Visiting Scholar Program

The Visiting Scholars program is offered to senior faculty and officials.

Benefits

Appropriate book storage space and book-borrowing privileges
Access to the Internet and Lexis-Nexis and Westlaw research databases
University e-mail address
Participation in student activities and invitations to appropriate faculty colloquia and presentations
With permission of the instructors, they may audit up to two classes without credit
Office space is based on availability

The Law School does not provide the following:

Personal computer, printer and office supplies
Secretarial support
Parking
Housing (see below)
Medical benefits/insurance (see below)

Application Process

Potential candidates should e-mail a curriculum vitae, statement of their research plan (including why Northwestern University School of Law would be an ideal site in which to conduct their research), proposed dates of stay and letters of recommendation to Abby McCullough., Faculty Coordinator. Applicants for this program whose native language is not English should indicate their degree of fluency in English. A TOEFL score (IBT minimum score: 85) is required as part of the application process. Please provide your score with your application.

Deadline
The application schedule for the upcoming semesters is below. Candidates are notified of their acceptance 30 days after the application deadlines.

Summer 2010: Applications must be submitted by February 12, 2010
Fall 2010: Applications must be submitted by May 14, 2010
Spring 2011: Applications must be submitted by October 15, 2010

Housing
The Law School does not assist participants in obtaining housing. However, we will provide a list of local short-term housing providers. Participants are not eligible for University housing.

Medical Benefits/Insurance
Participants in this program are not employees of the University and are not eligible for benefits. Once they are accepted into the program they will be required to purchase health insurance through Northwestern University's Office of Risk Management.

Visa
The Law School will assist accepted applicants in completing paperwork to obtain a J-1 visa. The Visa processing fee is $400 for the 2011 fiscal year. The scholar is required to submit proof of financial support in the form of a notarized financial document. Estimated living expenses for 2009-2010 were $16,000 per scholar, $6,300 per spouse and $4,650 per dependent child. Once an applicant is admitted to the program a complete visa packet will be e-mailed to the scholar from Northwestern University's International Office.

Faculty Sponsorship
Applicants are not required to have a formal faculty sponsorship but are encouraged to contact faculty directly if they wish to audit a faculty member’s class. Please visit our faculty profiles section to learn more about the expertise and specialities of our faculty members.

Fees
The fee for this program is $3,000 for each academic semester and $3,000 for the summer.