Wow – Turkish has been identified as a “critical language” and Fulbright is offering scholarships to learn it in-country!
Fulbright Critical Language Enhancement Award
The Fulbright Critical Language Enhancement Award, sponsored by the Department of State through the Fulbright Program, is open to students who have been awarded a Fulbright U.S. student grant and intend to use one of the eligible languages in their Fulbright project. Application for a Critical Language Enhancement Award is made in conjunction with the Fulbright Program application.
The purpose of the Critical Language Enhancement Award is to cultivate language learning prior to and during the Fulbright grant period and beyond. Ultimately, critical language enhancement awardees will achieve a high level of proficiency in a targeted language and will go on to careers or further study which will incorporate the use of this and/or related languages.
In 2007-08, up to 150 Critical Language Enhancement Awards will be available for grantees to pursue in-country training for up to six months prior to beginning their Fulbright project.
The Critical Language Enhancement Award is part of the National Security Language Initiative (NSLI), designed to dramatically increase the number of Americans learning critical need foreign languages such as Arabic, Chinese, Russian, Hindi, Farsi, and others through new and expanded programs from kindergarten through university and into the workforce. Foreign language skills are essential to engaging foreign governments and peoples, especially in critical world regions, to encourage reform, promote understanding and convey respect for other cultures. The NSLI initiative is a coordinated federal government effort that includes the Department of State, Department of Education, Department of Defense, and the Office of the Director of National Intelligence.
The languages available for the Critical Language Enhancement Award: Arabic, Azeri, Bengali, Chinese (Mandarin only), Farsi, Gujarati, Hindi, Korean, Marathi, Pashto, Punjabi, Russian, Tajik, Turkish, Urdu, and Uzbek. For full of details of the award please see Fulbright Critical Language Enhancement Award.