While the pandemic has curtailed students’ education abroad, national award applications are still being accepted for next year. The Office of National Fellowships supports students in their applications for these awards.
The Boren Scholarship, the Critical Language Scholarship, the Gilman Scholarship, and the Gilman-McCain Scholarship all offer substantial funding to help get students overseas. Because these awards are national, applicants must be U.S. citizens. Be aware that not all of these awards fit all students; each one has a specific focus. Interested students should make an appointment through MyPlan to meet with Laura Damuth, Director of National and International Fellowships, so that the specifics of the award and campus deadlines can be discussed.
Boren Scholarship
Campus deadline November 1, National deadline early February
The Boren Scholarship provides up to $20,000 for U.S. undergraduate students to study less commonly taught languages in world regions critical to U.S. interests, including Africa, Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Latin America, and the Middle East. The countries of Western Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand are excluded.
Boren Scholars represent a vital pool of highly motivated individuals who wish to work in the federal national security arena. In exchange for funding, Boren Scholars commit to working in the federal government for at least one year after graduation.
Critical Language Scholarship
Deadline mid-November
The Critical Language Scholarship Program is an intensive overseas language and cultural immersion program. CLS is part of a wider government initiative to expand the number of Americans studying and mastering foreign languages that are critical to national security and economic prosperity. Only certain languages are offered:
- Azerbaijani, Bangla, Hindi, Indonesian, Persian, Punjabi, Swahili, Turkish, and Urdu: offered at all levels.
- Arabic, Korean, Portuguese, and Russian: requires at least one year of prior study.
- Chinese and Japanese: requires two years of prior study.
Gilman International Scholarship
Two deadlines per year, early October and early March
The Gilman International Scholarship Program offers scholarships for Pell-eligible U.S. citizen undergraduate students to pursue academic studies abroad. Students receive up to $5,000 to apply toward study abroad program costs, including program fees, tuition, room and board, airfare, books, and local transportation. The study abroad program should be at least three weeks in length. There are two national deadlines; the first one is on October 6.
Gilman-McCain
Two deadlines per year, early October and early March
The U.S. Department of State’s Gilman-McCain Scholarship provides awards of $5,000 for undergraduate child dependents of active duty service members to study or intern abroad on credit-bearing programs. Developed under the framework of the State Department’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program, the John McCain International Scholarship for the Children of Military Families (Gilman-McCain Scholarship) is open to eligible students enrolled at accredited U.S. colleges and universities who receive any type of Title IV federal financial aid.
More details at: http://fellowships.unl.edu