The Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program is a United States Department of State cultural and educational exchange program which offers approximately 500 undergraduate or graduate level students from the United States the opportunity to participate in an intensive language study abroad. This nationally competitive program funds students who study one of the 15 critical need foreign languages, and is part of the National Security Language Initiative. The 15 critical languages include Arabic, Azerbaijani, Bengali, Chinese, Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, Persian, Portuguese, Punjabi, Russian, Swahili, Turkish and Urdu. With an acceptance rate of less than 10%, the Critical Language Scholarship is one of the most competitive scholarships in the U.S. and the most prestigious language program for U.S. citizens.
Program administration
The program is administered by American Councils for International Education with awards approved by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
Eligibility requirements
Applicants to the program must be U.S. citizens enrolled in a U.S. degree-granting program at the undergraduate or graduate level at the time of application. Undergraduate students must have completed at least one year of general college course-work by the start date of the program. Other requirements are that the applicants should be in acceptable mental and physical health for which persons granted the scholarship are usually required to submit a satisfactory Medical Information Form and Physician’s Statement. The minimum age is 18 by the beginning of the CLS Program in the particular year.
The scholarship is open to students in all disciplines, including business, engineering, law, medicine, sciences, and humanities. There is also no discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, gender, age, or disability in choosing awardees.
Language levels and prerequisites
Beginner
Offered at all levels (Beginning, Advanced Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced). No previous study of the language, or less than one academic year of study or the equivalent: Azerbaijani Bangla/Bengali Hindi Indonesian Persian Punjabi Swahili Turkish Urdu
Intermediate
Requires at least one academic year of prior target language study or the equivalent (Advanced Beginning, Intermediate and Advanced): Arabic Korean Portuguese Russian
Advanced
Requires at least two academic years of prior target language study or the equivalent (Intermediate and Advanced only) Chinese Japanese
CLS Language Levels and Terminology
Beginning Level: No previous study of the language, or less than one academic year of study or the equivalent. Advanced Beginning Level: At least one academic year of target language study or the equivalent. Intermediate Level: At least two academic years of target language study or the equivalent. Advanced Level: At least three academic years of target language study or the equivalent.
The equivalent of 1 year of college-level language study entails but is not limited to: 1 summer of intensive language study, 2 semesters of study (audited or for credit), or 1 year of private tutoring. A typical academic year is 9 months (36 weeks). A typical language course is 3–5 hours per week or 108–180 hours per academic year of language instruction. Applicants who have completed the CLS Program may count each summer of participation as one year of language study. Applicants must choose to apply for only one language offered by the CLS Program.
Selection process
Award recipients will be selected on the basis of merit with consideration for: Academic record and potential to succeed in a rigorous academic setting; Ability to adapt to a different cultural environment; Diversity; Plan for continuation of study of the language; and Plan to use the language in future career. http://www.clscholarship.org/index.php?p=news/2015/sayyestocls All applicants are initially read by two outside academic readers, and the top applications are reviewed by panels of academics and experts in the area and language. Applicants recommended for selection are forwarded to the U.S. Department of State for final approval. After notification, selected participants will be required to complete a language evaluation. Selected applicants will be assigned to a CLS institute site by mid to late April based on language evaluation results along with information provided in the online application.