Institute of Development Policy and Management

OAS –Institute of Development Policy and Management
2015 REDUCED TUITION OPPORTUNITIES
OAS Partnerships Program for Education and Training (PAEC)
The Organization of American States (OAS) and the Institute of Development Policy and Management (IOB),
through the OAS Partnerships Program for Education and Training (PAEC), are offering reduced tuition to
qualified candidates of the Americas to pursue the following IOB graduate degree progams.
PROGRAMS:
MODALITY:
LANGUAGE:
1. Master of Science in Globalisation and Development
2. Master of Science in Governance and Development
 Track 1: Governance, Peace and Conflict
 Track 2: Local Governance and Poverty Reduction
3. Master of Science in Development Evaluation and Management
 Track 1: National Institutions, Poverty Reduction Strategies and Aid
 Track 2: Development Interventions and Local Institutional Change
Onsite in Antwerp, Belgium.
English
DURATION:
1 year
Program application deadline (soft and hard copies): April 1st, 2015
OAS/IOB Reduced tuition application deadline: June 10th, 2015
IOB offers reduced tuition fees of:
1. 80 Euros in any of the above listed programs for candidates from OAS member states that are
considered under the OECD’s Development Co-operation Directorate (DCA) list as:
a. Least Developed Countries: Haiti;
b. Lower Middle Income Countries: Belize, Bolivia, El Salvador, Guatemala, Guyana, Honduras,
Nicaragua, Paraguay; living in their country of origin at the time of application.
and reduced tuition fees of:
2. 1,250 Euros for scholarship candidates living in other OAS Member States:
Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Barbados, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominica,
Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Grenada, Jamaica, Mexico, Panama, Peru, St. Kitts and Nevis, St.
Lucia, St. Vincent and the Grenadines, Suriname, The Bahamas, Trinidad and Tobago, United
States, Uruguay, Venezuela; living in their country of origin at the time of application.
DEADLINES:
BENEFITS:
IMPORTANT DATES:
April
June
June
June
1st
10th
20th
27th
2015
2015
ABOUT
IOB AND THE OAS
Application deadline
to program in IOB
Deadline to apply
to the OAS – IOB
reduced tuition
opportunity
2015
Official
announcement of
scholarship results
and selected
candidates
2015
Deadline to
accept or to
decline the
reduced tuition
offer
September September
14th
2016
2015
Classes begin
onsite in Antwerp,
Belgium.
s
Approximate
end-date of the
study program
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The General Secretariat of the Organization of American States
GS/OAS is the central and permanent organ of the Organization of American States (OAS). Through its
Department of Human Development and Education (DHDE), GS/OAS supports OAS member states in creating
policies and executing programs that promote human capacity development at all educational levels. By
enabling formative opportunities to citizens, DHDE strengthens democratic values and security under the
framework of regional integration. DHDE does this: (i) by supporting the efforts of OAS member states to
improve the quality of and equity in education; and (ii) by assisting the citizens of the Americas in realizing their
full potential by giving them access to knowledge and skills through training that improves the standard of living
for individuals, families and communities in the region.
Institute of Development Policy and Management
IOB is a multidisciplinary academic institution where people of different opinions, religions and nationalities
feel at home. It has several decades of experience in organizing international training programmes in the
field of development policy and management. The IOB is part of the University of Antwerp and is located on
the University’s City Campus. Every year, the Institute is home to some 100 students of approximately 30
different nationalities and from diverse academic and professional backgrounds. This provides for an
extraordinary multicultural and multidisciplinary learning environment. Our Master programmes and
international training courses are organized in English, but special facilities are offered to students from
other linguistic backgrounds.
The IOB aims to offer policy-oriented training that combines the latest social scientific insights with relevance
to the development challenge. Students are expected to learn from each other’s experiences as well as from
their exposure to living and working in a developed country. The IOB focuses on student-centered learning,
and its approach involves a mix of teaching methods (ex-cathedra lectures, individual and group assignments,
discussions, student presentations, literature-based independent study, seminars, guest lectures, analysis of
case studies, simulations, and individual tutoring).
I. IOB PROGRAMS INFORMATION
1. Student/Applicant’s profile: For admission into the program, applicants must hold a university degree
representing at least four years of study in the Social Sciences (Economics, Political Science, Sociology,
International Relations, or related disciplines), preferably at Master’s level, with good study results. Although
applicants with a four-year Bachelor’s degree can be admitted, priority will be given to those with a Master’s
degree. Applicants with only a three-year Bachelor’s degree do not qualify for admission to Master’s
programmes. Applicants with university degrees obtained under the European Bologna system must hold a
Master’s degree. Applicants must demonstrate a serious interest in development studies, and relevant
professional experience is also considered an advantage.
2. Study Location/Modality: Antwerp, Belgium
3. Study program start date: September 14th, 2015
4. Study program duration: 1 year
5. Approximate end date of the study program: September 2016
6. Language of instruction: English
7. Admission process:
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7.1 Before applying for admission, we encourage applicants to read the program description, and ensure
that the study area fulfills their expectations and interests.
7.2 Detailed information about the programs are available through the links indicated on page one (1) of
this announcement.
7.3 For admission into the program, applicants must hold a university degree of at least four years of
study in Social Sciences (Economics, Political Science, Sociology, International Relations, or related
disciplines), with good study results. Applicants with only a Bachelor degree of three years of study
will not be admitted to the Master’s programs. Applicants who obtained their University degree
under the European Bologna system, must hold a Master’s degree.
7.4 For admission into the program, applicants must demonstrate a serious interest in development
studies. Relevant professional experience is also considered an advantage.
7.5 The deadline to apply for admission to the program is: April 1st, 2015. Note that both the online
application form and the requested hard copies must be submitted by this date.
IMPORTANT: Please review all the information in your application before submission.
8. IOB contact information:
Applicants can contact the IOB Admission’s Office at greet.annaert@uantwerp.be for more information
on the IOB programs.
II. REDUCED TUITION BENEFITS AND PROGRAM COSTS
1. Benefits:
1.1 IOB offers a reduced tuition fee in any of the programs listed on page one (1) of this announcement,
of 80 Euros for candidates from OAS member states that are considered Least Developed Countries,
Low Income Countries and Lower Middle Income Countries; and of 1,250 Euros for scholarship
candidates living in other OAS Member States or living in their country of origin at the time of
application.
Scholarship benefits are subject to the academic performance of the awardee. In order to receive these benefits,
the awardee should not be reported with a low academic performance due to absences or failing courses.
2. Financial Responsibilities of Awardees:
2.1 The recipients of the reduced tuition will be responsible for payment of the following costs:
- Tuition fees (80 € / 1250 €);
- Costs related to application (certified documents, mailing costs, etc.)
- Costs related to visa (estimated cost 250 €)
- Study materials & study visits (estimated cost 500 €)
- Living expenses (estimated cost 600 € monthly)
- Accommodation expenses (estimated cost 350 € monthly)
- Round trip airfare (estimated cost 1000 €)
- Health insurance (estimated cost 80 €)
2.1.1 The remaining tuition fees; registration fees; immigration fees; research expenses; study visit;
settling-in fees; study materials; health insurance premium including administrative costs; living
expenses; round trip airfare; visa charges, etc.
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2.1.2
The applicants will need to show they have funds in their bank account to cover their tuition
fees and living expenses for the duration of the program and or stay in Belgium when they apply
for their visa.
2.2 These above expenses shall be the sole and exclusive responsibility of the scholarship recipients and the
scholarship recipients will be responsible for payment of the remaining tuition cost and any other costs
as needed to IOB.
2.3 The scholarship awardees will be responsible for all costs not mentioned above.
3. Eligibility Requirements:
3.1 Eligible candidates for receipt of the OAS-IOB reduced tuition must first be admitted to the Program.
Then the OAS and the IOB shall select reduced tuition recipients in accordance with the criteria and
recruitment and selection process of unconditional admission to an undergraduate program of IOB.
3.2 The student must not have received other academic scholarships from the OAS or from the IOB for the
same level of studies and/or programs as requested in the 2015 OAS/IOB application.
3.3 Be citizens and/or permanent legal residents of any OAS member state
3.4 OAS staff, individuals who maintain employment contracts with the OAS, the staff of Permanent
Missions to the OAS and their immediate relatives are not eligible to receive OAS/IOB scholarships.
3.5 No type of employment or commercial relationship shall be established between the OAS or IOB and
the PAEC OAS/IOB scholarship recipients. Similarly, the OAS and IOB shall not assume any type of
liability, whether civil, contractual or non-contractual, during the entire scholarship period
4. Process to apply for reduced tuition:
The candidate should begin the admission process to a degree program of IOB. For more information
STEP 1
on the application procedure, see click here.
First the IOB online application form should be duly completed. After having done this you will
automatically receive a confirmation email, giving an overview of all the required documents that
should be sent in hard copy directly to the admission office of the IOB/University of Antwerp. These
documents include:
a. A recent CV
b. A motivation letter
c. An authenticated photocopy of the applicant’s university degree.
d. An authenticated photocopy of the applicant’s transcript of academic records for each
academic year.
*Note: ‘Authenticated’ means that the copy must be authenticated by the Belgian diplomatic office in
the applicant’s country of origin or by the educational institution that issued the degree or by the
Ministry of Education of the applicant’s country. Translations of documents must be authenticated by
the Belgian Embassy in the applicant’s country: information about these authentications, grouped per
country, is available on http://diplomatie.belgium.be/en/services/legalisation_of_documents/
e. A document explaining the grading system (marks system) of the applicant’s home country or
university.
f. A document proving the applicant’s knowledge of English
g. Two letters of recommendation, preferably from (former) academic staff or from the
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applicant’s superiors in the organization
h. If applicable, an employer’s certificate stating the applicant’s present position within the
organization along with a description of the applicant’s professional responsibilities.
i. One recent passport size photo.
j. A photocopy of the applicant’s international passport.
Note that documents in English, French, German and Dutch are accepted. Documents in other
languages must be officially translated into English or French by a sworn translator and authenticated
by the Belgian Embassy.
The hard copies of the documents must be sent to:
Admission office
IOB / University of Antwerp
Prinsstraat 13
B - 2000 Antwerp
Belgium
The stamp of the postal office will be used as a proof for timely submission of your hard copies.
All applicants will receive an acknowledgement of receipt of their application by e-mail. The selection
procedure starts by the end of April 2015; results of academic selection will be announced by e-mail at
the latest by the mid-May.
If admitted academically to the program, candidates can request for a provisional admission letter. In
order to be fully accepted candidates should provide evidence of having sufficient financial resources to
cover the cost of the programme (minimum 800 Euros per month). A duly completed and signed
document ‘Means of subsistence’ (available upon request), should be submitted to the IOB Admission’s
office in order to receive an admission letter. This admission letter should be submitted to OAS before
June 10th, 2015 at the latest in order to be eligible for the OAS-IOB reduced tuition fee.
STEP 2
Gather the following documents which must be included with the completed OAS/IOB application form
to request reduced tuition, and in the following order:
1. Letter of (provisional) admission/proof of application to IOB;
2. Copy of government issued identification document; and
3. Curriculum Vitae or Resume, without attachments.
NOTE: Applicants must ensure that all information provided as part of the OAS Application
for reduced tuition is accurate, true and correct. While documents are sent electronically,
applicants must be able to present physical and original copies of these documents.
STEP 3
Draft the following essays: (each essay should have a minimum of 800 characters and maximum of
2900 characters)
 Essay 1: Describe how acquiring this academic degree will directly impact and enhance your
professional skills in your current job position or career.
 Essay 2: The OAS – PAEC Scholarship requires recipients to return to their country of citizenship or
legal residence for 2 years upon completion of the studies. Please explain how you intend to apply
the acquired knowledge and experience in the specific field of study that you pursue to the
development in your country or region.
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STEP 4
Complete and send the OAS/IOB Tuition Reduction Application Form, along with the above indicated
documents, which should be attached in pdf format and in one document in the order specified in Step
2.
STEP 5
The evaluation process, selection, and announcement of results will take place. During this period,
the candidate should await the announcement of the results, which will be published at
www.oas.org/scholarships in June 2015.
STEP 6
Acceptance of the tuition reduction will take place. Only the selected candidates will be contacted
via e-mail, which will include the official offer and the instructions on acceptance of the tuition
reduction.
STEP 7
Awardee should prepare for the beginning of the study program: preparation of travel, visa
application, among others. The IOB student secretariat will provide all the required information.
5. Selection Criteria
5.1
5.2
5.3
5.4
Acceptance of the tuition reduction
The merits and overall credentials of the candidate, including his/her academic and professional
background;
Geographical distribution of the applicants, taking into account the greater needs of the smaller and
relatively less developed economies;
Applicants whose proposals portray the highest potential for impact upon return to their countries of
origin; and
Gender diversity.
6. Duties and Responsibilities of the Student:
6.1 The tuition reduction will be formally awarded only after the selected awardees have signed the Form to
formally accept the reduced tuition offer and agree to its terms and conditions.
6.2 Awardees shall pay the remaining tuition fees and any other fees to IOB at registration before the
program start.
6.3 Neither the OAS nor the University shall assume any responsibility arising from the acceptance or
rejection of degree or diploma awarded by the University at educational institutions in the country of
origin of the scholarship recipient.
6.4 Applicants should take at least 4 weeks into account for their visa to be processed.
APPLY NOW!
For more information: www.oas.org/scholarships
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