Objectives of the Thesis Grant
In general, the awarding of thesis research grants aims to increase the number of qualified human resources in higher learning institutions and government agencies where the grantees are affiliated with the expectation that they would contribute to the development of Indonesia in the area of tropical biology and natural resources management.  The specific objectives are as follows:

1. To provide PhD students the opportunity to work and be mentored by SEAMEO BIOTROP scientists on specific research areas that are mutually of interest to the students, their institutions, and the Centre
2. To produce quality research outputs related to tropical biology that would have direct application to address development concerns of Indonesia;
3. To maximize the use of facilities and equipments available at SEAMEO BIOTROP for the grantees’ research; and
4. To produce quality research papers for journal publication.

Eligibility Requirements
A PhD student could be eligible to apply for the thesis grant if he/she could satisfy the following requirements:

1. Must be currently pursuing a PhD program in agriculture, forestry, natural resource management, and related sciences from any reputable university in Indonesia.
2. Must have already completed his/her course work with an approved thesis research proposal and is ready to conduct the research.
3. His/Her research topic must focus on any of SEAMEO BIOTROP’s program thrusts (Please refer to call for research proposals)
4. Corollary to No. 3, the applicant’s research topic must also have direct implications to the following cross-cutting developmental concerns:
1. poverty alleviation, and
2. climate change adaptation and mitigation

Application requirements:

1. Duly completed Application Form (please refer to Call for Research Proposals)
2. Letter of application addressed to Dr.  Irdika Mansur, SEAMEO BIOTROP Director;
3. Recommendation letter from the Dean of Graduate School of the university where the applicant is pursuing his/her degree program;
4. Thesis research proposal approved by the applicant’s Advisory Committee and Dean of Graduate School;
5. Budgetary requirement of the thesis research with recommendation from the applicant’s major adviser and Dean of Graduate School;
6. Certified copy of grades for all courses taken at the PhD level;
7. Curriculum vitae;
8. Applicant’s letter certifying that he/she is not receiving any other research grant from any other institution; and
9. The proposal must have the following components:
1. Title (The title of the project must be clear, concise, and attractive to generate interest/participation from all actors that are expected to be involved in the implementation of the project)
2. Background/Rationale (This section should clearly specify the issues and concerns that the project would like to address. Why is it important to undertake the project?  Who will benefit and how?)
3. Objectives (The objectives must be concrete enough against which the project’s success or failure can be assessed)
4. Review of Related Literature (This must situate the proposal on the current body of knowledge on the subject of the research.  Related literature to be cited in the proposal must not be older than 5 years)
5. Components and Methodologies (This section must answer how the project objectives can be achieved with the components and methodologies that the project would adopt.  It should also specify the partners that would be involved in the implementation of the project)
6. Timetable of Activity Implementation (This would specify the overall duration of the project broken down into specific time allocation to undertake the various components and activities)
7. Monitoring and Evaluation Plan (This section should specify the way the progress of the project would be assessed according to its objective and timeframe by component, and including the people who will be involved)
8. Expected Outputs and Outcomes (This section should enumerate the concrete/tangible outputs and outcomes that the project is expected to produce in relation to its objectives)
9. Estimated Budgetary Requirements (The budget must include among others personnel services, travel, materials, equipment and facilities rentals)
10. All documents must be in English.

Evaluation Criteria
The research proposals would be subjected to internal as well as external review by a committee that SEAMEO BIOTROP shall form following a set of criteria that the Centre currently uses as follows:

1. Relevance of the Proposal (20%)
2. Scientific Rigor of the Proposal Components (60%)
3. Research Capability of the Proponent/s (10%)
4. Feasibility of the Period of Implementation (5%)
5. Budget Feasibility (5%)

Implementation Scheme:
The grantee will sign a contract with SEAMEO BIOTROP specifying his/her duties and responsibilities and expected outputs within the duration of the grant.

Privileges:
A grantee will be entitled to the following:

1. Thesis research fund within the prescribed limit of BIOTROP-DIPA allocation
2. Access to SEAMEO BIOTROP laboratory facilities and services
3. Technical guidance from SEAMEO BIOTROP scientists

Application deadline:  30 August 2017 11 September 2017
Applicants are advised to send the complete set of application documents to:
Dr. Jesus C. Fernandez
Deputy Director for Programme and Marketing
SEAMEO BIOTROP
Jln. Tajur Raya Km 6, Bogor 16134, Indonesia 
Telp: 0251-8323848
Email: j.fernandez@biotrop.org