on research topics and host US institutions.

It is not necessary for candidates to confirm an affiliation prior to submitting their application for the fellowship. However, it is advantageous to have identified a few potential host institutions and this should be reflected in the application form.

Benefits

• Awards are for £7,500.

• Health and accident insurance.

• Visa paperwork administered by the Fulbright Commission

• A 2-day pre-departure cultural orientation in London in June/July 2008.

Terms

• Candidates must be active domestic police officers or civilian staff .

• Candidates should note that any academic fees will be their responsibility.

• Where possible, applications should include a letter of invitation from their host institution in the US.

• Fulbright awards are offered to UK citizens (regardless of where they currently reside) only. Non-UK citizens are required to apply through the Commission in their country of citizenship. Dual UK citizens must apply in the country in which they currently reside; if not resident in either country then applications must be made through the Commission in the country in which they have resided the longest period of time. US nationals, those with dual US-UK citizenship and those resident in the US may not apply.

• Interviews will be held in London in April 2008.

Conditions

• The successful applicant will be issued with a J-1 visa which requires the holder to return to the UK for a minimum of two years on completion of the fellowship before applying for work or residence visas. (Tourist trips are not affected).

• The award is offered conditional upon the approval of the J William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board (FSB) in the United States.

• A full report will be required at the end of the fellowship.

The Fulbright Commission is unable to comment on the reason for unsuccessful applications.

Applications

Fulbright Police Research Fellowship applications, additional guidelines and requirements.

Research Themes

A list of general themes for possible research is compiled annually by The Commission, the Association of Chief Police Officers and the Home Office, based on issues of particular relevance to UK policing at the time. It is not obligatory to choose one of these topics.

• New Technology-Based Crime
Topics may include methods for committing crimes, such as picture messaging and the internet. Crime might include web-based child pornography or computer hacking.

• Serious, Organised, Trans-national Crime
This may include terrorism, drug trafficking, money laundering, gangs, smuggling, intelligence-gathering. Bear in mind that research must be practically achievable: do not choose a topic for which you cannot get security clearance. Focus on topics such as investigative models, police policy and procedure or financing, not on individual cases.

• Community Engagement
This may include public security, policing the vulnerable, social exclusion and anti-social behaviour, community partnerships and interaction, handling the media, and policing visibility.

• Modernising the Police Work Force
Topics may include utilising resources, encouraging the development of leadership and/or specialist skills within the force, multi-agency co-operation and partnership

• Accountability of police
Topics might incorporate human rights law, internal investigation procedures, evaluating police performance, improving operational effectiveness.

• Recruitment
Topics may include under-represented groups within policing, internal prejudice, advertising and media-influenced image, retention of staff, continued learning.