Junior Faculty Development Program

The Florida State University is a host institution for the Junior Faculty Development Program (JFDP), inviting visiting faculty from a variety of countries in Southeastern Europe and Eurasia, and from a variety of disciplines.  Participating Departments at The Florida State University include: Art, Communication, Economics, International Affairs, Public Administration and Policy, and Textiles and Consumer Sciences.

JFDP is a program of Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State. JFDP is administered by American Councils for International Education. JFDP is a non-degree, professional development program that provides promising international junior university faculty with the opportunity to:

• Expand knowledge and expertise in their respective academic fields by attending classes and working with faculty members at universities in the United States.
• Garner new educational perspectives with exposure to U.S. educational philosophy and methods.
• Gather new academic materials and resources.
• Forge relationships between U.S. universities and their home universities, in order to support ongoing contact and collaboration.

Fellows selected by American Councils visit FSU for the Spring semester only. They are required to regularly visit classes in their field of study, but are not expected to formally enroll or receive grades. The experience is meant to convey a typical American classroom setting, class expectations, class syllabus, and teaching style. The fellows have an academic advisor in the department who should provide guidance on appropriate courses, professional development opportunities, and academic resources on campus and in the community. Departments have no financial commitment to the visiting fellow, but typically provide shared office space, computer access, and a courtesy appointment, which allows full access to the libraries, online journals, and other university services.

Fellows may be asked to give one-time lectures or short seminar courses, depending upon their level of English proficiency and their expertise in their subject area. Departments should not usually expect a fellow to be able to regularly co-teach or assume a high level of responsibility for academic course content.

Fellows typically apply for this program in late summer through American Councils for International Education. American Councils selects eligible fellows and posts profiles available to the host institution in early October. Academic departments may request as many fellows as they wish, but typically only 1-3 fellows are placed at a single institution. Fellows arrive at FSU in January, the program is completed in early to mid-May, and fellows must return home at that time. The International Center applies each year on behalf of FSU, the host institution. Individual academic departments do not need to complete this host application, but should instead request the host login and password from FSU's JFDP Program Coordinator the International Center to view profiles and request fellows.

For more information, visit JFDP.