A Program of the 
CLS Program
Program Overview
The Critical Language Scholarship (CLS) Program partners with universities and nonprofits around the globe to provide cohorts of U.S. students an opportunity to study the language and culture in a country/location where the target language is commonly spoken. The CLS Program, through its CLS Spark initiative, provides beginner-level virtual instruction for Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Russian for competitively selected U.S. undergraduate students whose home campuses do not offer these languages. CLS scholars are expected to continue their language study beyond the scholarship and apply their critical language skills in their future careers.
The U.S. Department of State sponsors and oversees the CLS Program, including CLS Spark, as part of a larger U.S. government effort to expand the number of Americans studying and mastering foreign languages that are critical to our national security, economic prosperity, and engagement with the world. CLS provides opportunities to a wide range of students from across the entire United States at every level of language learning. American Councils for International Education administers the CLS Program.
Most languages offered by the CLS Program do not require applicants to have any experience studying critical languages. The CLS Program seeks participants with varied interests, and from a wide range of fields of study and career paths, with the purpose of representing the full breadth of the United States. Participants are selected based on their commitment to language learning and plans to apply their language skills to their future academic or professional pursuits.
Languages and Levels
The CLS Program overseas offers instruction in a dozen critical languages:
| No Previous Study Required |
|---|
| Two Years of Study Required (Or Equivalent) |
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Program Structure
CLS Program institutes cover approximately one academic year of university-level language coursework during an eight- to ten-week program and are designed to meet the needs of students from a variety of language levels and backgrounds. Some CLS institutes require one to two years of prior language study (or the equivalent), while others accept students with no prior background in the language.
Formal classroom language instruction is provided for a minimum of 15 hours per week. Extracurricular activities are designed to supplement the formal curriculum, including regular one-on-one meetings with native speaker language partners for conversational practice, as well as cultural activities and excursions designed to expand students’ understanding of the history, politics, culture and daily life of their host country.
Applicants may only apply once per application cycle for a single language. Applicants who submit multiple applications will be considered ineligible.
Program Benefits
Participants in the CLS Program will receive:
- Language instruction and cultural programming;
- Textbooks and language learning materials;
- Language gains certified using the widely recognized ACTFL OPI (Oral Proficiency Interview) assessment;
- Non-competitive eligibility for U.S. government employment for up to three years after program completion;
- Academic credit issued through Bryn Mawr College
- International and domestic travel between the student's home city in the U.S. and the CLS Program site abroad;
- Visa application fees, where applicable; and
- Room, board, and program-sponsored travel within the host country or location.
Other expenses, such as, but not limited to, will not be covered:
- U.S. passport fees (except for students who are eligible and apply for CLS Passport Assistance);
- Cost of medical exams and any follow-up visits necessary to pass the medical review process, as determined by the CLS Program; and
- Cost of immunizations required for entry, as well as costs for travel health clinical appointments.
U.S. Department of State
The U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs
(ECA) works to build friendly, peaceful relations between the people of
the United States and the people of other countries through academic,
cultural, sports, and professional exchanges, as well as public-private
partnerships. Critical Language Scholarship recipients are among the
more than 30,000 exchange program participants that are overseen
annually by ECA. Other programs the Bureau manages include the Fulbright
Program and the Benjamin A. Gilman International Scholarship Program.
American Councils for International Education
American Councils for International Education advances scholarly research and cross-border learning through the design and implementation of educational programs that are well grounded in key world languages, cultures and regions. We contribute to the creation of new knowledge, broader professional perspectives, and personal and intellectual growth through international training, academic exchange, collaboration in educational development, and public diplomacy. With a presence in the U.S., Russia and Eurasia for nearly four decades, in addition to representation in over thirty countries across Asia, the Middle East and Southeastern Europe, American Councils strives to expand dialog among students, scholars, educators and professionals for the advancement of learning and mutual respect in the diverse communities and societies in which we work.
Founded in 1974 as an association for area and language professionals, American Councils has focused its expertise on academic exchange, professional training, distance learning, curriculum and test development, and research. In its four decades, American Councils has developed into one of the premier American education and international training organizations, offering quality-assured, intensive overseas language study and research programs for U.S. undergraduates, graduate students, teachers and scholars.