International Visiting Scholars' Program

The International Visiting Scholars' Program is a non-degree program and provides an opportunity for mid-career reporters from abroad to pursue advanced professional training and academic study. Visiting scholars select an array of courses offered at the journalism school and in other disciplines, drawing upon the extensive resources and community life of a major research university. Participants work in close cooperation with a faculty mentor to design an individualized program that enhances reporting skills, expands intellectual horizons and allows for in-depth research in their area of interest.

Applying to the program (The 2008-2009 deadline is March 15, 2008.)

Photos from Visiting Scholars

Current Visiting Scholars

Dev Chatterjee is a Mumbai-based senior assistant editor with The Business Standard, a business daily published from major cities in India. He has written extensively on the Indian stock markets since he began his career in 1991 as an editor in training at The Financial Express. He holds a B.A. in economics and journalism from the University of Mumbai.

Chatterjee hopes his year at Berkeley will enable him to learn the latest trends in online journalism.

Fu Tao has been a full-time journalist for five years. He wrote breaking stories for local newspapers before graduating from Fudan University's Journalism School in 2002. He joined Caijing, a business news magazine renowned in China as perhaps its most daring investigative publication, and became its Shanghai correspondent after working at the Shanghai Morning Post as a financial reporter.

He'll work hard at Berkeley, studying financial news writing, online media and history.

Hossam el-Hamalawy has been a Cairo-based journalist for the past eight years. He began his news career with The Cairo Times and worked as a freelance researcher for publications such as the Chicago Tribune, The Economist, and The Washington Post. In 2003, el-Hamalawy began reporting on Egyptian and regional politics for The LA Times. He has experience reporting for TV and radio and is an advocate for labor rights and social change. He now hosts a popular multi-media website, 3arabawy.

While at Berkeley, el-Hamalawy hopes to enhance his photography and multi-media reporting skills. He also aims to exchange experiences with fellow journalists and activists.

Shen Ying has worked for six years at Southern Weekend, one of China's top investigative newspapers. She covers social, political and environmental issues and in 2006 spent two months reporting on illegal experiments on hospital patients. Shen won a legal battle brought against her and her newspaper.

At Berkeley, Shen plans to focus on investigative, medical and education reporting. She is also interested in international reporting and public policy analysis.

Vanaja C is a journalist and filmmaker with over 13 years of experience in print, broadcast and electronic media. Leaving mainstream media three years ago, she made three documentaries that won popular and professional recognition.

She holds degrees in communications, journalism and linguistics from Osmania University. She has won the Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism, a prize described as India's Pulitzer, for her journalistic writing. She has also earned a Silver Pearl, an award for her recent documentary at the 2007's Hyderabad International Film Festival. C aspires to hone her skills and learn new technologies in film, online journalism and multi media. Her interests include reading, writing, music and technology.

Zhang Jin is a senior journalist at The Beijing Times. During the past five years, he has focused on international and political affairs and has written a series of features on litigation between China and the Japanese government, including issues on the Sino-Japan war.

At Berkeley, Zhang is researching investigative reporting and participatory media.

Masako Sakata first experienced America as an exchange student in Maine in 1965.
The experience opened her eyes beyond Japan, though she returned to study sociology and anthropology at Kyoto University in 1970. After graduating, she became interested in photography.

Faced with the sudden death of her husband in 2003, Sakata decided to make a documentary
film on Agent Orange, the suspected cause of his death.

Sakata comes to Berkeley with the hope of enhancing her second career as a filmmaker.

Liu Jianqiang is a senior investigative reporter with Southern Weekend, one of China's top investigative newspapers. He has produced a series of influential reports on the environment, and his stories have led China's central government to suspend illegally constructed dams.

Liu was featured in the Wall Street Journal last December. He has an M.A. in journalism from Tsinghua University and a B.A. in political science from East China University of Science and Technology.

During his stay at Berkeley, Liu will enhance his knowledge of environmental and political reporting.

Umesh Raghuvanshi has been a full-time journalist for 25 years. He is the deputy bureau chief [Lucknow] at The Hindustan Times, a leading English daily in India, where he has worked for 10 years. He covers political developments, proceedings of the State Legislature, finance, human interest and environmental issues.

Raghuvanshi is a science graduate and holds an M.A. in political science from Garhwal University of Uttarakhand. He was Metcalf Fellow at the Metcalf Institute for Marine and Environmental Reporting at University of Rhode Island, Graduate School of Oceanography (USA) in 2000. He is interested in new media, online journalism and investigative journalism.

He hopes that his year at Berkeley will enable him to gain a broader perspective on key issues concerning American journalism, politics and society.

Wang Beibei is the chief editor of Natural History Magazine, owned by China National Geographic. She graduated form Renmin University's journalism school in 1999 and then worked for XinHua News Agency as a business reporter. In 2003, she joined CNG and was appointed to create Natural History Magazine, where she is the editor in chief.

At Berkeley, Wang will focus on new media and environmental reporting.

Young Jun Lee is a senior producer at the Korean Broadcasting System in Seoul. He has worked as a television producer/director for 16 years and holds a B.A. in sociology. He has launched programs on terrorism and Korea's elderly.

He was a winner of the 2002 Korean Broadcasting Grand Prize and was selected as producer of the year in 2001.

His focus at Berkeley is on deepening his understanding of American and online media.

Wen Jin became the first female editor of China's online media giant Sina nine years ago. She is now deputy chief editor and is responsible for the site's media development and brand management. In 1999, she was appointed as manager of Sina’s cultural and entertainment news. She was first to report on China’s concept stock "china.com" and its listing in the American market. She also produced segments on the first case of website copyrights infringement in China.

At Berkeley, Wen hopes to expand her international perspective and to inform others about China's online media.

Myint Zaw is an editor at Ju Publishing House, based in Yangon, Burma. He has experience as an editor for a weekly international affairs publication called Eleven International. In 2006, he began working for the Environmental Journalism Network to train Burmese journalists on environmental issues.

He holds an M.A in international development studies from Chulalongkorn University in Thailand and is involved in community development activities in Burma. He served as an Inter Press Service fellow from 2004-2005.

While in Berkeley, he plans to sharpen his knowledge of journalism skills, the environment and third world development.

Ai "Ally" Qun is currently working at China Central Television as an editor and director. She has been a journalist for 14 years. She has a degree in journalism from Jilin University and earned a Masters degree in TV journalism from the Communications University of China in 1995.

In her year at Berkeley, she will concentrate on environmental issues and public health.

See bios of previous visiting scholars

Events

Sri Lanka: Taking Sides in the Shooting April 7, 2004, Noon - 1:00p.m. North Gate Hall Library Amantha Perera is the news features editor of the The Sunday Leader in Sri Lanka, a paper he joined in 1998. He is also a correspondent and Sinhala service coordinator with Inter Press News Service (IPS). He has covered a variety of issues for his paper, including the recent peace talks between the LTTE and the government. Amantha has won several Sri Lankan journalism awards and was a Jefferson Fellow (East-West Center) in 2001

Breaking Barriers: Striving For A Freer Media In Asia December 3, 2002, Noon - 1:00p.m. North Gate Hall Library Hong Kong's journalists face a possible new sedition law and the erosion of press freedom. Indonesia's media publish freely since 1998, but journalists lack experience reporting without censorship. Burma's media face rigid control by the military government, with journalists in exile struggling to report the news from across the Thai border. China's journalists find creative ways to investigate and expose environmental hazards in the face of continuing controls on the press.

Berkeley panel questions Al Qaeda link to Bali bombing October 18, 2002 A panel of UC Berkeley Southeast Asian faculty, visiting scholars, and journalists convened to discuss the recent Bali nightclub bombings. They urged caution in immediately linking Al Qaeda to the October 12 attacks, in which more than 180 people died. Recent history, they agreed, indicates that the bombers are more likely to belong to either the Indonesian military or domestic insurrectionist groups.

Visiting Scholar Photo Slideshow

If you are a past or current visiting scholar and you have photographs or updates to share, please email us anytime. Make sure to include caption information -- the year, occasion, and participants. Happy holidays!