Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowships

Overview

Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowships provide funding to undergraduate and graduate students to encourage the study of critical and less commonly taught foreign languages in combination with area studies or international aspects of professional studies. Fellowships are funded by the U.S. Department of Education to promote the training of students who intend to make their careers in higher education, government service, or other employment where knowledge of foreign languages and cultures is essential.

CLACS is offering FLAS awards to undergraduate and graduate students studying Spanish, Portuguese, Nahuatl, or other Latin American languages. Fellowships are offered for both academic year and summer programs. This funding is from the U.S. Government, and applicants must be U.S. Citizens or Legal Permanent Residents. 

For more information, see the Graduate Division Website: https://grad.berkeley.edu/flas/(link is external)(link is external)

Academic Year Awards

FLAS awards for the academic year are available to UC Berkeley graduate students for Spanish, Portuguese, Nahuatl, and rarely, less-commonly taught languages (LCTLs). Eligible graduate students in any discipline and department may apply for FLAS fellowships, including students in professional schools and the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Priority will be given to students seeking to study Portuguese or other LCTLs in advanced levels of language study. Students must demonstrate a commitment to the world area (not limited to Latinx populations in the U.S.) and to their field in the next stage of their professional or academic careers.

FLAS grants cannot be awarded for beginning level language training, and to be eligible for FLAS, a graduate student must have completed at least two semesters of study of the target language by the start of the fellowship. However, exceptions might be made for the beginning level of a LCTL if a graduate student has already achieved advanced proficiency in a Latin American language, and if the student can demonstrate that learning another language is required for his/her overall training and expertise. Students may apply for funding for languages beyond Spanish, Portuguese, and Nahuatl if they provide a plan for a full year of language training and area studies according to FLAS guidelines. The proposed plans will require approval from the U.S. Department of Education. In certain cases, FLAS fellowships may be used for language study abroad during an academic year. Awards may be given for dissertation research abroad, pending approval from the US Department of Education. For questions regarding the availability of specific languages and student eligibility, please contact the Center for Latin American Studies.

The graduate Academic Year FLAS Fellowship will cover registration fees up to $18,000 and provide a stipend of $20,000.

The undergraduate Academic Year FLAS Fellowship will cover registration fees up to $10,000 and provide a stipend of $5,000.

Dissertation Research Awards

The Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies may award FLAS for academic year dissertation research abroad, pending approval from the US Department of Education. Dissertation FLAS fellowships must be used to conduct research abroad. Only students at the advanced level of the language are eligible to receive an AY fellowship to conduct dissertation research. Fellows must use the language in conducting their dissertation research project, providing the FLAS fellow with intensive language training, equivelent to that a full academic year of formal classroom instruction.

Fellowships for dissertation research will cover registration fees up to $18,000 and provide a stipend of $15,000.