by Zaynah Almasri

Applications for the Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) are closing soon, on Nov 19, 2024 at 8:00pm eastern time! The CLS is a wonderful opportunity for American college students interested in studying languages and engaging with cultures that are vital to America’s involvement with the world. Participants are able to spend eight to ten weeks studying one of twelve languages at different levels abroad with the full cost of tuition, airfare, and room and board all covered by the U.S. Department of State.

The CLS Program fosters intercultural understanding and accelerates language learning through intensive coursework and organized enrichment activities. This year, a dozen languages are offered including Hindi, Chinese and Portuguese. Some perks include non-competitive eligibility for U.S. government employment for up to three years after program completion, and academic credit issued through Bryn Mawr College. 

Additionally, the CLS program offers U.S. undergraduate students with no prior formal classroom experience in Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean or Russian the opportunity to take eight weeks of virtual summer classes in their chosen language. This program or, CLS Sparks, in addition to having the same perks as the in person program, automatically considers participants as semi-finalists for the overseas program the following year.

Eligibility requirements are very few and include, being a U.S. citizen or national, at least 18 years old, enrolled in a U.S. degree-granting program at the undergraduate or graduate level, and for certain languages a prerequisite is required. For a full list of prerequisites visit: https://clscholarship.org/applicants/language-levels 

Reach out to Thais García Bagué at tgarcia@wesleyan.edu for any questions or help with shaping your strategy for this application and your broader plans.