1. Study Abroad Scholarships, Grants, and Financial Support (American Institute for Foreign Study) – The American Institute for Foreign Study (AIFS) is one of the oldest, largest and most respected cultural exchange organizations in the world. Since 1964, AIFS has been a leading organization providing cultural exchange and educational opportunities for more than 1.5 million young people. The AIFS recognizes the challenges today’s students face with meeting the cost of their education. The AIFS believes that a study abroad experience is an essential component of well-rounded university education and we are committed to providing financial assistance to as many students as possible in support of their goal to study abroad. AIFS funding, combined with other sources of financial support students can access, will help make study abroad attainable.
2. Arabic Language Institute in Fez (Fez, Morocco) – The Arabic Language Institute in Fez, Morocco (ALIF) is a globally-oriented educational center that aims to educate and engage students from around the world in Arabic, North African culture, cross-cultural communication, research, and community service. ALIF offers intensive Modern Standard Arabic and Colloquial Moroccan Arabic courses throughout the year, September through July. To ensure that every student gets individual attention, all ALIF courses are kept small, generally no more than ten students per class. In the summer there may be up to twelve students per class.
3. Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship (Institute of International Education) – The Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program offers a competition for awards for undergraduate study abroad and was established by the International Academic Opportunity Act of 2000. This scholarship provides awards for U.S. undergraduate students who are receiving federal Pell Grant Funding at a 2-year or 4-year college or university to participate in study abroad programs worldwide. Sponsored by the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, this congressionally-funded program is administered by the Institute of International Education (IIE) through its Southern Regional Center in Houston, Texas.
4. Blakemore Freeman Fellowships (The Blakemore Foundation) – Blakemore Freeman Fellowships are awarded for one academic year (two semesters or three quarters) of advanced level language study in East or Southeast Asia. Eligible languages are Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Indonesian, Khmer, Thai, and Vietnamese. Fellowships cover tuition, and a stipend for related educational expenses, basic living costs and transportation. The Blakemore Foundation makes grants for study only at specific language programs. Please refer to the current list of approved programs.
5. David L. Boren Scholarships and Fellowships (National Security Education Program, U.S. Department of Defense) – The David L. Boren National Security Education Act of 1991 mandated that the U.S. Secretary of Defense create and sustain a program to award scholarships to U.S. undergraduate students and fellowships to U.S. graduate students. These awards are for study or program development in languages and regions critical to national security. Boren Undergraduate Scholars and Graduate Fellows study a wide range of critical languages, including Arabic, Chinese, Portuguese, and Swahili. Boren Awards are available to students of all proficiency levels who are committed to enhancing their skills. Boren Scholars and Fellows from diverse fields of study immerse themselves in the cultures in world regions underrepresented in study abroad, including Africa, Asia, Eurasia, Latin America, and the Middle East.
6. Bridging Scholarships for Study Abroad in Japan (American Association of Teachers of Japanese) – The Bridging Project offers scholarships to American undergraduate students participating in study-abroad programs in Japan. Funding from private foundations and major U.S. corporations, through donations to the nonprofit US-Japan Bridging Foundation, makes it possible to award about 100 scholarships each year to assist students with the travel and living expenses they will incur while studying abroad in Japan for a semester or an academic year. Applications are accepted twice a year for Bridging Scholarships.
7. Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Program (Howard University) – The Charles B. Rangel International Affairs Program, including the Rangel Graduate Fellowship Program and the Rangel Summer Enrichment Program, is a U.S. State Department program administered by Howard University in Washington DC that seeks to attract and prepare outstanding young people for careers as diplomats in the Foreign Service of the U.S. Department of State. The Program seeks individuals interested in helping to shape a freer, more secure and prosperous world through formulating, representing, and implementing U.S. foreign policy. The Program encourages the application of members of minority groups historically underrepresented in the Foreign Service, women, and those with financial need.
8. Critical Language Scholarship Program (American Councils for International Education) – The Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) program is part of a U.S. government effort to expand dramatically the number of Americans studying and mastering critical need foreign languages. CLS institutes provide fully-funded group-based intensive language instruction and structured cultural enrichment experiences for seven to ten weeks for U.S. citizen undergraduate and graduate students. A program of the U.S. Department of State and the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, the CLS Program offers intensive summer language institutes in fourteen critical foreign languages.
9. Freeman Awards for Study in Asia (Freeman Foundation) – Freeman Awards for Study in Asia (Freeman-ASIA) provides scholarships for U.S. undergraduate students with demonstrated financial need to study abroad in East or Southeast Asia. A Freeman-ASIA award provides need-based funding to assist the recipient with the cost of the study abroad program and related expenses, including airfare, basic living costs, local transportation, and books. Freeman-ASIA accepts applications from U.S. citizens or permanent residents studying at the undergraduate level at a two-year or four-year college or university who demonstrate financial need to study abroad in East or Southeast Asia.
10. Fulbright U.S. Student Program (U.S. Department of State) – The Fulbright U.S. Student Program expands perspectives through academic and professional advancement and cross-cultural dialogue. Fulbright creates connections in a complex and changing world. In partnership with more than 140 countries worldwide, the Fulbright U.S. Student Program offers unparalleled opportunities in all academic disciplines to passionate and accomplished graduating college seniors, graduate students, and young professionals from all backgrounds. Program participants pursue graduate study, conduct research, or teach English abroad. During the grant period, participants will meet, work, live with and learn from the people of the host country, sharing daily experiences. The program facilitates cultural exchange through direct interaction on an individual basis in the classroom, field, home, and in routine tasks, allowing the grantee to gain an appreciation of others’ viewpoints and beliefs, the way they do things, and the way they think. Through engagement in the community, individuals will interact with their hosts on a one-to-one basis in an atmosphere of openness, academic integrity, and intellectual freedom, thereby promoting mutual understanding.
11. George J. Mitchell Scholarship (U.S. – Ireland Alliance) – The George J. Mitchell Scholarship is awarded annually to up to 12 Americans aged 18 to 30 who attend graduate school in Ireland or Northern Ireland. The scholarship provides tuition, travel, and living expenses for up to one year.
12. Summer School for International and European Studies (University of Vienna) – The University of Vienna Sommerhochschule (SHS) was established in 1949, and since then an international summer school is offered every year. Apart from its educational mission, one of the summer program’s most important aims has been restoring and promoting mutual understanding between Austrians and Americans that World War II had done so much to destroy. Today the program provides a multidimensional survey of the present development of Europe and the European Union (EU). Participants will study both the decision making processes within the EU institutions as well as various aspects of European political culture. The program aims at contributing to an increased understanding of the EU and its possible future shape.
13. Japanese Exchange and Teaching (JET) Program (Government of Japan) – The JET Program is a competitive employment opportunity that allows young professionals to live and work in cities, towns, and villages throughout Japan. Being a JET participant is an opportunity to work and to represent the United States as cultural ambassadors to Japan. Most participants serve as Assistant Language Teachers (ALTs) and work in public and private schools throughout Japan; some work as Coordinators for International Relations (CIRs) as interpreters/translators. The JET Program seeks participants who are adaptable, outgoing, and who have a deep interest in Japan. Only the best candidates are chosen to represent America. The JET Program typically receives 4,000-5,000 applications each year from U.S. applicants. Of these, 1,000-1,100 will be selected for participation on the JET Program.
14. Marshall Scholarship (Marshall Aid Commemoration Commission, London, UK) – Marshall Scholarships finance young Americans of high ability to study for a degree in the United Kingdom. Up to fifty Scholars are selected each year to study at graduate level at an UK institution in any field of study. As future leaders, with a lasting understanding of British society, Marshall Scholars strengthen the enduring relationship between the British and American peoples, their governments and their institutions. Marshall Scholars are talented, independent and wide-ranging, and their time as Scholars enhances their intellectual and personal growth. Their direct engagement with Britain through its best academic programmes contributes to their ultimate personal success.
15. Study Abroad Programs and Internship Opportunities (Institute for the International Education of Students) – Established in 1950, the Institute for the International Education of Students (IES Abroad) is a not-for-profit provider with more than 140 study abroad and internship programs around the world for college/university students.
16. Rhodes Scholarship (The Rhodes Trust, Oxford) – Rhodes Scholarships are awarded annually to 32 American students who pursue masters and doctoral degrees at the University of Oxford. The scholarship covers tuition, fees, travel, and living expenses for up to three years. Scholars are selected by regional selection committees throughout the United States.
17. The Language Flagship (National Security Education Program, U.S. Department of Defense) – The Language Flagship is a national initiative to change the way Americans learn languages through a groundbreaking approach to language education for students from kindergarten through college. Through a network of 31 Flagship Programs at 23 institutions of higher education across the U.S., The Language Flagship graduates students who will take their place among the next generation of global professionals, commanding a superior level of proficiency in one of ten languages critical to U.S. national security and economic competitiveness.
18. Thomas R. Pickering Graduate Fellowship Program (U.S. Department of State) – The Thomas R. Pickering Foreign Affairs Fellowship Graduate Program is a program funded by the U.S. Department of State, administered by Howard University, that attracts and prepares outstanding young people for Foreign Service careers in the U.S. Department of State. It welcomes the application of members of minority groups historically underrepresented in the State Department, women, and those with a demonstrated financial need for graduate school. Based on the fundamental principle that diversity is a strength in our diplomatic efforts, the program values varied backgrounds, including ethnic, racial, social, and geographic diversity. The Pickering Fellowship offers a unique opportunity to promote positive change in the world. Upon successful completion of a two-year master’s degree program and fulfillment of Foreign Service entry requirements, fellows have the opportunity to work as Foreign Service Officers in accordance with applicable law and U.S. State Department policy, serving in Washington, DC and at a U.S. embassy, consulate, or diplomatic mission around the globe. Fellows also agree to a minimum five-year service commitment in the Department of State’s Foreign Service. The five-year service commitment begins upon entry into the Foreign Service.