Boren Scholarship

An initiative of the National Security Education Program (NSEP), Boren Scholarships provide unique funding opportunities (up to $20,000 for an academic year, $10,000 for a semester, and $8,000 for STEM students for the summer) for U.S. undergraduate students to study less commonly taught languages in world regions critical to U.S. interests—and underrepresented in study abroad—including Africa, Asia, Central and Eastern Europe, Latin America, and the Middle East. (The countries of Western Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand are excluded.) Applicants must intend to work in a position with national security responsibilities (e.g., within the Department of Defense, Department of Homeland Security, Department of State, or any element of the Intelligence Community) after graduation.

Boren Scholarships may also be used to fund Regional Flagship Language Initiatives:

• African Flagship Languages Initiative for the study of French, Portuguese, Swahili, Akan/Twi, Wolof, or Zulu
• Indonesian Flagship Language Initiative
• South Asian Flagship Languages Initiative for the study of Hindi or Urdu
• Turkish Flagship Language Initiative

Dr. Steve Gump, [email protected] , 609-258-1998

• U.S. citizenship; may not be a citizen of the country in which you are planning to study
• Must be applying to engage in a study abroad experience outside of Western Europe, Canada, Australia, or New Zealand that has been approved by Princeton University and that ends before you graduate (once you’ve graduated from Princeton, you may be eligible for a Boren Fellowship ); you must return to Princeton upon completion of the Boren Scholarship to complete your undergraduate degree
• ROTC cadets must be in inactive, non-drilling status for the duration of the Boren Scholarship

All applicants must provide a clear and compelling explanation of how their countries, languages, fields of study, and future goals are connected to a broad understanding of national security. All applicants must demonstrate how they intend to fulfil the NSEP Service Requirement. Preference is given to applicants who:

• Demonstrate a longer-term commitment to government service (beyond the terms of the NSEP Service Requirement)
• Select a Boren-preferred language and demonstrate a serious commitment to language study before, during, and after the period of overseas study
• Select a Boren-preferred country
• Come from a Boren-preferred field of study
• Propose funding for a program involving over 6 months of overseas study
• Possess the appropriate academic preparation, cultural adaptability, flexibility, and maturity required to succeed abroad

Consult the Boren Scholarship website for lists of preferred languages, countries, and fields. The Boren Scholarship program is interested in applications that fall outside the preferred countries, languages, and fields if the applicant can make a compelling case that such study can contribute significantly to U.S. national security and the goals of the program. (However, applicants may not propose study in Western Europe, Canada, Australia, or New Zealand.)

Applications open annually on the Boren Awards website in late summer. Applicants are strongly encouraged to meet with Dr. Gump prior to beginning an application. For endorsement by Princeton University, applicants must ensure their applications are complete in the online application system—including study abroad descriptions, budgets, transcripts, letters of recommendation, and (if applicable) language assessment forms—by the campus deadline. Final decisions are typically announced in April.

The Boren Scholarship program focuses on geographic areas, languages, and fields of study deemed critical to U.S. national security. It draws on a broad definition of national security, recognizing that the scope of national security has expanded to include not only the traditional concerns of protecting and promoting American well-being but also the challenges of global society, including sustainable development, environmental degradation, global disease and hunger, population growth and migration, and economic competitiveness.

The NSEP Service Requirement stipulates that award recipients must work in the Federal Government in a position with national security responsibilities. The Departments of Defense, Homeland Security, State, or any element of the Intelligence Community are priority agencies. If an award recipient demonstrates to NSEP that no appropriate position is available in one of these agencies, the award recipient must seek to fulfill the requirement in a position with national security responsibilities in any Federal department or agency. The duration of the NSEP Service Requirement is one year or the duration of assistance provided under the Boren Scholarship program, whichever is longer. Boren Scholars must begin fulfilling the service requirement within three years of graduation. The Boren Awards website provides more details and a list of Frequently Asked Questions about the NSEP Service Requirement; please familiarize yourself with this requirement before beginning an application for the Boren Scholarship.