PhD Student Exchange agreement between the department of Anthropology at LSE and the department of Anthropology at Columbia University

Objective

To offer PhD students at the departments of Anthropology at LSE and Columbia University additional research resources (archival and advisory) and to introduce students to the academic culture, professional contacts and employment opportunities of the other country.

Specifically for LSE students, who are close to completing their doctoral thesis, the exchange offers them an opportunity to visit Columbia University and work informally with one or more advisors at Columbia University on final thesis revision, and/or on publications and presentations and to attend conferences and workshops both within the University and in the United States.

Specifically for Columbia students, who are close to completing their doctoral thesis, the exchange offers them an opportunity to visit LSE and work informally with one or more advisors at LSE on final thesis revision, and/or on publications and presentations and to attend conferences and workshops both within the School and in the UK and Europe.

Eligibility

LSE students in the department of Anthropology registered for a PhD who have completed their field-work and are close to completing their doctoral thesis.

Columbia University students in the department of Anthropology registered for a PhD who have completed their field-work and are close to completing their doctoral thesis.

Duration of each exchange

Each exchange will be for a minimum of one 10-week LSE term or one Columbia University semester and a maximum of one academic year.

Number of exchange students per year

The number of exchange students is set at two person years per year in each direction.

Application procedures

For Columbia students going to LSE
Columbia students should submit to the Chair of the Department of Anthropology at Columbia a dossier containing the following materials:

• A one-page single-spaced statement of academic purpose explaining their progress towards completion of their research, why a visit to LSE would benefit them and what they intend to do in LSE, outlining a timetable for their work during the visit and indication of which scholar/s at LSE they hope to work with.
• A letter of support from their PhD sponsor.
• A note from the Head of Department of the department of Anthropology at LSE confirming that the academic advisor(s) with whom the student intends to work will be able to assume this role at the time of the student's visit.
• An up-to-date Curriculum Vitae.
• Visa status, country of citizenship, place of and date of birth
• A letter demonstrating that the student has sufficient funds to live on during the time of the exchange.
• A completed LSE Graduate Application form (which can be downloaded from the LSE web site: http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/graduateAdmissions/apply/applyByPost.htm

The Columbia chair (Head of Department) of Anthropology forwards Columbia's nominated dossiers to LSE's Anthropology Department, which decides whether or not to accept the students.

Once a student is accepted, the following steps are taken:

1. LSE's Head of Department sends a note of acceptance to Columbia's exchange student.
2. LSE's Head of Department forwards application form to the Graduate Admissions Office for it to issue a formal offer of admission.

For LSE students going to Columbia
LSE students should submit to the Head of Department of the Department of Anthropology at LSE a dossier containing the following materials:

• A one-page single-spaced application explaining their progress towards completion of their research, why a visit to Columbia would benefit them and what they intend to do in Columbia, outlining a timetable for their work during the visit and indication of which scholar/s at Columbia they hope to work with.
• A letter of support from their supervisor.
• A note from the chair of the department of Anthropology at Columbia confirming that the academic advisor(s) with whom the student intends to work will be able to assume this role at the time of the student's visit.
• An up-to-date Curriculum Vitae.
• Visa status, country of citizenship, place of and date of birth (for US immigration requirements, MMR [Measles, Mumps, Rubella] or other health requirements). LSE students who are not US citizens or permanent residents are required to enter the United States in F-1 non-immigrant status. This requires that the International Students and Scholars Office (ISSO) issue a form I-20 for issuance of the F-1 student visa by the US Consulate. To be eligible for an I-20, the student must show sufficient funding as required by the ISSO. For the year 2003-04 this amount is $14440 for the 9 month academic year ($7220 for one semester). See the following web site for further information: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/isso/admit/
• A completed Columbia GSAS Application Form which can be downloaded from the Columbia Graduate School web site: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsas/pages/pstudents/admissions/apply/index.html 

The LSE Head of Department forwards LSE's nominated dossiers to Columbia's Anthropology chair, which decides whether or not to accept the students.

Once a student is accepted, the following steps are taken:

1. Columbia's chair sends a letter of acceptance to LSE's exchange student.
2. Columbia's Anthropology Department forwards a complete copy of the dossiers to the Assistant Dean of Admissions, 108 Low Memorial Library, 535 West 116th Street, New York, NY 10027 (for registration and for processing of visa information to Columbia's International Students and Scholars Office)

Academic status

Columbia students visiting LSE will continue to register with Columbia University and pay fees to Columbia University as if they were in full-time attendance. At LSE they will be registered as Visiting Research Students. No fee will be payable by Columbia students at LSE. They will be entitled to attend lectures, seminars and other academic activities on the same basis as other registered research students at LSE. They will work with a designated advisor (supervisor) and they will be expected to join in the regular departmental activities for research students, including the weekly research seminar. Their advisor (supervisor) will write a brief evaluation at the end of each term and at the end of the visit, which will be discussed with the student. A copy will be countersigned by the Head of Department (chair) of the department and sent by the advisor to the Chair of the department of Anthropology at Columbia University for inclusion in their file.

LSE students visiting Columbia will continue to register with LSE and pay fees to LSE as if they were in full-time attendance. At Columbia they will be registered as non-degree exchange students (GFNDGX) by the Assistant Dean for Admissions, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. No fees other than the mandatory Columbia International Students and Scholars Office fee (tentative for 2003-2004: $50) and Columbia health insurance/fees will be payable by LSE students at Columbia (tentative for 2003-2004: $1,643). They will be entitled to attend lectures, seminars and other academic activities on the same basis as other registered research students at Columbia. They will work with a designated advisor (supervisor) and they will be expected to join in the regular departmental activities for research students, including the weekly research seminar. Their advisor (supervisor) will write a brief evaluation at the end of each term and at the end of the visit, which will be discussed with the student. A copy will be countersigned by the Head of Department of the department and sent by the advisor to the Chair of the department of Anthropology at LSE for inclusion in their file.

Support services and institutional privileges

Columbia University students at LSE will have the same rights and responsibilities as other registered research students. They will be entitled to library privileges, use of the computer rooms, and a university email account. They will have access to the research students' departmental work-station, which houses networked computers. The department does not provide students with telephones.

LSE students at Columbia will have the same rights and responsibilities as other registered research students. They will be entitled to library privileges, use of the computer rooms, and a university email account. They will have access to the research students' departmental work-station, which houses networked computers. The department does not provide students with telephones.

Columbia and LSE will seek to assist students in developing informal means of communication through media such as a web-based bulletin board.

Funding and costs

There is currently no funding to support this exchange.
Students will be responsible for their fees at both the home institution and the exchange institution and for living costs and will be expected to make their own arrangements for housing

The current estimated costs of living in London and New York can be found on the LSE and Columbia University web-sites

• Columbia's off-campus housing web site: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/ire/ocha/
• Columbia's GSAS financial aid site : http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsas/ps/fin-aid/pages/office/index.html
• Columbia's International Students and Scholars Office (ISSO) website for obtaining a visa: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/isso/admit/
• Columbia's Health Insurance web site: http://www.health.columbia.edu/
• Columbia's GSAS downloadable application form: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/gsas/admissions.html
• LSE's residential accommodation site: http://www.lse.ac.uk/accommodation
• LSE's financial support site: http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/studentServicesCentre/financialSupportOffice/
• LSE Health Centre site (for details of eligibility for NHS care) http://www.lse.ac.uk/collections/medicalCentre/nhs.htm

Institutional responsibility

The Chair of the Department of Anthropology at Columbia University and the Head of Department of the Department of Anthropology at LSE will be responsible for maintaining effective communications with each other. It is expected that any disagreements and problems can be resolved on an ad hoc basis between the chair and the Head of Department. If any problems cannot be resolved in this way they will be referred to the Deputy Director at LSE and the Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences at Columbia University.

Contact

Columbia Contact Information:
Chair, Department of Anthropology
Columbia University 452 Schermerhorn Extension
535 West 116th Street
New York, NY 10027
Telephone: 212 854 4552

Assistant Dean of Admissions
Columbia University, Graduate School of Arts and Sciences
108 Low Memorial Library
535 West 116th Street
New York, NY 10027
Telephone: 212 854 4737

LSE contact information:
Head of Department
A604, Anthropology Department
London School of Economics and Political Science
Houghton Street
London WC2A 2AE
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7955 6775

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