The Watanabe Trust Fund

Regulation for allocation of scholarships – May 22 2009

The Watanabe Trust Fund – Regulations for allocation of scholarships

The Charter of the Watanabe Trust Fund at the University of Iceland stipulates that the Board
is responsible for establishing regulations for the allocation of scholarships and grants. These
regulations were approved at the first meeting of the Board on 22 May 2009 and will bereevaluated within a year.
The Fund aims at providing educational opportunities for students and promoting goodwill
between Iceland and Japan. According to the Charter, the Fund will grant scholarships tostimulate student exchanges, involving both undergraduates and postgraduates, as well as
exchanges of academic staff between the two countries.
The initial focus of the scholarship program is on supporting academic exchanges at thegraduate/postgraduate level (M.A./M.S., Ph.D. and Post-Doc) as this is considered to be themost promising venue to underpin the long-term bilateral relationship and to promote mutual
goodwill. This includes grants offered to visiting professors or other academic staff from bothcountries. The Fund will also provide scholarships to undergraduate students enrolled inJapanese language courses in Iceland. Other unspecified projects, which support the goals of
the Fund and/or raise its societal visibility, may also be considered.
Scholarships from the fund shall be granted annually.

Decisions on allocations of funds
1. No more than three-fourth of the real yield of the Fund—as outlined in its audited annual
accounts—may be allocated. The Board may decide to save up the permitted
allocations from one financial year to the next and to allocate the available share inaccordance with financial statements.
2. For each year, the Board can tentatively divide the allocation between certain types ofscholarships/grants/projects as stated above
Authorization for the announcements and advertising of grants
3. The Board will allocate funds based on academic evaluations of grant applications.
Normally, the Fund will accept applications once a year, but it is not bound by any timeframework.
4. The Board will decide when to announce grant applications. The announcement will bemade on the University of Iceland website, in Icelandic newspapers and in other media
outlets for the purpose of reaching out to prospective applicants.

Available scholarships or grants
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The Watanabe Trust Fund

Regulation for allocation of scholarships – May 22 2009

5. For graduate students, each scholarship should cover the costs of supporting a stay at
the host university of up to one year or more. Grants at the undergraduate level may
apply to certain disciplines, such as cultural and language studies. Decisions on
possible support for academic exchanges will be made each year. In such cases, grants
should support shorter stays.
6. The evaluation of applications will be based on academic qualifications,academic/scientific promise, and the prospects for the exchange to lead to a lasting
relationship between Iceland and Japan. The funding of other activities that support theaims of the Fund can also be considered.
Allocation procedure
7. The Board will evaluate applications and make its grant recommendations to the Rectorof the University of Iceland no later than June each year. As a rule, the Rector
announces scholarships awards at a special event in the summer or fall.
8. The Fund will seek applications by announcement four weeks prior to the application
deadline. The announcement will describe the Fund’s academic goals each year andspecify what types of scholarships or project grants are offered..
9. The announcement shall always include:a. Name and the aims of the Fundb. The funds available for allocationc. Dates of fund allocations
d. If there are any special conditions attached, or if certain type of applications arerequested or preferred
e. The application deadline
f. The web site of the Fund (which is hosted at the University of Iceland web site)where further information will be available shall include:
i. Further information’s on any special conditions for each year’s applications
and criteria for the evaluation of the applications and applicants.
ii. Information on how to apply and where to send applications
iii. Application forms (as a downloadable document or portal)
iv. Other information
10. The manager of the University Endowment Funds will list all applications and transfer
them to the Board of the Watanabe Trust Fund. The Board will evaluate applications
and decide on grants allocation.
11. The Board can decide to make no allocation of funds
12. The Board can seek assistance from external experts in evaluating applications
13. The final decision on allocation shall be made at a Board meeting
14. When the allocation decision has been made, the applicants will be informed and thesuccessful applicants invited to an award ceremony
15. The University of Iceland Endowment Funds will organize the ceremonial event
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Regulation for allocation of scholarships – May 22 2009

These regulations for the allocation of scholarships shall be amended or renewed within one
year from this signature.
Approved by the Board of the Watanabe Trust Fund_____________________________________________
Dr. Már Másson, Chairman of the Board, appointed by theUniversity of Iceland_____________________________________________
Mr. Toshizo „Tom“ Watanabe, Board Member_____________________________________________
Mr. Ingimundur Sigfússon, Board Member, appointed by Mr.
Geir H. Haarde.

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