puf | welcome

As we enter more deeply in the 21st century, the dynamics of global economic and technological development are producing revolutionary changes in the cross-border movements of talent, capital, innovation and intellectual property. In this increasingly global knowledge-based economy, countries and universities alike are learning to navigate a complex landscape made of both competition and cooperation.

Today, not only do governments, universities and economic actors need to cooperate, but they increasingly look to do so across boundaries. Thanks to the generosity of private donors and public actors alike, the Partner University Fund was designed under the auspices of the FACE Foundation to meet this need between the United States and France, as a public-private partnership fostering trans-border educational and research networks.

At this crucial time when French and American universities are taking new steps to face the challenges of international competition, PUF helps them build sustainable education and research partnerships within or/and across all the disciplines, in a dialogue with its main contributors as well as with key actors in the academic field such as the National Science Foundation (NSF), the Institute of International Education (IIE), the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS) or the Conférence des Présidents d’Universités (CPU).
Partnership projects are subject to independent scientific expertise and then reviewed by a committee of renowned academics and high level officials in the areas of international education and research.

The deadline for applications is December 15, 2008; the results will be announced early March 2009 for the following academic year. Grants are awarded for a period of up to three years but are subject to annual review by the committee.

Pascal Delisle, PhD.
Cultural Attaché
PUF Executive Director

puf | the fund

PUF was established in May 2007 under the auspices of the FACE Foundation. Thanks to the generosity of private donors and contributions from the French government, PUF launched its first call for projects in September 2007 with the objective of supporting innovative and sustainable partnerships between French and US institutions of research and higher education.

With close to 70 applications representing more than 130 French and American universities and research institutes, the results of the first call for project confirmed both the readiness of institutions across the Atlantic to build a new generation of partnerships, and the fitting of PUF as an innovative means for that purpose.

The Grant Selection Committee, under the co-presidency of Dr. Allan E. Goodman, President and CEO of the Institute of International Education (IIE) and Dr. Christophe Laux, Professor of Engineering, Ecole Centrale Paris (ECP), selected 16 laureates, subsequently approved by the steering committee of PUF and the board of FACE. Those partnerships will collectively receive over 1 million $ for their first year of existence in academic year 2008-2009.

The unique characteristic of PUF is to offer a single funding tool to support multifaceted projects whereas many funding agencies or foundations offer specialized instruments that make it more difficult to play out the complementarities between the different components of a partnership (Joint research, mobility of professors, students, post docs, shared curricula).

PUF supported partnerships are diverse in kind, reflecting the varying needs of candidate universities. The modalities of transatlantic collaboration can range from joint research and publications to the development of shared curricula and the establishment of joint and dual degrees. They can naturally include various forms of mobility for students, postdoctoral fellows, faculty and researchers.

Subject to an annual review, PUF can co-finance a developing partnership for up to 3 consecutive years, at a level of up to $80,000 per year per project. This substantial level of funding needs to be matched by the partners as PUF only funds up to 30% of the cost of a program, the rest being raised in kind or in cash by the partner universities themselves in order to ensure the sustainability of the partnerships in the long run.

PUF is managed by a team located in Washington DC, at the French Embassy, under the supervision of PUF Steering Committee. The team, that works closely with the staff of the FACE Foundation in New York, NY, is led by an executive director also serving as Cultural Attaché for higher Education.

puf | application

APPLICATION DEADLINE IS DECEMBER 15, 2009 for academic year 2010-2011.

DOWNLOAD GUIDELINES [pdf].
DOWNLOAD APPLICATION FORM [word].

puf | news

French-American Seminar on University, Scientific and Education Partnerships
Paris, March 23rd 2009