Foreign Language Scholarships

Today, as the global business world becomes increasingly more interconnected, there is a growing demand for multilingual professionals. Studying a foreign language will give you a massive edge over other applicants when you apply for a job, especially with multinational corporations. And if you can get a scholarship to fund your foreign language program, that’s an added bonus.

Check out these few foreign language scholarships that will help you realize your multilingual goals.

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IES Merit-Based Scholarships

Amount: Varies

Deadline: April 1 (Summer); May 1 (Fall); November 1 (Spring)

IES Abroad shapes future global leaders through their exciting study abroad and internship programs by offering several foreign language scholarships. Whether you wish to study Mandarin, French, Italian, Arabic, Spanish, Hindi or Japanese, IES abroad will help you study abroad in certain countries within their network with a scholarship of up to $3,000. Only those students accepted to and enrolled in an IES Abroad program qualify for these scholarships.

The TSJCL Lourania Miller & Gareth Morgan Scholarship

Amount: $1,000

Deadline: June 1, 2020

The Texas State Junior Classical League (TSJCL) and the Texas Classical Association (TCA) award the Lourania Miller and Gareth Morgan Scholarship to qualified high school seniors who wish to pursue the study of Latin and the classics. You must be a resident of Texas to apply for this $1,000 award. Recipients of this scholarship must take up Latin or Greek in their freshmen year at college.

Boren Awards for International Study

Amount: Varies

Deadline: February 3, 2021

With 180 awards available every year and a scholarship amount of up to $20,000 for each student, the Boren Awards for International Study is definitely an opportunity worth applying to if you meet the qualifying criteria.

As an initiative of the National Security Education Program, the scholarship awards qualifying students who wish to pursue advanced studies in culture and languages vital to US interests abroad. Funding is provided to encourage students to pursue the less commonly taught languages such as Korean, Arabic, Swahili, and Russian. You must be a matriculated undergraduate, high school graduate, or GED recipient to apply for this award.

What you must know is that Boren scholarships are award-for-service programs, which means if you pursue this opportunity, you will have to sign an undertaking agreeing to work in a National Security capacity for a predetermined duration after you graduate.

Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program

Amount: Varies

Deadline: TBD for 2021

Every summer, the Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program sends students abroad to further their learning of a foreign language. As citizen ambassadors, CLS participants must immerse themselves in another culture while also sharing the American culture. CLS offers 15 language programs.

Interested students should check out the CLS website for eligibility requirements. Some requirements include having U.S. citizenship, being a currently enrolled undergraduate student, and maintaining good academic standing.

Valparaiso University, Department of Foreign Languages and Literatures

Amount: $1,000

Deadline: Apply to the university before December 1

Every year, the Languages and Literatures Department at Valparaiso University offers incoming freshmen a chance to win a scholarship for majoring in French, Spanish or German. Students must submit an essay highlighting their aspirations in academics and in their future careers. The student who submits the most compelling essay receives a $1,000 award for their first year.

They can renew the scholarship up to three times over a period of 4 years for a total of $4,000 in scholarships, provided that they remain in their chosen foreign language program and make acceptable academic progress in the same.

Dr. Carlos E. Castaneda Memorial Scholarship

Amount: $2,000

Deadline: April 30 (Fall); October 30 (Winter and Spring); February 28 (Summer)

The Dr. Carlos E. Castaneda Memorial Scholarship is awarded by International Studies Abroad (ISA). Their goal is to help students immerse themselves in various cultures in order to understand tolerance from a deeper perspective. Towards this end, ISA awards students who qualify a $2,000 scholarship to cover study abroad trips.

You must be a sophomore or junior year student of a school that is affiliated with the ISA to apply for this scholarship.

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