Undergraduate and graduate students in all fields interested in studying critical languages may be interested in applying for the Critical Language Scholarships for fully-funded overseas intensive summer language and cultural immersion programs offered by the US Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The CLS Program is part of a U.S. government effort to broaden the base of Americans studying and mastering critical languages and building relationships between the people of the United States and other countries. Students of diverse disciplines and majors are encouraged to apply. Participants are expected to continue their language study beyond the scholarship period, and later apply their critical language skills in their future professional careers in any field.
Last year, 10 UW students were selected to participate and studied languages in summer 2014 in Azerbaijan, China, Morocco, South Korea, Tajikistan, and India.
Languages offered:
- Azerbaijani, Bangla, Hindi, Indonesian, Korean, Punjabi, Turkish, and Urdu: Beginning, advanced beginning, intermediate and advanced levels;
- Arabic and Persian: Advanced beginning, intermediate and advanced levels;
- Chinese, Japanese, and Russian: Intermediate and advanced levels.
Eligibility Highlights:
Please review the complete eligibility details at http://www.clscholarship.org/information-for/applicants/. A few of the key eligibility provisions are:
- At the time of application, applicants must be US citizens enrolled in an accredited US degree-granting program at the undergraduate or graduate level.
- At the time of participation in the summer 2015 program, participants must be at least 18 years old, in acceptable mental and physical health, and receive an appropriate visa.
UW Information Sessions:
The Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships & Awards supports undergraduate students applying for this program and will hold information sessions for interested students on:
- Mon., Oct. 6, 2014, 4:30-5:20, MGH 173R
- Tues., Oct. 14, 2014, 12:30-1:20, MGH 173R
- Thurs., Oct. 16, 2014, 3:30-4:20, MGH 258
- RSVP to attend at https://expo.uw.edu/expo/rsvp/event/142
Deadline to apply for summer 2015 programs is Nov. 12, 2014! Complete details and the online application are available at http://clscholarship.org/.
