U.S.-based students must apply through the IIE website. The following are required:

• An online application
• A letter of invitation from the professor who will guide your research from your first choice host university in China; this professor must hold the rank of Associate Professor or higher.
• 2 letters of recommendation
• Language Evaluation
• Research proposal related to your doctoral area of study
• GRE scores (if available)*
• One set of official transcripts from all post-secondary degree granting institutions must be mailed in hard copy form to IIE’s offices by the deadline.
• Unofficial transcripts from all post-secondary degree-granting institutions must be uploaded into the Embark application system (accompanied by an official English translation if not in English)
• HSK score report** (required for the Ph.D. in China Fellowships, optional for the Research Ph.D. Fellowship)
• Master’s thesis abstract (Ph.D. in China Fellowship applicants only)
• Applicants to PKU will need to submit a separate online PKU application in addition to the online IIE application

*Applicants to the Research Ph.D. Fellowship who were not required to take the GRE for admission to their home institution in the U.S. do not need to submit GRE scores. Applicants to the Ph.D. in China Fellowship should confirm with their intended host institution in China whether the GRE will be required.

**It is recommend that applicants for the Research Ph.D. Fellowship take the HSK and receive a score of 3 or higher. Applicants for the Ph.D. in China Fellowship are required to take the HSK and must receive a score of at least 5. The HSK main page from the program’s sponsor provides information on test dates and locations. Your HSK scores should be uploaded into your Embark online application by the deadline. Applicants who are unable to receive their scores until after our deadline should plan to submit their scores as soon as possible after they are available. All other components of the application must submitted by the application deadline. If you are applying for the Research Ph.D. Fellowship and do not submit HSK scores, your application will still be considered and will not be at a disadvantage. We will use the Foreign Language Evaluation Report as a substitute to evaluate your Chinese language proficiency.

As part of the application process, applicants will be asked to indicate their first and second choice from among the Chinese universities participating in this program. Every effort will be made to accommodate your first choice, but we recommend that students be prepared for placement at their second choice institution.

With the exception of Peking University (PKU), the application for this fellowship constitutes the application to the host institution.