Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships
The 2025-2026 competition is now open! The deadline is Saturday, February 1, 2025 at 4:30 PM EST.
Current application materials can be found on this year's competition website.
Prospective applicants should read the general information below about the particular fellowship eligibility requirements and benefits for which they intend to apply before starting an application.
Overview
Under the U.S. Department of Education's Title VI Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) program, the Center for Slavic, East European and Eurasian Studies (CSEEES) offers summer and academic year fellowships for graduate and undergraduate students who are pursuing a degree and need advanced training in language and area studies. The fellowship seeks to enhance students' language skills and knowledge of a foreign country or region through coursework. Fellows receive a tuition and fee credit to subsidize enrollment in language and/or area studies coursework as well as receiving a stipend. CSEEES offers fellowships for students of the following languages:
- Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian
- Polish
- Romanian
- Russian*
- Turkish*
- Uzbek
Before applying for a fellowship however, prospective applicants should contact the language department that oversees instruction in the language to ensure that the language and level that the applicant is applying for will be offered. By petition, fellowships can be offered in other East European or Eurasian languages.
*Undergraduate students may only apply to study third-year Russian or above.
*Modern Turkish ONLY is eligible for FLAS, not Ottoman Turkish. Additionally, students applying for a FLAS in Modern Turkish to CSEEES must be studying Turkey as it relates to Eastern Europe and Eurasia. CSEEES does not support FLAS for study of the Middle East.
If studying overseas, fellows must register this travel with the Office of International Affairs and purchase the required supplemental travel insurance, the cost of which (based on the duration of travel) is the fellow's personal responsibility.
All applicants are strongly encouraged to attend an information session or contact the FLAS coordinator, Emma Pratt, at pratt.124@osu.edu to discuss their application before submitting it.
Summer Fellowships
Graduate and Professional Students:
Summer fellowships provide intensive language training for students, providing the fellow with the equivalent of one full year of language study. Applicants wishing to study intensively an eligible East European or Eurasian language can apply for a fellowship to study at a domestic language program and can apply for beginning, intermediate, or advanced language study. For overseas language study, fellows must be applying for the intermediate or advanced level. Please note, summer fellowships are for language study only. Fellows do not need to enroll in an area-studies course.
Applicant Eligibility Requirements:
- Full-time graduate or professional student
- U.S. citizen or permanent resident
- 3.2 GPA
FLAS Eligible Language Programs:
- Beginner and Intermediate programs must provide 140+ classroom contact hours
- Advanced programs need to offer 120+ classroom contact hours
Fellowship Benefits:
- Up to $5,000 of tuition and fee support
- $3,500 stipend
- Possibility of a further $1,000 for airfare reimbursement
Please contact the FLAS coordinator, Emma Pratt, at pratt.124@osu.edu if you have any questions about fellowship requirements or eligible language programs.
Undergraduate Students:
Fellowships for the summer provide the equivalent of one full year of language study through enrollment in intensive language programs. Undergraduate students wanting to study intensively an eligible East European or Eurasian language can apply for a fellowship to study at a domestic or overseas language program and can apply for intermediate or advanced language study. Please note, summer fellowships are for language study only. Fellows do not need to enroll in an area-studies course.
Applicant Eligibility Requirements:
- Full-time undergraduate student
- U.S. citizen or permanent resident
- 3.2 GPA
FLAS Eligible Language Programs:
- Intermediate programs must provide 140+ classroom contact hours
- Advanced programs need to offer 120+ classroom contact hours
Fellowship Benefits:
- Up to $5,000 of tuition and fee support
- $3,500 stipend
- Possibility of a further $1,000 for airfare reimbursement
Please contact the FLAS coordinator, Emma Pratt, at pratt.124@osu.edu if you have any questions about fellowship requirements or eligible language programs.
Academic Year Fellowships
Graduate and Professional Students:
Academic year fellowships are for students wishing to study an eligible language and take area studies coursework for two academic semesters. Applicants can be at the beginner, intermediate, or advanced language level. Applicants at the beginner level for their applied language must study domestically and must have already studied another relevant language through the advanced level. Intermediate and advanced language applicants can study both domestically or at an overseas institution but must still take both an area studies and language course. Beyond the language and area-studies courses, students can enroll in other courses related to their degree as long as they are enrolled full-time. Please note, fellowships are for language and area-studies coursework to enhance a graduate or professional student's course of study. CSEEES does not fund dissertation work and applicants cannot have post-candidacy status at any time during their fellowship.
Applicant Eligibility Requirements:
- Full-time graduate or professional student
- U.S. citizen or permanent resident
- 3.2 GPA
Course Requirements:
- One language course per semester: cannot be independent study, individualized instruction, or taken pass/fail
- One area studies course per semester: cannot be independent study, individualized instruction, or taken pass/fail
- Can then enroll in other courses as needed for degree, with a maximum of three credit hours per semester of independent study/thesis hours
Fellowship Benefits:
- Up to $18,000 of tuition and fee support
- Stipend of $20,000
Please contact the FLAS coordinator, Emma Pratt, at pratt.124@osu.edu if you have any questions about fellowship requirements.
Undergraduate Students:
Undergraduate students undertaking a course of study requiring both language and area studies can apply for a fellowship to study at a domestic or overseas institution. Students must apply for intermediate or advanced language study. In addition to enrolling in a language and area studies course, students can take other courses to fulfill their degree requirements.
Applicant Eligibility Requirements:
- Full-time undergraduate student
- U.S. citizen or permanent resident
- 3.2 GPA
Course Requirements:
- One language course per semester: cannot be independent study, individualized instruction, or taken pass/fail
- One area studies course per semester: cannot be independent study, individualized instruction, or taken pass/fail
- Can then enroll in other courses as needed for degree
Fellowship Benefits:
- Up to $10,000 of tuition and fee support
- $5,000 stipend
Please contact the FLAS coordinator, Emma Pratt, at pratt.124@osu.edu if you have any questions about fellowship requirements or eligible language programs.