Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowships are academic scholarships that provide funding and support to graduate and undergraduate students who are pursuing Asian language and area studies.

The Asian Studies Center awards undergraduate and graduate student fellowships under the Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship program of the U.S. Department of Education for the study of modern Asian languages and Asia area studies. The FLAS Fellowship program is designed to meet critical needs for specialists in American education, government, and other services of a public and/or professional nature who will utilize their skills in training others and in developing throughout the United States a wider knowledge and understanding of other countries and cultures.

Academic Year 2022 - 2023 FLAS Fellowships

Undergraduate students: AY fellowships* for undergraduate students offer tuition payments of up to $10,000 per academic year and a stipend up to a total of $5,000 for the same period.

Graduate students: AY fellowships* for graduate students offer tuition payments of up to $18,000 per academic year and a stipend up to a total of $20,000 for the same period. Applicants who are Ph.D. candidates at the dissertation stage will be required to provide additional information regarding requesting support for dissertation research and writing.

Dissertation–level doctoral applicants may use FLAS fellowships to fun dissertation research and writing. Dissertation research must be conducted abroad. Dissertation writing must be conducted at home institution in the US.

*The 2022-23 AY FLAS fellowships are contingent on receipt of grant funding by the MSU Asian Studies Center from the U.S. Department of Education.

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Applicant Eligibility Criteria

Citizenship: Applicants must be a US citizen or US permanent resident at the time of application.

Student Status: Applicants who are currently enrolled in a full time undergraduate or graduate degree program at Michigan State University or have been accepted for admission to MSU and will be enrolled full time starting Fall 2022. 

• Applicants must be eligible to receive an MSU tuition scholarship.
• Applicants must be ready to enroll for full time academic study at MSU and propose a course of study that includes both language training and related area course work.
• For undergraduate students and for PhD candidates who have completed their course work, applicants must be ready to enroll in the intermediate level or higher for both the FA22 and SP23 semesters. If awarded, undergraduate students and PhD candidates who have completed their course work must have obtained 12 credits in an Asian language by the time the fellowship begins in FA22. 
• All applicants must be ready to enroll in at least one area studies course (at least 50% Asia content) during either FA22 or SP23 semester. For PhD candidates in the dissertation stage, 999 credits will fulfill both language & area course requirements.
• Applicants must show potential for high academic achievement based on grade point average and recommendations, and demonstrate a long-term interest in Asia.
• In addition to merit, demonstrated financial need will be taken into consideration. All applicants will be asked to provide financial support and need information. If applicable, FAFSA verification will be acquired from the Financial Aid Office for applicants who submitted FAFSA for the 2022-2023 academic year.

Application Info & Competition Dates

Online Application and Submission Portal is OPEN now.
Application Deadline: June 19, 2022 (Extended!)

Application Checklist 

All applicants:

• Application Form
• Personal Statement & Career Goals
• Two Recommendation Letter(s) emailed directly by recommenders to the Asian Studies Center by the deadline:
• From a faculty member familiar with your academic work. Preferably a faculty in your major field of study, graduate program, or advisory/dissertation committee.
• From a language instructor. If you have taken an Asian language course at MSU within the last two academic years, one of the letters must be from an MSU language instructor who will be asked to assess your academic credential and/or ability to learn a foreign language.

• Official transcript (PDF) to be emailed directly by the MSU Office of the Registrar or your educational institution to the Asian Studies Center.

PhD applicants who are in the dissertation stage, additional checklist:

• Dissertation Project Description
• Letter of Verification/Statement of dissertation progress. Completed by an MSU faculty advisor or member of the dissertation committee and emailed directly by the faculty to the Asian Studies Center by the deadline. In the case that the faculty is also a recommender, the progress description can be integrated into the letter of recommendation.

Contact Information:

Dr. Isabella Tirtowalujo, Asian Studies Center - tirtowal(at)msu.edu