Eligibility Requirements

CLS Program Eligibility Requirements 

• To be eligible for the CLS Program, applicants must:

  • Be a U.S. citizen or national at the time of application. 
    • Others, including Permanent Residents, are not eligible, even if they anticipate naturalization by the beginning of the program.
  • Be at least 18 years old by May 15, 2025. 
  • Be enrolled in an accredited U.S. degree-granting program at the undergraduate (associate, bachelor's) or graduate (master's, doctoral, professional degree) level at the time of application. Students who are graduating seniors at the time of application and students enrolled in one-year master’s programs are eligible to apply. 
    • Applicants must be enrolled in a program that results in a degree. Applicants who are taking stand-alone or continuing education classes or who are pursuing a certificate are not eligible.
    • Applicants must be enrolled at an accredited U.S. institution. Students earning degrees at foreign institutions that are not based in the U.S. or its territories are not eligible, even if those institutions are accredited by a recognized U.S. accrediting agency. For students enrolled in dual-degree programs in which they take some courses at a U.S. institution and some courses at an international institution, students who can produce a transcript from the U.S. institution will be considered eligible.
    • Applicants must be enrolled in at least one credit-bearing class at or through their home institution in the fall term of 2024. There are limited exceptions to the enrollment requirement; please read the following information carefully: 
      • If applicants are enrolled in a degree-granting program but taking a leave of absence to participate in an organized term- or year-long study abroad program; national scholarship or fellowship program; or to participate in a substantive internship program, they may request an exception to the enrollment requirement. Exceptions may only be granted in these three cases, and decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis beginning in late January. 
      • If applicants are not taking classes at or through their home institution in the fall term, they must submit a CLS Enrollment Confirmation form completed by their home registrar in the U.S. Applicants must also submit a signed letter from the program provider explaining the opportunity and confirming their participation. American Councils will provide the CLS Enrollment Confirmation form and further instructions to applicants selected as semi-finalists. If selected as a finalist, American Councils may ask the finalist to submit updated documentation from the program provider confirming their successful completion of the program. 
      • Applicants must successfully complete academic requirements for the fall term in order to remain eligible for the CLS Program. Applicants who withdraw or fail to maintain a passing grade average are not eligible to participate in the program. Applicants in an undergraduate program (associate or bachelor's) must complete at least one full year of study (two semesters or three quarters) by the beginning of the CLS Program in Summer 2025.

  • Applicants in an undergraduate program (associate or bachelor's) must complete at least one full year of study (two semesters or three quarters) by the beginning of the CLS Program in Summer 2025.
  • Applicants must meet the language requirements of the program to which they apply.
  • Applicants may only apply once, for one language and for one of CLS’ models (i.e., Overseas or Spark), each year. Applicants who submit multiple applications will be considered ineligible.

• The following persons are ineligible:

  The following persons are ineligible for the CLS Program for a period ending one year following the termination of such employment, association, or service:

  • Employees of the U.S. Department of State/U.S. Agency for International Development. This provision includes all employees, paid or unpaid (including part-time or temporary employees, consultants, externs, fellows and personal services contractors). This provision does not apply to interns.
  • Immediate family members (e.g., spouses or dependent children) of employees of the U.S. Department of State/U.S. Agency for International Development. This provision includes immediate family members of all employees, paid or unpaid (including part-time or temporary employees, consultants, externs, fellows and personal services contractors). This provision does not apply to immediate family members of interns.
    • Non-dependent children are eligible to participate, provided that their parents do not work directly on the Critical Language Scholarship Program.

  • Employees (and their immediate family members) of private and public agencies that are under contract or grant with the U.S. Department of State to perform services on behalf of the Critical Language Scholarship Program. This includes employees who do not directly work on the program. This provision does not apply to immediate family members of interns.

CLS Spark Eligibility Requirements 

• To be eligible for CLS Spark, applicants must:

  • Be a U.S. citizen or national at the time of their application.
    • Others, including Permanent Residents, are not eligible, even if they anticipate naturalization by the beginning of the program.
  • Be at least 18 years old by May 15, 2025.
  • Be enrolled in an accredited U.S. degree-granting program at the undergraduate (associate, bachelor's) level at the time of their application. Students who are graduating seniors at the time of application are eligible to apply.
    • Applicants must be enrolled in a program that results in a degree. Applicants in a dual- or joint-degree program in which they earn a bachelor’s and master’s degree will be considered an undergraduate if the bachelor’s degree has not yet been conferred at the time of application, even if the student has already taken one or more graduate-level courses. If the bachelor’s degree has already been conferred, the applicant will be considered a master’s student. Only undergraduate students are eligible to apply for CLS Spark. Applicants who are taking stand-alone or continuing education classes or who are pursuing a certificate are not eligible.
    • Applicants must be enrolled at an accredited U.S. institution. Students earning degrees at foreign institutions that are not based in the U.S. or its territories are not eligible, even if those institutions are accredited by a recognized U.S. accrediting agency. For students enrolled in dual-degree programs in which they take some courses at a U.S. institution and some courses at an international institution, students who can produce a transcript from the U.S. institution will be considered eligible.
    • Applicants must be enrolled in at least one credit-bearing class at or through their home institution in the fall term of 2024. There are limited exceptions to the enrollment requirement; please read the following information carefully:
      • If applicants are enrolled in a degree-granting program but taking a leave of absence to participate in an organized term- or year-long study abroad program; national scholarship program; or to participate in a substantive internship program, they may request an exception to the enrollment requirement. Exceptions may only be granted in these three cases, and decisions will be made on a case-by-case basis beginning in late January.
      • If applicants are not taking classes at or through their home institution in the fall term, they must submit a CLS Enrollment Confirmation form completed by their home registrar in the U.S. Applicants must also submit a signed letter from the study abroad or internship program provider explaining the opportunity and confirming their participation. American Councils will provide the CLS Enrollment Confirmation form and further instructions to applicants selected as semi-finalists on how to submit documentation. If selected as a finalist, American Councils may ask the finalist to submit updated documentation from the program provider confirming their successful completion of the program.
    • Applicants must successfully complete academic requirements for the fall term in order to remain eligible for the CLS Program. Applicants who withdraw or fail to maintain a passing grade average are not eligible to participate in the program.

  • Complete at least one full year of study (two semesters or three quarters) by the beginning of the CLS Program in Summer 2025.
  • Have no more than one semester of formal classroom training in the language they want to study at the beginner level (Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Russian, or Arabic) OR, if applying for Japanese at the advanced beginner level, have no more than one year of formal classroom experience.
  • Applicants may only apply once, for one language and for one of CLS’ models (i.e., Overseas or Spark), each year. Applicants who submit multiple applications will be considered ineligible.

• The following persons are ineligible:

  • Individuals who previously participated in the CLS Program or CLS Spark. This provision does not apply to CLS Spark applicants for Advanced Beginner Japanese.
    • Alumni of CLS Spark who studied Japanese at the beginning level are eligible to apply for CLS Spark at the advanced beginning level.

  • Students at the graduate level (master's, doctoral, or professional).

  
  For a period ending one year following the termination of such employment, association, or service:

  • Employees of the U.S. Department of State/U.S. Agency for International Development. This provision includes all employees, paid or unpaid (including part-time or temporary employees, consultants, externs, fellows and personal services contractors). This provision does not apply to interns.
  • Immediate family members (e.g., spouses or dependent children) of employees of the U.S. Department of State/U.S. Agency for International Development are ineligible. This provision includes immediate family members of all employees, paid or unpaid (including part-time or temporary employees, consultants, externs, fellows and personal services contractors). This provision does not apply to immediate family members of interns.
    • Non-dependent children are eligible to participate, provided that their parents do not work directly on the Critical Language Scholarship Program.

  • Employees (and their immediate family members) of private and public agencies that are under contract or grant with the U.S. Department of State to perform services on behalf of the Critical Language Scholarship Program are ineligible. This includes employees who do not directly work on the program. This provision does not apply to immediate family members of interns.