Ragonis Foundation Scholarships for 2014-2015

Promoting Research in Counter-Terrorism and Homeland Security 

The International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT) and the Lauder School of Government, Diplomacy and Strategy at the Interdisciplinary Center Herzliya (IDC), are pleased to announce an annual scholarships awarding to promote research in counter-terrorism and homeland security.

The scholarships will be given in memory of Architect, Major Eyal Ragonis z"l, for his military and civilian accomplishments. The scholarships' aim is to promote research in counter-terrorism and homeland security by IDC Herzliya students, as well as IDF soldiers and officers.

A professional committee will select the outstanding research proposals and studies to be awarded the scholarships. The committee will include representatives from the IDC Herzliya academic staff, IDF representatives, and members of the Ragonis family. The selection will be according to the following criteria:

• Quality of work
• Contribution and applicability to the counter-terrorism and homeland security research field
• Originality and innovativeness

The following candidates will be eligible to submit a proposal:

• Students currently attending the IDC Herzliya (BA and MA students)
• Fellows and interns at the International Institute for Counter-Terrorism (ICT)
• Soldiers and officers currently serving in the IDF (including the National Security College)

The scholarships will be awarded in two stages:

First stage: Four research proposals that present a significant and notable contribution to the counter-terrorism and homeland security studies will be selected. The authors of each of these proposals will receive an initial scholarship of 2,500 NIS. It will be given to researches completed within one year.

The scholarships will be awarded at the annual memorial service for Eyal Ragonis z"l on July 2014.

Second stage: After completion, the selected studies will be graded according to the above criteria and will be awarded the remainder of the scholarship accordingly. The principal findings of the studies will be presented the following year, at the annual memorial service for Eyal Ragonis z"l, in the summer of 2015. The scholarships granted for research in the second phase will be as follows:

• First Prize:                   7,000 NIS
• Second Prize:       4,000 NIS
• Two remaining researches:     2,000 NIS (each)

The winning researches will be posted on the ICT Working Paper Series

Final submission date for research proposals is May 1^st, 2014.

Research proposals should be sent to Ms. Lorena Atiyas Lvovsky, at: [email protected]

* Research proposals submitted after May 1^st at midnight, will not be examined by the judging committee. In addition, it is the candidate's responsibility to verify the admission of the documents - candidates need to make sure they receive a confirmation of their submission.   

Each research proposal must include the following documents:

1. The candidate’s personal details:  full name, address, telephone number, email address, a curriculum vitae, a list of previous publications (if existing), and at least two letters of recommendations.
2. A cover letter and statement of purpose written by the candidate, including the following: the research topic reasoning; whether the research proposal has been previously submitted elsewhere (e.g., as a position paper, seminar assignment); if so, had it been or will it be published and where.
3. A research proposal of no longer than three pages, encompassing the following:
   1. The importance of the topic to academic research in terrorism and counter-terrorism
   2. The research question(s)
   3. A literature review
   4. Methodology