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Fulbright Program

Office of Nationally Competitive Scholarship

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Eligibility Requirements

  1. Applicants must be U.S. citizens at the time of application. Permanent residents are not eligible. Please review the Ineligibility section below in relation to the eligibility of dual citizens.
  2. Applicants must have a conferred bachelor’s degree or the equivalent before the start of the grant.
      -In the creative and performing arts, four years of professional training and/or experience meets the basic eligibility requirement.
  3. Applicants must be in good health. Grantees will be required to submit a satisfactory Medical Certificate from a physician.
  4. Applicants must have sufficient proficiency in the written and spoken language of the host country sufficient to communicate with the people and to carry out the proposed study/research. This is especially important for projects in the social sciences and the humanities.

The following are not eligible for consideration:

  • For a period ending one year following the termination of such employment, association, or service:
    • For purposes of this section, the one-year period of ineligibility is calculated from the date of termination of employment, service, or association until the due date for submission of applications for program.
    • Employees of the U.S. Department of State or the U.S. Agency for International Development. This provision includes all employees, paid or unpaid (including part-time or temporary employees, consultants, externs, fellows and contract employees). This provision does not apply to interns.
    • Employees of private and public agencies (excluding educational institutions) under contract to the U.S. Department of State to perform administrative or screening services on behalf of the U.S. Department of State’s exchange programs.
    • Officers of an organization, in the United States or abroad, including members of boards of trustees or similar governing bodies, or individuals otherwise associated with the organization, wherein the organization and the individuals are responsible for nominating or selecting individuals for participation in any exchange program of the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs.
    • Board members or staff of a Fulbright Commission.
    • Members of the Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board.
    • Immediate families (i.e., spouses and dependent children) of individuals described in the points above. This provision does not disqualify self-supporting children who live apart from their parents.
  • Applicants who currently hold or will hold a doctoral degree (Ph.D.) by the national application deadline.
  • Applicants seeking enrollment in a medical degree program abroad.
  • Anyone who has resided abroad for five or more consecutive years in the six-year period preceding the national application deadline. For the purpose of this section, a candidate who has lived outside the United States for nine months or more during a calendar year is deemed to have resided abroad for that year.
  • In some cases, it may not be feasible for a dual national to participate in a Fulbright program in the country of their other nationality due to host country law or policy. Therefore, it is the applicant’s responsibility to ascertain whether they have, or are eligible to have, their host country’s nationality and to address any potential consequences thereof before they accept an award. Please refer to the country’s award description to determine the eligibility of dual nationals.
  • For most grants, applicants who have had extensive previous foreign experience are at a disadvantage but are not necessarily disqualified for that reason. However, following the policy of the relevant binational Fulbright Commission or the U.S. Embassy in the host country, some countries will not consider applicants who are currently residing in or will be residing in that country during the year preceding the grant. Please refer to the country’s award description to determine if residency in the host country in the year prior to the grant is allowed.
Last Updated: 12/29/22