Chair of the State of Qatar for Islamic Area Studies كرسي قطر لدراسات المنطقة الإسلاميةWaseda University

APPLICATION GUIDELINES

Objectives of the Qatar Chair Project

The aim of the Qatar Chair project at Waseda University is to enhance in-depth knowledge of issues related to Islamic Area Studies and to enrich and contribute to research in fields including, but not limited to, culture, energy, environment, economics, history. As such, the project involves a cross-sectoral, multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary approach to engage in innovative, thought-provoking studies beyond the framework of traditional research areas.

In addition, the Chair is building and maintaining academic links and cooperative institutional relationships with various leading universities, research institutes and think tanks related to the various aspects of Islamic Area Studies. In this respect, it promotes and manages various scholarly research projects on related topics, and organize a variety of talks, workshops, seminars, symposiums and conferences. The Chair encourages academic as well as cultural exchanges between Japan and the Islamic world, is educating and training a new generation of scholars and experts, equipping them with a deeper, more accurate and balanced understanding of the region, and ultimately enabling them to contribute to the development of inter-regional relationships. Through these activities the Chair shares its achievements with wider society through publishing high-quality academic literature and disseminating research outputs from the project that reflect its global approach to Islamic Area Studies.

The Chair is playing a major role in advancing academic interests in Islamic Area Studies and cultivating a more comprehensive understanding of the Islamic world both within Japan and beyond, further enhancing understanding and friendly relations with the region. In addition, it plays a positive role in promoting independent academic research, constructive dialogue, and broader cooperation, thus contributing to deeper and mutual empathy and understanding across cultures, civilizations, regions, and continents.

The Grants

In order to help achieve the above objectives, proposals are sought from Waseda University faculty and PhD students for small research projects related to Islamic Area Studies that can be funded by the Qatar Chair project, up to a maximum value of ¥1,000,000 each, that will lead to published outputs. Successful proposals are expected to be pursued primarily over the course of FY2025, although as the research may take longer they will be permitted to be carried over into FY2026 if required.

The projects that will be funded should aim to further understanding of a range of geographic regions of the Islamicate world, at any time in history, marshalling various methodologies from different academic fields.

The grant shall comply with the internal regulations of Waseda University as well as the Waseda University Research Funds Manual.

Number of Faculty Grants Accepted

Around 6.

Eligibility

• Those who have a project proposal related to the broad theme of ‘Islamic Area Studies’ are eligible to apply.
• Those with the status of professor, associate professor, assistant professor, teacher, tenure track professor, non-tenured professor, tenure track associate professor, non-tenured associate professor, tenure track assistant professor, non-tenured assistant professor, research associate at Waseda University, or PhD student at Waseda University as of the application deadline are eligible to apply. However, PhD students taking leave of absence from Waseda University, or whose student registration status is “Studying Abroad” (留学中) are not eligible.
• Faculty members who are on sabbatical are eligible to apply.
• PhD students who apply are required to have permission from their PhD supervisor to do so, and to provide a letter of recommendation from their supervisor as part of the application process.
• Those who apply must have conducted, in the three years prior to the date of application, activities such as reporting and presenting their research results to academic societies, study groups or symposia; publishing academic papers; or publishing books.
• It is possible to apply for a Qatar Chair Faculty Grant when already in receipt of research funding from elsewhere. It is possible to apply for funding in FY 2025 if the applicant was granted a Qatar Chair Faculty Grant in FY 2024. However, the FY 2024 project must have been completed before further funds can be granted.
• 1: Faculty who are recipients become ineligible for this research grant if they leave their position at Waseda University during the research period. In this case, a research outcome report for the period from the date of selection to the time of moving out must be submitted.

2: PhD students who are recipients become ineligible for this research grant 1) when they are no longer a student at Waseda University, following graduation or withdrawal, during the research period, 2) when they are taking leave of absence from Waseda University, or their student registration status is “Studying Abroad” (留学中).  In this case, a research outcome report for the period from the date of selection to the time of moving out must be submitted.

For Inclusion in the Application

Please ensure that the application addresses the following points:

• Please ensure the budget which is being applied for is realistic and relates to the project itself (¥1,000,000 is the maximum amount).
• That the application includes a clear statement of any previous research results related to the proposed project.
• Applicants should clearly outline future research outputs expected from the proposed project, first and foremost amongst which are written publications.
• Applicants who have received external funding, such as from the JSPS, for the same or similar research topic should clearly state this.  

Research Period

The research period is expected to be up to the end of FY2025 (March 31, 2026), although if necessary funds can be carried over into FY2026. The carryover is only allowed for one year.

Multiple Applications

Only one application per person per fiscal year is possible.

Application procedures

• Please download the Project Proposal Form
• Then, fill it in and email to [email protected] with the subject line “FACULTY GRANT: (NAME)”.
• PhD Students should also attach a letter of recommendation from their supervisor.

Application period

Application period: April 22 – May 16, 2025

Submission deadline: May 16, 2025 (23:59 JST)

Screening method

• A screening panel will confirm that the applicant meets the application requirements, and decide which projects will be funded.
• The criteria for deciding will be: the academic value of the proposed project; the likelihood of the project being successfully completed and leading to a peer reviewed publication, based on the proposal itself and especially the applicant’s research record in recent years; the relevance of the proposed project to the Qatar Chair project; and value for money.
• Following the initial screening process, the results will be submitted to the Qatar Chair operational committee for first approval, then management committee for final approval.
• The results of the screening process will be either fully “Accepted” or “Rejected”; there is no possibility of partial funding.
• Applications that do not meet the requirements or have some deficiency will be automatically rejected. Examples of deficiency include an incomplete application form; inadequacy of research plan content; no letter of recommendation for PhD student applicants.
• Applications for funding which exceeds the limit of ¥1,000,000 will be automatically rejected.

Timing of grant allocation decisions

Results will be notified by June 30, 2025

Results will be sent to applicants via email from the review committee.

 Duties of researchers who are granted Qatar Chair Faculty Grants

• Submission of Research outcome report
• Those who have been granted a Faculty Grant must submit a report to the Qatar Chair working group by the end of April 2026.
• The report should be in English, and be approximately 500 words in length.
• The report will be posted on the Qatar Chair website (as such, it can be viewed from outside of Waseda; please carefully consider the mention of items such as confidential matters).
• Publishing research outcomes in an English-language academic paper or book.
• It must be specified in the publication that a Qatar Chair Faculty Grant was granted to support the project, using the following statement: “The research for this article/chapter/book* was funded by the Chair of the State of Qatar for Islamic Area Studies at Waseda University”.

* Delete as appropriate.

• Usage of the research grant must be in accordance with the content of the research proposal at the time of application.
• The grants must be used to help with conference attendance, research trips to libraries and archives, and publication expenses, although this list is not exhaustive.
• The grants cannot be used to purchase research equipment such as computers, scanners, cameras, etc.
• The grant shall comply with the internal regulations of Waseda University as well as the Waseda University Research Funds Manual.
• The successful project proposals will be published on the Qatar Chair website.
• If a successful application wishes to decline their grant for unavoidable reasons, the researcher must submit a request to decline it.
• If the grant has been used, a research outcome report for the period up to the end of the research must be submitted.
• (Faculty members only) In case of suspending research for unavoidable reasons, such as maternity leave or absence from work due to injury, illness or disaster, an application for approval of suspension of research using the Qatar Chair Faculty Grant must be submitted. When resuming the research, a request for resumption of suspended research using the Qatar Chair Faculty Grant must be submitted.
• Any unused funds must be returned promptly.
• If the grant is used for inappropriate purposes, or recipients behave inappropriately with regards to social conventions, the review committee have the right to require reimbursement of all or part of the used grant or make recipients lose eligibility for the grant.

Other items

• The usage of personal information obtained from the applicants is limited. We shall not use personal information for the other purposes. If need should arise to obtain personal information for the purpose other than those mentioned above, the objective of the usage shall be clarified.
• In order to protect the intellectual property of the applicants and ensure fairness of the peer review system, reviewers will not disclose the content of the Research Proposal Documents or any other information, in whatever form, that they learn in the course of the review to outside parties including their superiors, colleagues, or subordinates.
• Reviewers will not use any information that they learn in the course of the review for their own benefit.
• Reviewers are obligated to keep the review materials under strict control.

Enquiries

Please send all enquiries to the review committee of Qatar Chair Project via: [email protected]