MSI Grants: PhD Sandwich Scholarship Program
MSI Fellowship Expands Eligibility to Include Local University Students in the Philippines
The MSI Fellowship is now open to PhD and MS students enrolled in local universities in the Philippines and MSIs.This prestigious program, funded by USAID, offers a unique opportunity to work closely with leading researchers at the International Rice Research Institute (IRRI) and gain invaluable hands-on experience in rice science research.
Fellows will have the chance to contribute to groundbreaking research on critical issues related to rice production and sustainability. There is one (1) available slot for an MSI PhD student and two (2) slots for local universities (one MS and one PhD). PhD students will participate in the program for 1.5 years, while MS students will engage for 12 months.
All scholars will receive mentorship from IRRI scientists and university supervisors, and their research will have a global impact by addressing the needs of farmers and advancing knowledge in the field of rice science.
- have gained admission to an approved course in an MSI or a local university in the Philippines
- For PhD applicants: have completed all Ph.D. coursework requirements or be enrolled in a Ph.D. program and be able to complete the remaining coursework and thesis within 1.5 years
- For MS applicants: have gained admission to an approved MS program and be able to complete the program within 12 months
- be involved in the field of rice science and related systems research
- be willing to work on any of the identified areas for the Ph.D. or MS research
- If already enrolled and applying for a sandwich program, be endorsed by his or her university supervisor
- possess adequate proficiency in the English language
- not be more than 35 years old at the time of application.
Qualified applicants must fill-out an online application through this apply button.
- Each scholarship covers airfare roundtrips and travel expenses, stipends, medical and accident insurance, laptop computer allowance, and research support. In special cases where additional training is deemed necessary, expenditures incurred to improve language proficiency and computer literacy may be covered under the scholarship.
- Deadline of applications: October 31, 2024
- Click here to apply!
Available Research Areas
Please refer to the table below for the available research topics and the respective IRRI supervising scientists. Note that, while there are eight research topics available, the PhD Sandwich Scholarship Program for 2023 will select and award only three students with their chosen research topic.
In this context through major policy thrust in South Asia, several farmer/community-led seed producer organizations/ companies in the form of enterprises (either led by collectives or by rural individual entrepreneurs) have been piloted to establish alternative seed system channels to strengthen seed delivery access and localization. Several such models are now in use in India and Bangladesh. The study aims to dive in detail into the strengths, weaknesses, and potential opportunities around such alternative institutions, their success or failure factors, and the needed support from the Policy domain and capture how these institutions can affect seed access, faster varietal scaling, and adoption among the farmers. The social, economic, and market aspects need to be studied for these institutions/enterprises.
Key Supervising Scientists
Dr. Swati Nayak
Scientist II – Seed Systems and Product Management
Dr. Sankalp Bhosale
Research Leader – Product Development & Varietal Replacement
To identify the genomic region(s) associated with iron deficiency tolerance we intend to utilize Artificial intelligence (AI) based models for trait discovery. AI models involve the use of machine learning algorithms to analyze large amounts of genomic data associated with the targeted traits which are complex in nature. Machine-learning and deep-learning-based developed models will be helpful for AI-based trait mapping to identify the specific genomic region(s) associated with tolerance to iron deficiency in rice plants grown under DSR conditions. Generated information can be useful to develop better DSR varieties.
Key Supervising Scientists
Dr. Pallavi Sinha
Scientist I – Plant Breeding
Under the USAID / Bayer project (2023—2025), numerous on-farm trials and demonstrations on DSR will be conducted together with farmers and other stakeholders in Kenya, Tanzania, and Mozambique. After the project, a study will be conducted to identify the constraints to the adoption and continuous use of DSR, compare DSR and TPR crop establishment systems in terms of labor cost, water requirements, and greenhouse gas emissions as well as examine perceptions of DSR among male and female farmers. In this regard, a survey will be conducted of farmers who will conduct DSR during the project period (2023—25), and a study conducted to determine their continuous use of DSR in the three countries. The findings of the study would be key in guiding policy interventions that will enhance the adoption of DSR and hence promote environmental sustainability in a world challenged by climate change.
Key Supervising Scientists
Dr. Daniel Menge
Scientist I – Seed Systems and Product Management
Dr. Ajay Panchbhai
Senior Scientist I – Seed Systems and Product Management
The seed germinates in response to flush irrigation or high rainfall. Hence, a long period without standing water after sowing can reduce the vulnerability of dry seeded to golden apple snails. Such limited moisture conditions have the potential to immobilize and prevent golden apple snails from causing severe damage at the seedling stage when rice is most vulnerable. Although the technology has been in existence and applied to control damage to rice by the golden apple snails elsewhere in other rice-growing regions, the technology has not been integrated into the rice cultivation system in Kenya. This research aims to investigate the effect of different rice establishment methods to control damage by golden apple snails. The findings of the study will be key in developing a sustainable rice cultivation technology for major rice-growing areas in Kenya.
Key Supervising Scientists
Dr. Ajay Panchbhai
Senior Scientist I – Seed Systems and Product Management
Dr. Rosemary Murori
Scientist II – Plant Breeding
Key Supervising Scientists
Mr. Amit Srivastava
Scientist I – GIS and Remote Sensing
Dr. Pavan Kumar Yeggina
Senior Specialist – GIS and Remote Sensing
Dr. Renaud Serge Alexis Mathieu
Senior Scientist I Geospatial Science
CF is highly interested in related sectors such as research and development, policy, financing, etc. There are inventory data and tools for quantifying agricultural CF at the global level, such as IPCC, and country level, such as the Sector and CF-Rice developed by IRRI. However, there is a lack of comprehensive models to synchronize and simulate CF for different rice-based agroecological systems. This Ph.D. research will develop a model associated with a tool for comprehensively analyzing CF along rice-based value chains, including low-land and upland rice production. The model will be developed based on a life-cycle assessment approach considering all probable factors such as climate, cropping systems, soils, water, agronomic inputs, mechanization, postharvest, residues, logistics, etc. The research will collect data from on-field measurements and use advanced technologies such as GIS, drones, etc. Databases and models built from this research would be valuable to develop related monitoring-reporting-verification systems and feed to the global GHG emission database such as IPCC.
Key Supervising Scientists
Dr. Virender Kumar
Senior Scientist II – Weed Science and Systems Agronomy
Dr. Hung Van Nguyen
Senior Scientist I – Mechanization and Post-harvest
New rice varieties can help maximize profits if and only if i) consumers are willing to consume the products from these varieties, ii) they are willing to pay more for them than traditional varieties, and iii) farmers are willing to adopt these varieties. Therefore, it is critical to understand farmers’ willingness to adopt the new rice varieties and consumers’ preferences and willingness to pay for rice products from these varieties before they are distributed to farmers. Once new varieties are developed and distributed to farmers, understanding the impacts of new varieties on livelihood outcomes is of paramount interest to policymakers, donors, and researchers. In the proposed research, we intend to use this holistic approach to provide IRRI and its national partners with useful and rigorous insights on the adoption, impacts, and consumers’ preferences for improved rice technologies.
Key Supervising Scientists
Dr. Valerien Pede
Senior Scientist II Agricultural Economics
Knowledge of the ecology and biology of weedy rice can help in designing weedy rice control tactics. Understanding of factors affecting seed dormancy, seed shattering, seed longevity, seed mortality, and emergence and growth of seedlings would help in identifying weak points for weedy rice management. It is important to understand these factors under changing climatic conditions to develop a climate-resilient and sustainable integrated weedy rice management program.
Key Supervising Scientists
Dr. Valerien Pede
Senior Scientist II Agricultural Economics
Dr. Virender Kumar
Senior Scientist II – Weed Science and Systems Agronomy