Undergraduates

Projects for Peace
Created in 2007 by Kathryn Wasserman Davis (Wellesley College ‘28), the Projects for Peace program offers undergraduates and graduating seniors funding to design a grassroots project for the summe—anywhere in the world—that promotes peace and addresses the root causes of conflict among parties. Projects may employ innovative techniques for engaging project participants in ways that focus on conflict resolution, reconciliation, building understanding and breaking down barriers that cause conflict, and finding ways to resolve conflict and maintain peace. Projects will be selected for funding at $10,000 each. Wellesley may nominate one project and one alternate for funding each year.
Application deadline: Apply for Wellesley’s nomination for the Davis Projects for Peace by the early January campus deadline. To learn more, visit our Projects for Peace resource.
Eligibility: Undergraduates and graduating seniors in any field from any country.

Boren Awards
The Boren Scholarships and Fellowships support the study abroad of less commonly taught languages in world regions critical to US interests and underrepresented in study abroad, including Africa, Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Eurasia, Latin America and the Middle East. In exchange for funding, Boren Scholars and Fellows commit to working in the federal government for at least one year after graduation, which is excellent job placement and could be a great start to a career in government!
Application deadline: Apply for Wellesley’s nomination for the Boren by the campus deadline in early January. To learn more, visit our Boren resource.
Eligibility: Wellesley first-years, sophomores, or juniors in any field who are U.S. citizens planning study abroad during the following academic year.

Critical Language Scholarship
The Critical Language Scholarship is a fully-funded summer study abroad opportunity for students to learn languages essential to America’s engagement with the world. The CLS Program is part of a U.S. government effort to expand dramatically the number of Americans studying and mastering critical foreign languages. Students of diverse disciplines and majors are encouraged to apply. Participants are expected to continue their language study beyond the scholarship period, and later apply their critical language skills in their future professional careers.  Explore prerequisites and details on the CLS website, including:

• No prior study required or Azerbaijani, Bangla, Hindi, Indonesian, Persian, Punjabi, Swahili, Turkish, Urdu
• One year of prior college-level study required for Arabic, Korean, Portuguese, Russian
• Two years of prior college-level study required for Chinese, Japanese

Application deadline: Mid-November.
Eligibility: Undergraduates (including seniors) and graduate students who are U.S. citizens in any field of study.

Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program
The U.S. Department of State’s Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship is a grant program that enables students of limited financial means to study or intern abroad, thereby gaining skills critical to our national security and economic prosperity. It supports up to a year of study abroad in any discipline, or internships for credit, by US citizens and nationals who are Pell Grant recipients and who will finish their degrees after the proposed study abroad.
Application deadline: For summer, fall, or academic year study abroad, apply in early March. For spring study abroad, apply in early October.
Eligibility: US citizens and nationals who are Pell Grant recipients and who will finish their degrees after the proposed study abroad.

Seniors and Graduates: A Quick Travel (Fellowships) Guide

Postgraduate traveling fellowships can cover a lot of territory—both figuratively and literally! Some have a single goal or placement—for example, the Thomas J. Watson Fellowship funds a year of purposeful, independent international travel (“build your own adventure”—see below for more details). Others, like the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, have many different opportunities in many different places. The Fulbright can support independent research projects, English teaching, graduate study, or research assistance, and opportunities vary by country, with all still falling under the “Fulbright” umbrella. Here are some (but not all!) examples of “which fellowship does what”:

Seniors and Graduates: Where do I start?

We completely understand that this can be a lot to process—but the good news is that you can start considering your options by asking yourself some basic questions. You don’t even have to have definitive answers to those questions, but they can help guide your thinking about what programs might be a good fit. Consider the following:

• Would you like to spend a year actively traveling, or stationed in one location abroad?
• Is there a particular country or countries you’d really like to learn about or explore? 
• Would you prefer an independent project that you design yourself, or would you like to pursue a more structured opportunity?
• Do you have any foreign language proficiency? (Note: many travel fellowships do not have a language proficiency requirement, so if the answer is “no,” don’t be discouraged!)
• Do you know what you’d like to do after your year abroad? (Don’t panic: you don’t need to know yet—but a year of international travel could help you get to your next step!)

Again, you don’t have to have perfectly polished answers (or even super rough bullet points) for these questions; they’re simply a way to start considering what you might be interested in. As always, the Fellowships team is happy to help through appointments or Pop-ups!

Schwarzman Scholars Program
The Schwarzman Scholars Program supports leadership development & a special one-year Master’s program at Tsinghua University in Beijing. The 200 scholars chosen annually for this highly selective program will work towards a Master’s Degree at Tsinghua University in Beijing—one of China’s most prestigious universities. As individuals who want to have a positive impact on the world, the Stephen A. Schwarzman Scholars will be selected based on their academic credentials, extracurricular interests and leadership potential. 

Relevant deadlines:

• Early May: Deadline for passport holders from mainland China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Macau, the deadline falls in early May (a full year before you would matriculate).
• Late July/early August: Wellesley’s Optional Priority Draft Deadline – submit your drafts by this deadline to guarantee yourself a draft review appointment during August.
• Mid-September: Deadline for candidates of all other nationalities.

Eligibility: Graduating seniors in any field from any country.

Fulbright U.S. Student Program
The Fulbright US Student Program provides grants to increase cultural ties and mutual understanding between Americans and communities abroad. Fulbright Grants offer many terrific postgraduate opportunities—from scientific research to the practice of an art to the teaching of English, in more than 140 countries. Types of placements, language requirements, and other details vary by country, and you can explore different opportunities on the individual country pages.

A quick note about deadlines: Wellesley seniors and graduates can apply directly to the Fulbright by the national deadline in early October, but you are also welcome and encouraged to take part in the campus process, which is solely to help you put forth the strongest application possible (that is, we’re not nominating or declining your application—we’re just here to help!). 

Relevant deadlines:

• Late July/early August: Wellesley’s Optional Priority Draft Deadline – submit your drafts by this deadline to guarantee yourself a draft review appointment during August.
• Late August: Fulbright campus deadline – submit your completed Fulbright application by this date to participate in the campus process, which includes additional draft review, a campus interview, etc.
• Early October: Fulbright national deadline – resubmit your final application by this date for consideration in the national Fulbright competition.

Eligibility: Graduating seniors and graduates in any field who are U.S. citizens.

Thomas J. Watson Fellowship
The Thomas J. Watson Fellowship offers graduating seniors a one-year grant for purposeful, independent exploration outside of the United States, to enhance their capacity for resourcefulness, imagination, openness, and leadership and to foster their humane and effective participation in the world community. Topics range from volcanoes to big cats to death practices to vegetarianism and more—and even if your idea seems similar to a past project, no one could have explored a topic quite like you could! Where could a Watson year take you?

Relevant deadlines:

• Late July/early August: Wellesley’s Optional Priority Draft Deadline – submit your drafts by this deadline to guarantee yourself a draft review appointment during August.
• Early October: Watson campus deadline – submit your completed Watson application by this date to be considered for Wellesley’s nomination to the national Watson competition.

Eligibility: Graduating seniors in any field from any country.

Princeton in Africa
Princeton in Asia
Princeton in Latin America

Princeton in Africa (PiAf), Princeton in Asia (PiA), and Princeton in Latin American (PiLA) are three separate programs operated by Princeton University, which offer year-long service placements:

• Princeton in Africa (PiAf) matches talented and passionate college graduates with our partners working across Africa for yearlong service projects. Our Fellows have helped improve education and public health, source fresh water and alternative energy, increase family incomes, and so much more. 
  • Application deadline: Mid to late October.
  • Eligibility: Rising seniors and recent graduates.

• Princeton in Asia (PiA) offers service-oriented fellowships in the fields of education, media/journalism, international development (NGOs) and business, with a majority of fellows working as English teachers at universities and high schools. 

  • Application deadline: Late October to early November.
  • Eligibility: Rising seniors and recent graduates.

• Princeton in Latin America (PiLA) matches partner NGO and multilateral organizations that are engaged in socially responsible development projects in Latin America and the Caribbean with highly qualified and motivated recent college graduates who are interested in year-long service fellowship opportunities throughout the region. 

  • Application deadline: Early November.
  • Eligibility: Seniors and recent graduates of North American and Canadian universities (although some placements will not be available to individuals who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents); working knowledge of the target language (Spanish, Portuguese, or French) is necessary, as well as an academic grounding in the region's culture, history, economics, society, and politics and a sustained record of volunteerism and community service.

The Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange for Young Professionals (CBYX)

The Congress-Bundestag Youth Exchange for Young Professionals (CBYX) is a fellowship funded by the German Bundestag and U.S. Congress, that annually provides 75 American and 75 German Young Professionals the opportunity to spend one year in each other's countries, studying, interning, and living with hosts on a cultural immersion program. Benefits include airfare, insurance, housing, monthly stipend, tuition costs, 2 months intensive German study.  

• Application deadline: early November.
• Eligibility: Graduating seniors and recent graduates who are U.S. citizens; prior German language knowledge is not required, but is preferred. 

Blakemore Freeman Freeman Fellowships and Blakemore Kingfisher Art History Language Fellowships

Blakemore Freeman Fellowships are awarded for one academic year of full-time, intensive language study of Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Thai, Vietnamese, Indonesian, or Khmer at the advanced level in approved language programs in East or Southeast Asia.  Blakemore Kingfisher Art History Language Fellowships are awarded for nine to twelve months of full-time, intensive Chinese or Korean language study in approved language programs in East Asia. These grants are open to citizens or permanent residents of the United States or Canada who are at or near an advanced level in the language and intending to pursue an academic career in Chinese or Korean art history.

• Application deadline: end of December.
• Eligibility: Graduating seniors and graduates who are U.S. citizens or permanent residents who are at or near advanced level in their preferred language and pursuing relevant study at eligible language programs (see program site for more details).

Wellesley College Graduate Fellowships

Wellesley College offers a number of fellowships and scholarships for graduate study or research open to Wellesley seniors and graduates. Awards are usually made to applicants currently enrolled in or applying to graduate school, for the following academic year. Candidates apply through a single common application and elect to be considered for the relevant named awards. (Note that if you are applying to graduate school, you will likely not know where you have been accepted by the deadline; you are still eligible to apply!) The Wellesley College Graduate Fellowships can fund graduate study or research in the U.S. or abroad.

• Application deadline: Mid-January.
• Eligibility: Graduating seniors and graduates in any field from any country.

The Susan Rappaport Knafel ’52 Scholarship for Foreign Study
The Susan Rappaport Knafel ’52 Traveling Fellowship
The Knafel Scholarship for Foreign Study is awarded to a member of the Wellesley graduating class who displays a desire for learning and an ability to impart knowledge and judgment to others. It will fund a year of study at a foreign institution to pursue a specific subject that requires contact with foreign scholars, libraries or other resources. The Knafel Traveling Fellowship awarded to a member of the Wellesley graduating class who displays an interest in and an acceptance of others, and who displays the ethos of a Wellesley education. It will fund a year of purposeful travel abroad to explore a particular interest with the requirement that the recipient not remain in the same area for more than two months. 

Please note that you may apply for either the foreign study scholarship or the traveling fellowship, but not both. 

• Application deadline: early to mid-February.
• Eligibility: Graduating seniors in any field from any country.