Educational Exchange

MEPI Legal and Business Fellowship Program

Dear prospective LBFP candidate,

Thank you for enquiring about the MEPI Legal and Business Fellowship Program (LBFP) for Young Women from the Middle East and North Africa. 

The LBFP is sponsored by the U.S. State Department and administered by AMIDEAST. A program of the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) and the Middle East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), LBFP is for young women from Middle East and North Africa. It provides participants with unique opportunities to learn management, legal, and business skills while working in the dynamic and productive U.S. business environment. The six month program will take place in the U.S.A from March 15 to September 04, 2007.

Participants will be placed in a month-long intensive academic program to study U.S. business culture and practice at the top-ranked University of Pennsylvania’s Wharton School of Business or at the School of Law in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Following the academic work, each participant will conduct a five-month fellowship with a large U.S. company or a top-tier law firm in one of several major cities in the United States.  
Participation in the program includes: Jl visa support; round trip airfare to and from the United States and to the internship sites ; academic fees; action planning consultation; accident and sickness insurance; housing (to be shared with another female participant); daily allowance; and alumni networking opportunities.   Participants will return to their home countries at the conclusion of the workshop.   Applications from women who work outside the major cities, live in economically disadvantaged areas and have not previously studied in the United States will be given preference.

Eligibility requirements are as follows: 

• Must be a woman between the ages of 22 and 32 from the following countries: Algeria, Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Tunisia, United Arab Emirates, West Bank and Gaza and       Yemen. She must currently be a resident in her home country.
• Must have an interest in professional growth in the business sector of their economies and have received, at a minimum,
  1) An undergraduate or graduate degree in business or law from a recognized academic institution
  OR
  2) An undergraduate degree in any field with three years experience in the private sector.                   
• Must have a strong academic background and proficiency in written and spoken English with a minimum Institutional  TOEFL (ITP) score of 550 or higher;
  Competition for the program will be open, merit-based and fair.

Applicants will be evaluated based on academic excellence, leadership potential, proficiency in written and spoken English (with a minimum ITP score of 550), maturity, and flexibility and suitability to operate successfully in an American corporate environment. Selected applicants must also demonstrate a sufficient level of information technology knowledge and word processing ability to operate in a U.S. business at the appropriate entry or management level.

Note that you are NOT eligible for the program if: 

• You are currently enrolled in a U.S. academic program. 
• You have obtained an undergraduate or graduate degree from a US university.
• You are living and/or working in the U.S. or have a green card
• You have applied for U.S permanent residency in the last three years.
• You have previously participated in a program sponsored or funded by the U.S. Government and have not fulfilled your two-year home residency requirement by the time you apply for the program.
• You or a family member with whom you live are currently employed by AMIDEAST or by U.S. department of State or have been employed by the U.S. Department of State in the last 12-month period.

If you meet all of the above criteria and wish to apply for the MEPI Legal and Business Fellowship Program for women, visit AMIDEAST’s website (www.amideast.org) and check the LBFP webpage.

Candidates from Algeria, Libya and Tunisia may contact AMIDEAST/Tunis:

22, Rue El Amine El Abassi
Cité Les Jardins / Tunis Belvédère 1002
Tel: (216) 71 841 488 / 71 790 563
Email: tunisia@amideast.org

***The Application Deadline is December 15, 2006 ***