FLAS Fellowship Opportunities for UCLA Undergrad and Grad Students


Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship

Academic Year and Summer fellowships for Quechua, Portuguese, and Advanced Spanish combined with area studies.
The Latin American Institute administers the federally-funded Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship program for Latin America at UCLA, supporting graduate training in Quechua, Portuguese, and Advanced Spanish combined with area studies. New and continuing UCLA graduate students in all disciplines may apply for the Academic Year and/or the Summer FLAS awards. Students interested in both FLAS fellowships must submit an application for each corresponding fellowship.
 
NOTE: As of 2010, undergraduate students studying target languages at the advanced level (third year or above) are eligible for FLAS awards. Applicants must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents. 
FLAS fellowships are provided by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education Title VI program. The purpose of the program is to enrich the nation’s pool of area and international specialists. Applicants must be planning to use their training to teach, serve in government or international agencies, or engage in other work that advances American understanding of other countries.  
 All FLAS awards are contingent upon renewal of the Title VI grant for 2010-14 from the U.S. Department of Education. Notification of renewal may not be forthcoming until July 2010.  
Estimated Award Amounts 
  • Academic-year awards provide a $15,000 stipend stipend for graduate students and $10,000 for undergraduate students. The Latin American Institute requires that a student’s home department cover registration fees.
  • Summer FLAS fellowships support intensive language study in approved programs in the U.S. and abroad. The awards provide up to $4,000 towards tuition and fees as well as a stipend of $2,500 for living expenses. 
AY FLAS Fellowship Requirements 
  • The AY FLAS fellowship requires recipients to be enrolled as full-time students (minimum of 12 units) each quarter and to be registered each quarter in both a Latin America area studies course and a language course, each of which must be taken for a letter grade. Independent Study courses are not accepted.
  • Awards may be used for dissertation research if approved in advance and applicant is at the advanced level of language proficiency.
  • Recipients are required to complete a pre-award self-evaluation at the beginning of the academic year and a performance report at the end of the award period. 

Summer FLAS Requirements 
  • Summer FLAS fellowships can only be used for approved intensive language study programs in the U.S. or abroad. Such programs must be a minimum of six weeks long and offer a minimum of 140 contact hours for beginning and intermediate level students, or 120 contact hours for advanced level students.
  • Summer FLAS fellowships may not be used for a beginning level language program abroad unless there is no equivalent program available in the United States. 
  
Application Procedures
All FLAS applications must be submitted online. Required information includes: 
  • a one to two page statement of purpose outlining proposed research and language study plans and explaining how language study will enhance the project
  • two letters of recommendation
  • a language evaluation or proficiency certification
  • endorsement from one’s home department (AY FLAS Applicants Only)
  • unofficial university transcripts including most recent coursework (not URSA)
  • applicant’s resume or CV
  • Summer FLAS applicants need to submit a detailed budget

 Application Deadline:
Applications should be submitted in time to meet departmental fellowship application deadlines since part of the application process requires departmental endorsement. The final deadline for departments to endorse candidates is February 17. Consult the Student Affairs Officer in your department regarding the departmental deadline. 

For more info please contact:
David Arriaza
(310) 206-6572
darriaza@international.ucla.edu