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The Boren Award for International Study, a scholarship of the National Security Education Program, provides funding to students studying abroad to learn languages crucial to U.S. national security. Students are expected to seek federal employment after graduation. Applications this year will support study abroad next year.

An information session, featuring an outreach officer from the Institute of International Education, will be held at 11:30 a.m. on Tuesday, Sept. 13 in Clausen Center 113. Please contact Prof. Dan Choffnes at fellowships@carthage.edu if you are interested, but unable to attend.

Here are some features of the Boren Scholarship:

  • Boren Awards fund study abroad outside of Western Europe and English-speaking countries.
  • Boren Awards alumni commit to work in the federal government for a minimum of one year, with preference given to applicants who demonstrate a longer-term commitment to public service. Students interested in careers in public service (including civilian jobs, military service, and the Peace Corps) are strong applicants and should attend the info session.
  • Boren Awards alumni come from diverse ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds, including those who have never traveled abroad before, as well as heritage language speakers and naturalized U.S. citizens.
  • The South Asian Flagship Languages Initiative (SAFLI) incentivizes Boren applicants to study Hindi and Urdu in India. SAFLI is appropriate to applicants with no language proficiency in Hindi or Urdu, as well as those with intermediate and advanced proficiency.
  • The Boren Awards give preference to applicants who plan to study languages indigenous to preferred African countries (full list at www.borenawards.org). Additionally, the African Flagship Languages Initiative (AFLI) incentivizes applicants to study Akan/Twi, French, Portuguese, Swahili, Wolof, or Zulu. AFLI programs (except for French) appropriate to applicants with no language proficiency as well as those with intermediate and advanced proficiency. Applicants interested in studying French must demonstrate an intermediate-high or above oral proficiency level to participate.
  • In addition to the special language initiatives described above, the Boren Awards fund the study of numerous less-commonly-taught languages (full list at www.borenawards.org). Among the most popular are Arabic, Mandarin, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, and Russian.
  • The Boren Scholarships offer a special initiative for undergraduate STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) majors, who are eligible to apply for up to $8,000 for summer study (minimum of 8 weeks).