GPAST Call For Thesis Grant and Research Fellowship Program

Scholarship 21 Sep 2022 1295 0

Gandaki Province Academy Science And Technology (GPAST) invites for Thesis Grant & Research Fellowship. The Thesis and Research Fellowship Program Terms of References (TOR) as mentioned below.

Deadline: 31st Ashoj 2079

Thematic Areas:

1. Agricultural and agronomic sciences

2. Animal, veterinary and fishery and sciences

3. Engineering and allied subjects

4. Forest, environment, ecology, and climate sciences

5. Geography and geosciences.

6. Health and allied sciences

7. IT, computer, and allied sciences.

8. Natural sciences

(Not in any particular Order)

For details, please visit http://gpast.gandaki.gov.np

Feel free to contact at [email protected]

Contact Number: 9856086486

How to apply:

Prepare a single Pdf with the following documents and email it within the deadline.

a. Master Thesis

1. Cover Letter (which describes your motivation and interest in the project).

2. Resume

3. Academic Certificates and Transcripts

4. Recommendation Letter from College/University (should prove that student is in the final year of Master's Degree)

5. Proposal Acceptance Letter from the Supervisor (should show that he/she is ready to supervise)

6. Proposal (Technical and Financial), the format provided in the Annex of Thesis and Research Fellowship Criteria, 2078 (First Amendment 2079)

b. Research Fellowship

1. Cover Letter (which describes your motivation and interest in the research)

2. Resume

3. Academic Certificates and Transcripts of students to be involved in the project.

4. Letter from College/University to supervise Master's Degree students

5. Proposal (Technical and Financial). Please apply with a single proposal if you have multiple projects/students. Clearly mention the number of projects/students and other details such as cash/service/materials in the - proposal

Maximum Grant Amount:

Program	Grant Type	Max. Amount
Master's Thesis	Cash	50,000/-
Master's Thesis	*Cash and/or Equipment	1,00,000/-
Research Fellowship	Cash / Equipment	5,00,000/-

*Cash not exceeding 50,000

Who Can Apply / Eligibility

For Master's Thesis Grant: Master's degree Final Year Students with the thesis as the requirement for fulfillment of their degree from the Institutions within Gandaki province.

For Research Fellowship:

Principal Investigator (PI) (Academic staff/Researchers/Professors) of colleges and universities within Gandaki Province interested in scientific research as a research project by supervising Students for master's/Bachelor's thesis.

Thesis and Research Fellowship Program Terms of References (TOR) of Gandaki Province Academy of Science and Technology (GPAST) Pokhara, Bhadra 2079

Activity Summary:

Activity Title: Thesis and Research Fellowship Program

Total grant amount available: RS. 15,00,000/-

Starting Date: Immediately after agreement or work order

Completion Date: End of Jestha 2080

Target: Final year master’s students and academic staff/researchers/professors from the universities in Gandaki Province

Background:

Gandaki Province Academy of Science and Technology (GPAST) is an autonomous governmental organization established in 2076 by the Gandaki Province Government to promote science and technology-related activities in the province by conveying development, prosperity, and improved service delivery by introducing science-based solutions to Economic, Social, and Environmental aspects.

The academy aims to advance in the field of agricultural and agronomic sciences, animal, veterinary and fishery sciences, engineering and allied subjects, forestry, environment, ecology, and climate sciences, geography and geosciences, health and allied sciences, I.T., computer, and natural sciences.

The academy is committed to assisting in the provincial development plan and advancing the province’s developmental goals. As an essential governmental agency, it involves relevant government institutions, ministries, universities, and other organizations to achieve its goals and advise the government on evidence-based policymaking.

To achieve its goals, the academy plan for the active engagement of the students and researchers to enhance scientific research on areas of special importance with the active involvement of scholars from all disciplines within the Gandaki province.

Through the master thesis and research fellowship program, students and faculty will have an opportunity to carry out their research projects. This program will not only help the students to complete their Master’s Degree Thesis and in development of knowledge, skills, and expertise in the field of science and technology but also enhance the research culture and make the active engagement of research institutions in the overall development of S&T in Gandaki Province.

To maintain uniformity and transparency in the financial and evaluation process, the program will be conducted according to the criteria set by Thesis and Research Fellowship Criteria, 2078 (First Amendment, 2079).

Objectives of the Program

Major objectives :

Provide institutional support to improve the thesis quality.
Promote research culture in preparing the thesis for academic degree fulfillment.
Encourage active engagement of University faculties in thesis supervision.
Develop future researchers to advance STI in Gandaki Province. ➢ Raise the research capacity of researchers and research institutions.

The Specific objectives of this program are to:

Enhance the research capacity of students and academicians in Gandaki Province
Support research activities of students and academicians in Gandaki Province

Available Research Grants

Successful applicants will be provided a Thesis and fellowship grant to support their research projects. The grant can be used to procure equipment, services, or cash expenditure on project-related costs.

Master’s Thesis Program

Master’s degree students studying Science and Technology in the final year who have a thesis as the requirement for fulfillment of their degree from the institutions within Gandaki Province. Such programs will help the students to complete their Master’s Degree Thesis and for the development of knowledge, skills, and expertise in the field of science and technology

Research Fellowship Program

Principal Investigator (PI) (Academic staff/Researchers/Professors) from institutions within Gandaki Province will be provided this grant. The Research Fellow/P.I. should have at least a Master’s Degree, preferably a Ph.D. In addition, P.I. should supervise and mobilize at least two students for their thesis requirements. Such Fellowship programs should support the promotion of research culture and make the active collaboration between faculty and students in the academic institutions.

Master thesis students and Research Fellows will be provided with a maximum of up to NRs 100,000 (One lakh) and NRs 500,000 (Five lakh), respectively. Master thesis grantees can apply for a maximum of up to NRs 50,000 (Fifty thousand) for cash expenditure or up to NRs 100,000 (One lakh) for equipment and/or cash. However, Research fellows can apply up to N.R.s. 500,000 (Five lakhs) for equipment, services, or cash expenditure but must supervise at least two students.

Thematic Areas

The following thematic areas in accordance with annual programs of GPAST for Fiscal Year 2079/80 has been selected for Thesis and Research Fellowship Program.

Agricultural and agronomic sciences
Animal, Veterinary, and fishery sciences
Engineering and allied subjects
Forest, environment, ecology, and climate sciences
Geography and Geosciences
Health and allied sciences
T., computer and allied sciences.
Natural sciences

Application Call

Applicants can apply for the Thesis and Research fellowship throughout the year. Applications will be evaluated and awarded in two rounds to adjust the Course schedule of different institutions and provide maximum research period for grant recipients.

The applications applied From Baisakh to the end of Ashoj month will be evaluated and awarded in Kartik month. The applications applied From Karthik to the end of Chaitra month will be assessed and awarded in the Shrawan month of the coming fiscal year.

All the details will be provided on the GPAST website (https://gpast.gandaki.gov.np/).

The number of grants to be awarded depends upon the applicants for Thesis Grant (Cash/Equipment/other services) and Research Fellowship. Academy is committed to providing at least one grant in all the categories.

Who Can Apply

Final year Master Degree students studying in institutions within Gandaki Province
Principal Investigator (PI) (Academic staff/Researchers/Professors) of colleges and universities within Gandaki Province interested in scientific research as a research project by supervising Students for master’s/Bachelor’s Thesis Projects. The Bachelor thesis should be industry-related work or with an industrial partner.

Grant Allocation

Successful applicants will be provided the fellowship grant to procure equipment, services, or cash expenditure on project-related costs. Applicants should indicate the expenditure plan in their application/proposal. Please note that the payment for the materials/equipment can be through GPAST. The selection committee has the right to decide.
Master thesis students and Research Fellows will be provided with a maximum of up to NRs 1,00,000.00 (One lakh) and NRs 500,000.00 (Five lakh), respectively.
Research Fellow / Principal Investigator (PI) (Academic staff/Researchers/Professors(Asst./Asso./Lecturers)) should supervise at least two students and priority will be given to a maximum number of projects with a higher number of students involvement.

Documents Required

a. Master Thesis

Cover Letter (which describes your motivation and interest in the project)
Resume
Academic Certificates and Transcripts
Recommendation Letter from College/University (should prove that student is in the final year of Master Degree)
Proposal Acceptance Letter from the Supervisor (should show that he/she is ready to supervise)
Proposal (Technical and Financial), the format provided in the Annex of Thesis and Research Fellowship Criteria, 2078 (First Amendment 2079)

b. Research Fellow

Cover Letter (which describes your motivation and interest in the research)
Resume
Academic Certificates and Transcripts of students to be involved in project.
Letter from College/University to supervise Master’s Degree students
Proposal (Technical and Financial). Please apply with a single proposal if you have multiple projects/students. Clearly mention the number of projects/students and other details such as cash/service/materials in the proposal

Selection Criteria/Evaluation

Following Considerations will be made while selecting the proposal according to the Thesis and Research Fellowship Criteria, 2078 (First Amendment 2079). First of all, the preliminary screening will be done by GPAST, and only complete applications and proposals within the thematic area of this program (Clause 3 of Thesis and Research Fellowship Criteria, 2078 (First Amendment 2079) will be reviewed by the members of the Technical Committee.

Suppose none of the committee members have expertise in the area pertaining to an application. In that case, the technical committee has the right to hire an expert (internal or external) to facilitate the overall evaluation process.

Master thesis and research fellow application will be evaluated separately and based on the evaluation criteria (Clause 6 of Thesis and Research Fellowship Criteria, 2078 (First Amendment 2079).

The technical committee will provide the merit list of successful and alternative candidates/applications to GPAST. There will be a separate merit list of successful and alternative candidates/applications for Master Thesis and Research Fellow.

Please note that if there are insufficient applications for either of the grants (Master Thesis or Research Fellow), the number of grantees might vary.

GPAST has the full authority to allocate the number of grants for master thesis and research fellow depending upon the application pool.

The selection criteria for the proposal (Master thesis and Research Fellow) is given below:

S.N	Criteria		Mark
1	Background & Rationale of Study		15
2	Objectives		10
3	Theoretical / Research Framework		15
4	Methodology		20
5	Technical Writing		10
6	Literature Review& Citation		10
7	Timeline		10
8	Budgeting		10
		Total	100

Time Schedule

The project’s duration is six months from the date of contract signature. The following table gives the indicated period for the execution of the activities. The grantees should submit the following reports to the GPAST within the prescribed time.

S. N	Reports	Duration	No. of Copy/Form	Minimum Contents of the Report
1	Inception Report	1 Month after signing the contract	1/ digital copy as a word document	Detailed work plan, methodology, conceptual plans/ design
2	Midterm Report	2 months after submission of the inception report	1/ digital copy as a word document	Preliminary data and Analysis plan
3	Draft Report	1^st week of Jestha after submission of the draft report.	1/ hard copy and a digital copy (word document)	Draft report as per TOR
4	Final Report	By the end of Jestha	1/ color print hard copy and a digital copy (word document and PDF)	The final report in the standard format.
Note: For Research fellows, individual inception, mid-term, draft, and final report must be submitted for each project and each student thesis

Mode of Payment

Payments are made at percentages of the total contract value based on the students/researchers satisfactorily achieving the key milestones. In addition, all the invoices will be cross-verified, and submission of forgery bills will be penalized per the rules and regulations. Payments will be made after the submission of the students/researcher’s invoices according to the following schedule:

30% of the contract amount after submission of the Inception Report
Up to 80% in the purchase of equipment on a Running Bills basis
The remaining 20% of the contract amount upon acceptance of the Final Report. (This amount is subjected to the final evaluation of the report and activities. The evaluation committee may recommend releasing a full or a certain percentage of this amount according to the criteria set by the committee.

Expected outputs

Concrete, a technically sound, implementable, complete, and acceptable hard and electronic copy of the report with sufficient data, designs, and figures shall be submitted by the Grantee.

Proposal Format For Thesis Grant and Research Fellowship.

Introduction
- Background
- Rationale of the Study
- Literature Review
- Objectives of the Study
- Scope and Limitations of the Study
- Theoretical Framework
Methods and Materials
- Study Area
- Data Collection
- Data Analysis