Frequently Asked Questions about FLAS Fellowships

Questions about eligibility

 

Who is eligible to receive a FLAS fellowship?

Graduate and undergraduate students who are US citizens or nationals or permanent residents and who are enrolled (or accepted for enrollment) in a program that combines modern foreign language training with international or area studies or with the international aspects of professional or other fields of study. Only undergraduates who have declared a major by the application deadline AND are studying a language at the intermediate or advanced level are eligible.

Are incoming freshmen eligible?

No. Undergraduates must declare a major by the time of application to qualify.

Can I receive a summer FLAS if I will graduate in the previous spring?

No.

May I apply for a FLAS if I am not a Penn student?

 Yes, as long as you are enrolled, or accepted for enrollment, at an institution receiving an allocation of fellowships for either the summer or academic year.

Contact the FLAS Coordinator for your language.

Is there a limit on the number of FLAS fellowships I can receive?

There is no limit on the number of sequential FLAS awards one person may receive, but no more than one concurrent award can be accepted.

Questions about the application process

What information is required for the application?

Please refer to the application instructions, as appropriate. Note that there are two separate competitions for which two separate and complete applications are required.

How do incoming graduate students apply?

Incoming students should indicate on their admissions application that they wish to be considered for FLAS by completing the FLAS application page of the admissions application, and uploading an additional one-page, single-spaced statement describing why the proposed FLAS language study is essential to realizing your study and career goals. Title your document “FLAS Statement” and upload it using the "Personal Statement" section of the admissions application.

The Department or School to which the student is applying will rank FLAS applicants if there is more than one applicant per Department or School.

Can I apply to more than one National Resource Center?

Yes. You will not be allowed to receive two simultaneous awards, but you are welcome to submit applications to more than one Center.

Can I apply to both summer and academic year FLAS fellowships?

Yes. It is possible to receive both a summer and AY award. For example, a student may apply to attend a summer intensive Arabic program in Arabic 1 and 2 followed by an AY FLAS for Arabic 3 and 4. There are separate competitions, and you must apply separately for the two awards.

I'm an undergraduate student currently receiving financial aid.  If I am awarded a FLAS, how will it affect my financial aid package?

We recommend you speak with Penn's Office of Student Financial Services before applying for FLAS to discuss how a FLAS fellowship would affect your aid package. 

What happens after I submit my application?

Recipients, alternates, and non-recipients will receive notification of their status within a month after the application deadline. Award letters will contain more information about payments, registration, requirements, etc.

Who will review/evaluate my application?

Each Center has a review and selection committee that will evaluate and rank applicants. Undergraduate and graduate applications are ranked separately and not in competition with each other. However, for the Summer competition, undergraduate and graduate students do compete for the same fellowships.

Do I need to submit a bibliography with my essay?

Bibliographies per se are discouraged, but if you wish, you may mention important authors or works in your text or include relevant citations parenthetically.

Questions about FLAS usage

(see below for specific answers about Academic Year and Summer awards)

Can a FLAS award be used to participate in an internship program?

Generally not, because an internship program is neither a formal academic program of full-time study nor dissertation research. Contact your FLAS Coordinator about a specific internship if you feel it meets the full-time study requirement.

Is a FLAS fellow allowed to work during the award period?

In limited situations, yes. Remember that FLAS fellows are required to be engaged in full-time foreign language and area or international studies course work or dissertation research during the academic year, or in intensive language study during the summer award period. However, Penn policy does allow up to 20 hours per week additional employment as a TA, RA, PA, or student hourly with prior permission. Contact your FLAS Coordinator for more details. There is an approval process that is detailed in the fellowship appointment letter; the appointment must be approved by: a) the major advisor, b) the area program giving the FLAS, and c) the Dean’s office of the student’s School.

Can I receive both a FLAS and another fellowship during the same period?

Sometimes. Please consult your FLAS Coordinator.

Can I get a single semester award during the academic year?

No.

Can I take a semester off and finish the award during a subsequent period?

No.

Can I request a Pass/Fail grade for my courses?

No.

Can I use my FLAS at a different U.S. institution?

During the summer only.  

Can I use the FLAS for a reading knowledge course?

No. FLAS is designed to give students proficiency in speaking and writing, as well as reading and listening.

About Academic Year awards:

What does an academic year FLAS Fellow receive?

Award benefits include a stipend plus some or all tuition and fees. Graduate students receive $18,000 toward tuition and fees; some schools cover the remaining tuition. Undergraduates receive up to $10,000 towards tuition. For the academic year 2012-2013, the FLAS stipend is $15,000 for graduate students and $5,000 for undergrads.  Undergraduates receiving need-based financial aid may find that the FLAS fellowship will impact their aid package, and should consult their financial aid advisor. 

What can I use an Academic Year FLAS for?

Academic Year FLAS fellowships are awarded for a full academic year to students engaged in:

What if I'm a dissertator but I don't have advanced language skills?

Not all Centers allow dissertators to receive FLAS awards. In some cases, FLAS awards may be used for dissertation research abroad (see above). In rare instances, dissertators may receive FLAS for language study at Penn, in which case they must suspend their dissertator status and follow all requirements for graduate awards, including taking a full load of courses. All dissertators must have prior approval of the Department of Education. The approval process is initiated by the Area Studies Center prior to awarding a fellowship; no approval is needed at time of application. Those dissertators proposing overseas research must also demonstrate an affiliation with a university or research organization in the country of research, and a research visa, if required.

Do I have to take specific classes?

FLAS recipients must take at least one language course and one area studies course each semester. Some Centers maintain approved course lists. Please check with the appropriate FLAS Coordinator.

How many credits do I need to take?

Fellows must engage in full-time study, as defined by Penn, during the tenure of the award. (For graduate students this means at least 3 CUs per semester; for undergraduates, a minimum of 4 CUs per semester.) Awardees must take at least 1 course in the language of the award and a related world area course each semester. FLAS Fellows must remain in academic good standing (satisfactory progress toward a degree, enrolled full time, attend classes faithfully, completing course requirements on schedule). No pass/fail courses or incompletes are permitted for FLAS Fellows.

Beyond classwork, is anything required of FLAS Fellows?

All fellows will be required to fill out pre- and post-award reports for the US Department of Education and will be surveyed every two years in the years following their award for a total of eight years. In addition, all fellows must take pre- and post-award proficiency assessments.

 

About Summer awards:

What does an summer FLAS Fellow receive?

Graduate and undergraduate students receive $5,000 toward tuition and fees plus a $2500 stipend.

Summer FLAS fellowships are intended to help students gain the equivalent of a year's worth of college-level language study. They support students enrolled in:

• formal domestic programs of intensive language study at the beginning (graduate students only), intermediate or advanced level;
  
  OR
  
  
• formal overseas programs of intensive language study at the intermediate or advanced level;
  
  OR
  
  
• formal overseas programs of intensive study at the beginning level of languages for which appropriate equivalent instruction is not available in the United States (graduate students only)

To be considered "intensive," a language program must offer a minimum of 140 contact (class-time) hours (120 for advanced level) and must last a minimum of 6 weeks.

Does a summer FLAS include a travel award?

Occasionally. Students may be eligible for a summer travel award of up to $1,000, or the actual cost of travel to and from the program site, whichever is less. Travel awards may be made at the discretion of the area studies program and only with the permission of the US Department of Education. Contact your FLAS coordinator for more information.

May I switch programs and/or languages after I submit my application?

Requests to change programs and/or languages are handled by the FLAS Coordinator and are rarely granted. Before students prepare an application for a Summer FLAS, they should thoroughly research available programs for their proposed language of study.

Beyond classwork, is anything required of FLAS Fellows?

As with academic year fellowships, all summer FLAS fellows will be required to fill out pre- and post-award reports for the US Department of Education and will be surveyed every two years in the years following their award for a total of eight years. In addition, all fellows must take pre- and post-award proficiency assessments.

For More Information

If you have further questions or suggestions for additions to this list, questions about a particular language, or questions about the selection process of the competition, please contact the FLAS Coordinator of the appropriate area studies program.