FLAS Fellowships

The academic year FLAS fellowship provides a nine-month stipend of $20,000 and pays for in-state tuition and required fees (up to $18,000 and a maximum of 9 credit hours in most cases). During the fellowship period, FLAS recipients must be enrolled in at least three hours of language instruction and at least one relevant area studies course during each semester. Both courses must be taken on a letter-grade basis. Graduate FLAS Fellows receive a supplementary payment from UT Austin to cover health insurance.

The academic year FLAS fellowship includes a nine-month stipend of $5,000 plus cost of in-state tuition and course-related fees up to $10,000 per academic year (up to a maximum of 15 hours per semester). During the fellowship period, FLAS recipients must be enrolled in at least three hours of language instruction and at least one relevant area studies course during each semester. Both courses must be taken on a letter-grade basis. FLAS Fellows are responsible for their own health insurance coverage.

SAI offers academic year and summer funding for the following languages:

• Bengali (Bangla)
• Hindi
• Kannada
• Malayalam
• Persian (if it relates directly to the study of South Asia)
• Tamil
• Telugu
• Urdu
• Other approved contemporary South Asian languages

• Application to Summer 2024 and Academic Year 2024-25 FLAS Fellowships open on November 1, 2023.
• Deadline to Apply: Friday, February 16, 2024
• Notifications of awards for Academic Year 2024-25 and Summer 2024 will be sent out in March 2024.

The summer FLAS fellowship provides a $3,500 stipend and institutional payments (tuition and course-related fees) up to $5,000. Summer FLAS recipients must enroll in an approved intensive modern South Asian language study program for which the fellowship is granted (area studies coursework not required). SASLI (at the University of Wisconsin) and AIIS (in various places in India) are the most common programs used, but you may attend other universities in the U.S. or other institutions in India, such as the Landour Language School for Intermediate Hindi, if the syllabus is approved and there are at least 150 class contact hours during the fellowship period.

The student is responsible for successfully applying for the summer FLAS intensive language study program. Please check application deadlines with the program of your choice.

• For Summer FLAS Applicants: Information (name and location of institution, website, program cost, number of weeks with 6 week minimum, total contact hours with 120-140 minimum, apx. travel dates, and program dates) for the intensive language center where you plan to study are required on the FLAS application.
  • At the advanced level: The session must be at least six weeks in duration and offer at least 120 contact hours of instruction.
  • At the beginning or intermediate level: The session must be atleast six weeks in duration and offer at least 140 contact hours of instruction.

The student is responsible for successfully applying for the summer FLAS intensive language study program. Please check application deadlines with the program of your choice.

Three popular summer programs are:

• UT Austin Summer Language Program
• South Asia Summer Language Institute (SASLI at University of Wisconsin-Madison)
  • Please visit the program website for application deadlines and program info.
• American Institute of Indian Studies (AIIS in India) 
  • Summer 2025 Application Deadline: January 31, 2025
  • Important Note: FLAS awardees will be notified of their award in late-February or early-March 2025. Therfore you must apply to the AIIS program first and once you receive confirmation of your FLAS award, you must notify the AIIS program to let them know the South Asia Institute will cover the tuition cost with FLAS funds.

Summer FLAS recipients traveling to any destination that appears on the UT Austin Restricted Regions list must apply for and obtain travel approval from the International Oversight Committee, and must comply with all other steps in the mandatory UT Austin International Travel Process. This includes registering all international travel, which ensures enrollment in emergency assistance and overseas insurance through On Call International, as mandated by UT System. The cost of overseas insurance is $19/week (or portion thereof), and is charged to your What I Owe account. Fellows are responsible for paying the fees for overseas insurance.

SAI offers academic year and summer funding for the following languages:

• Bengali (Bangla)
• Hindi
• Kannada
• Malayalam
• Persian (if it relates directly to the study of South Asia)
• Tamil
• Telugu
• Urdu
• Other approved contemporary South Asian languages

• Application to Summer 2024 and Academic Year 2024-25 FLAS Fellowships open on November 1, 2023.
• Deadline to Apply: Friday, February 16, 2024
• Notifications of awards for Academic Year 2024-25 and Summer 2024 will be sent out in March 2024.

Students from all fields of study, and from all departments, colleges, and schools enrolled at the University of Texas at Austin are eligible to apply for FLAS funding, as long as the student: 

• Is a citizen, or a national or permanent resident of the United States;
• Is in a program of study that combines modern foreign language training with an area or international studies emphasis or;
• Is engaged in research and training in the international aspects of professional and other fields of study related to the region of South Asia;
• Is enrolled in a program of modern foreign language training (please refer to the approved language list above);
• For Graduate Students: Is enrolled in Masters or PhD coursework, preparation for dissertation research, or, in certain cases, dissertation research abroad, or dissertation writing. Graduate students may study a language at the first-year level if they are proficient in a related South Asian language. Please contact the FLAS Coordinator to see if you are eligible to study a first-year language.
• For Undergraduate Students: Is enrolled in a program of modern foreign language training at the intermediate or advanced level. First-year learners of a language are NOT eligible to receive FLAS and will not be considered for a fellowship award.

Please Note: Awards will not be made to native speakers of the language nor those who possess fluency equivalent to educated native speakers in the language for which the award is sought. For graduate students, awards for beginning level language studies will not be made unless the student has advanced proficiency in another South Asian language and can clearly justify why the new language is necessary for their research. Undergraduate students cannot apply for beginning (first-year) level language studies.

In addition to filling out the application forms, a completed application must include:

• FAFSA Information (Optional) - Fill out FAFSA at http://finaid.utexas.edu/financialaid/process/applying.html
• Unofficial academic transcripts
• Academic Resume
• Writing Sample (750-1250 words)
• Three brief essays (Previous Language Training, Academic & Career Goals, and Research & Coursework)
• One academic reference letter and one language reference letter with reference forms due by the FLAS application deadline
• Proposed course work - for each AY semester list 1 language study course and 1 area studies course (based on past course schedules).
• Summer FLAS recipients must enroll in an approved intensive modern South Asian language study program for which the fellowship is granted (area studies coursework not required). The student is responsible for successfully applying for the Summer FLAS intensive language study program.
• Download Reference Form (PDF) (Print) or Download Reference Form (PDF) (Interactive)
• Download FLAS Fellowship FAQ (PDF) for more details and fequently asked questions

PLEASE HAVE TRANSCRIPTS AND REFERENCES SENT TO: sai@austin.utexas.edu

Please gather all the documents below before you start the application as there is no option to save or resume the application. 

• Data needed for the application form: name, status and classification at UT-Austin, UT issued EID, biographical and contact information, Texas residency status, citizenship information, academic information (major, department, advisor and contact information, GPA, etc), language of study and level of language study, career goal information, date of FAFSA submission, acknowledgments to release FAFSA information and abide by FLAS Fellowship requirements.
• FAFSA application completed (Optional) at http://finaid.utexas.edu/financialaid/process/applying.html
• Current CV limited to two (2) pages (upload on the application form)
• Copies of your current UT transcript, or most recent transcripts, if you are an incoming student (upload on the application form). 
• Proposed course work - for each semester list 1 language study course and 1 area studies course (based on past course schedules)
• Three brief essays on:
  Previous Language Training: Discuss each language in which you have had formal training (undergraduate or graduate), the number of years of instruction, and the school attended. If your language facility was gained in other ways, such as through overseas experience, explain where, when, and indicate current proficiency [125-175 words].
  Academic and Career Goals: In one paragraph, describe how the language and area training you receive during the period of your FLAS fellowship will help prepare you to achieve your academic and career goals [125-175 words].
  Research and Coursework: Describe your training to date, your primary research interests, and the themes in your coursework and/or thesis or dissertation projects [500-1500 words]. The evaluation committee understands that beginning or early graduate students may have rudimentary thesis or dissertation plans, while more advanced students will be able to lay out plans for major research projects in some detail. Likewise, the committee understands that essays from those in professional schools or other non-thesis degree programs will be quite different from essays written by students planning theses or dissertations. So, view this essay as a chance to inform the committee of your current thoughts on how you hope to advance knowledge in your field or use your training to prepare for valuable work in a profession.
• A Writing Sample (750-1250 words). The sample should include your name on the first page and be formatted as a .PDF file.
• The names and email addresses of one (1) academic reference and one (1) language study reference.
• NOTE: Applicants are responsible for providing correct email addresses and for giving their two references ample time (several weeks!) to agree to write and submit a letter of recommendation. Reference letters should be sent no later than the closing date of the FLAS application (Friday, February 16,2024). It is preferred for recommendations to come from faculty and for at least one letter to speak to language learning abilities.
• Upon submission of the application form, the references will receive an automatic email requesting their reference letter and form sent directly to SAI at sai@austin.utexas.edu. However, we encourage students to also contact their references once the application form has been submitted. Click here for the print version of the reference form or click here for the interactive version of the reference form.
  Make sure you send your recommenders the following information with your request for a letter: What kind(s) of FLAS you are applying for, what language you are applying for, and provide a draft of your statement of purpose and CV/resume.
• For Summer FLAS, all information (name and location of institution, website, program cost, number of weeks with 6 week minimum, total contact hours with 120-140 minimum, apx. travel dates, and program dates) for the intensive language center where you plan to study.
  • At the advanced level: The session must be at least six weeks in duration and offer at least 120 contact hours of instruction.
  • At the beginning or intermediate level: The session must be atleast six weeks in duration and offer at least 140 contact hours of instruction.

All enrolled undergraduate, graduate and professional students participating in activities or events abroad (whether required or optional) must follow the Texas Global International Travel Process. Please visit the Studying Abroad for Language Acquisition page for more information.

Summer FLAS recipients traveling to any destination that appears on the UT Austin Restricted Regions list must apply for and obtain travel approval from the International Oversight Committee, and must comply with all other steps in the mandatory UT Austin International Travel Process. This includes registering all international travel, which ensures enrollment in emergency assistance and overseas insurance through On Call International, as mandated by UT System. The cost of overseas insurance is $19/week (or portion thereof), and is charged to your What I Owe account. Fellows are responsible for paying the fees for overseas insurance.