Section 657.4 - [Effective 8/15/2025] Who is eligible to receive a fellowship?A student must satisfy the criteria in paragraphs (a) through (e) of this section during the fellowship period to be eligible to receive a fellowship from an approved Center or Program, and a student receiving an academic year fellowship must additionally satisfy the criteria in paragraph (f) of this section to be eligible:
(a) The student is a- (1) Citizen or national of the United States; or(2) Permanent resident of the United States.(b) The student is accepted for enrollment, is enrolled, or will continue to be enrolled in the institution receiving an allocation of fellowships.(c) The student demonstrates- (1) Commitment to the study of a world area relevant to the allocation of fellowships; and(2) Potential for high academic achievement based on grade point average, class ranking, or similar measures that the institution may determine.(d) The student is engaged in modern foreign language training or instruction in a language- (1) That is relevant to the student's educational program, as described in paragraph (c), as well as the allocation of fellowships; and(2) For which the institution or program has developed or is developing performance goals for foreign language use, and in the case of summer programs has received approval from the Secretary.(e) The student must engage in the type of training appropriate to their degree status:(1) Undergraduate students must engage in the study of a less commonly taught language at the intermediate or advanced level.(2) Non-dissertation or predissertation level graduate students must engage in the study of a modern foreign language at the-(i) Intermediate or advanced level; or(ii) Beginning level, provided they demonstrate advanced proficiency in another modern foreign language relevant to their field of study or obtain the permission of the Secretary.(3) Dissertation level graduate students must-(i) Engage in dissertation research abroad or dissertation writing in the United States;(ii) Demonstrate advanced proficiency in a modern foreign language relevant to the dissertation project and the allocation of fellowships; and(iii) Use modern foreign language(s) relevant to the allocation of fellowships in their dissertation research or writing.(f) The student meets the criteria related to educational programs described in this paragraph (f)(1) or (2):(1) The student is pursuing an educational program (including any major fields of study, general education requirements, certificates, concentrations, specializations, or minor fields of study, or other established components of an institution's curriculum) that requires or ordinarily includes- (i) Instruction in at least one modern foreign language related to the allocation of fellowships or a demonstration of proficiency in at least one modern foreign language related to the allocation of fellowships; and(ii) Instruction or, for graduate students, supervised research related to the allocation of fellowships in-(B) The international aspects of professional fields and other fields of study, including but not limited to science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields.(2) The student is pursuing an educational program that includes all of the following: (i) A requirement for substantial instruction in a professional field or in one or more science, technology, engineering, and mathematics fields.(ii) The option to incorporate international aspects of fields of study through instruction in area studies and at least one modern foreign language.(iii) Courses that meet fellowship duration and purpose requirements described in § 657.30(b) and are selected under the guidance of an individual or committee who possesses area studies and modern foreign language qualifications relevant to the allocation of fellowships as well as knowledge of requirements for the student's educational program.