Funding

Fully Funded

Program dates

TBA

Fellowship•USA

Borlaug Fellowship Program

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Foreign Agricultural Service (FAS)

Application Deadline

Rolling admission

Official Page

The Borlaug International Agricultural Science and Technology Fellowship Program is run by the Foreign Agricultural Service of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. It brings scientists, researchers and policymakers from developing and middle-income countries to the United States for training and collaborative research. Each fellow is paired one-on-one with a mentor at a U.S. university, research center or government agency, usually for eight to twelve weeks. The mentor then travels to the fellow’s home institution to carry the collaboration on there. Fellows may also attend professional events in their field, including the annual World Food Prize Symposium. The program is named for Norman E. Borlaug, the American agronomist and Nobel laureate, and has run since 2004. USDA presents it as a way to build food security, economic growth and science-based trade policy, and past fellows have worked on agronomy, veterinary science, nutrition, food safety, natural resource management, agricultural biotechnology, agricultural economics and agricultural policy.

Benefits & funding

  • A one-on-one placement with a named U.S. mentor at a university, research center or government agency, usually 8–12 weeks.
  • A return visit by that mentor to the fellow’s home institution, continuing the collaboration after the U.S. stay.
  • Access to professional conferences and events in the fellow’s field, such as the annual World Food Prize Symposium.
  • Costs are carried by USDA through the grants it awards to the U.S. host institutions, which cover curriculum, technical mentorship and logistics. FAS does not publish a per-fellow stipend or allowance figure.
  • The 2026 funding round put USD 2.625 million into six Borlaug programs, each worth up to USD 750,000.

Eligibility

  • Citizenship of one of the 34 countries USDA lists as eligible: Algeria, Bangladesh, Cambodia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Georgia, Ghana, Guatemala, Guinea, Honduras, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kenya, Liberia, Malawi, Malaysia, Mongolia, Morocco, Peru, Philippines, Rwanda, Senegal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Thailand, Tunisia, Türkiye, Uganda, Ukraine and Vietnam. USDA pairs each of them with a named agricultural affairs office at the local U.S. embassy, which is where that country’s call comes from.
  • A completed Master’s degree or higher.
  • At least two years of practical experience. The program is aimed at people in the early or middle stage of their career.
  • Fluency in English.
  • Employment at a university, government agency or research entity in the fellow’s home country.
  • A demonstrated intention to keep working in the home country after the fellowship.
  • The 2026 round funds programs focused on Vietnam, Uzbekistan and Egypt, plus biotechnology work across North Africa and Southeast Asia.
  • Individual fellows and host institutions apply on separate tracks. U.S. colleges, universities, land-grant institutions and state cooperative institutions compete for the grants that fund each program.

Can you apply?

Worth a closer look

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  • Eligible nationalities

    Algeria · Bangladesh · Cambodia · Costa Rica · Ecuador · Egypt · El Salvador · Ethiopia · Georgia · Ghana · Guatemala · Guinea

    + 22 more

    Honduras · Jordan · Kazakhstan · Kenya · Liberia · Malawi · Malaysia · Mongolia · Morocco · Peru · Philippines · Rwanda · Senegal · South Africa · Sri Lanka · Tanzania · Thailand · Tunisia · Türkiye · Uganda · Ukraine · Vietnam

    Not in your profile yet

  • Education required

    Master · PhD

    Not in your profile yet

  • Experience required

    ≥ 2 yrs

    Not in your profile yet

Sign in to check eligibility

We only check the criteria we have data for. Always confirm full eligibility on the official page before applying.

Application process

  1. 1
    Check whether a Borlaug call is open in your country. Calls come from the agricultural affairs office at the local U.S. embassy or from the U.S. institution running that country’s program. FAS maintains the program page but no central application window.
  2. 2
    Write a proposal and action plan of two to three pages, on a topic named in that call.
  3. 3
    Assemble the rest of the file: the application form, signed institutional approval, two letters of recommendation, official transcripts, and a copy of the passport identification page.
  4. 4
    Submit it the way the call specifies. Türkiye’s 2023 round, for example, took applications by email to the FAS office in Ankara.
  5. 5
    USDA reviews on academic and professional record, scientific competence, leadership potential, the likelihood that new ideas reach the home institution, adaptability in a cross-cultural setting, and fit with the call’s research topics and with food security and trade priorities.
  6. 6
    Selected fellows travel to the U.S. host institution. The mentor’s visit to the home institution follows about a year later.

Program timeline

  1. 14 August 2026

    Deadline for U.S. institutions to submit proposals for the 2026 Borlaug funding round, 11:59 p.m. EST

  2. Country-level fellow calls

    issued by FAS overseas offices once programs are funded; dates vary by country and are not published centrally

  3. Placement

    eight to twelve weeks at the U.S. host institution

  4. Mentor’s return visit

    about one year after the U.S. placement