Jump to content

Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Program


Recommended Posts

Posted

Given all of the other opportunities people on the forum are applying for, I was wondering if anyone else applied this year for a Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS)? I applied for one through Kansas, and they said preliminary notifications will come out mid-March. If you have applied, where did you apply, for which language, and for which program type (year, summer, etc.)? If you were accepted for a FLAS in the past, perhaps you can tell us about your experience. :)

Posted

As far as I know, the administration of FLAS awards is decentralized and individual institutions have a lot of control over evaluation and priorities. There are certain rules schools have to follow in order to obtain funding, but how FLAS funds are distributed can vary quite a bit from school to school.

Posted

As far as I know, the administration of FLAS awards is decentralized and individual institutions have a lot of control over evaluation and priorities. There are certain rules schools have to follow in order to obtain funding, but how FLAS funds are distributed can vary quite a bit from school to school.

 

Sorry for being unclear. I was talking less about the bureaucratic aspects of the process and moreso about the personal growth/experiences. :)

Posted

I applied only to M.A. programs in Middle Eastern Studies that either offered full in-house funding or through full-year FLAS fellowships for Arabic.  NYU and Harvard both sent out acceptance packages that stated outright there was no aid available, but from the the deans of the graduate schools of arts and sciences, who play no part in awarding the FLAS fellowships.  When I contacted Harvard today the FLAS coordinator explained that fellowship nominations would not be released until mid-March.  Do you think that's the case with NYU as well?  I am (really) happy to be accepted, but the prospect/possibility of no funding is discouraging.  

Posted

I applied for Chinese at the University of Washington and was just notified that I am a FLAS alternate. I have no idea what my chances are of getting the offer, but I'm at least happy to get this far! The wording is a little vague regarding when I might find out if I am accepted off of the alternate list. Fingers crossed :wacko:  

Posted

I applied for Korean at U Washington and got the same notification. I'll cross my fingers for the application that went to the Global Center then, and for others to decide on attending other universities. Anyone know what the odds for being awarded the FLAS after being declared an alternate?

Posted (edited)

I applied for Korean at U Washington and got the same notification. I'll cross my fingers for the application that went to the Global Center then, and for others to decide on attending other universities. Anyone know what the odds for being awarded the FLAS after being declared an alternate?

 

Well, I guess you're my competition, blooscorn! I applied for the Global Center as well, so hopefully it doesn't take much longer to hear back from them. I assume anyone applying for an Asian language that overlaps in the two centers applied to both. Are you a first-year student or are you already attending UW?

 

Unfortunately, I don't think anyone can tell you what our chances are of receiving the fellowship as an alternate. It seems to me there are only two possibilities in which we get off the alternate list: the recipient 1) is denied admission at UW () or 2) decides to attend another program that presumably is more prestigious or offered better funding.

 

In any case, I don't think the chances of getting off the wait list are that high, but I'm sure there is hope. Either one of the two possibilities above will occur, or not. I'm sure there is a ordered list of alternates, as well, so we have no idea about our place on that.

 

The waiting game continues...

Edited by Nocho
Posted

Best of luck to both of us then, I for one am hoping that a number of people accepted also applied for PhD programs somewhere and get accepted with full funding. I'll have to hope that my Global Center application is stronger than that of my East Asian one.

I'd be very unpleasantly surprised if after this I was denied admission to the school. I figured this would have been my strongest application, and the wait list for a FLAS is quite a good sign. This waiting is terrible!

Posted

Best of luck to both of us then, I for one am hoping that a number of people accepted also applied for PhD programs somewhere and get accepted with full funding. I'll have to hope that my Global Center application is stronger than that of my East Asian one.

I'd be very unpleasantly surprised if after this I was denied admission to the school. I figured this would have been my strongest application, and the wait list for a FLAS is quite a good sign. This waiting is terrible!

 

Same here, of course! Hopefully everyone just all of a sudden decides further education isn't for them haha. I assume it's rare to get a FLAS offer and then denied admission, so I'm sure you are fine. I was lucky enough to get admitted last month, so I'm just sort of sitting around while everyone is anxiously waiting. Or, at least, I was until becoming an alternate.

 

Not to get your hopes up, but I came across this when I was looking up information about alternates:

 

An "alternate" is the next person to receive a fellowship award if more funding becomes available from other FLAS Centers, or if a fellowship recipient declines a fellowship offer.

If you receive an alternate letter in March or April, there is a strong chance that you will receive a fellowship award. [Indiana University]

 

Let's hope UW is the same!

Posted

Given all of the other opportunities people on the forum are applying for, I was wondering if anyone else applied this year for a Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS)? I applied for one through Kansas, and they said preliminary notifications will come out mid-March. If you have applied, where did you apply, for which language, and for which program type (year, summer, etc.)? If you were accepted for a FLAS in the past, perhaps you can tell us about your experience. :)

 

I actually applied through SEASSI (Southeast Asian Studies Summer Institute) in Madison, WI to study Burmese over the summer. I am REALLY praying the FLAS works out since Burmese is almost impossible to find, and it will require me to take a hard hit financially by having to leave work two months earlier this summer. 

 

Hopefully we will all hear back soon!

Posted

Preliminary notifications are supposed to go out next week for Kansas.

Posted

Heard back from the Global Studies Center at UW and was not selected. Anyone who is still waiting, you should probably hear back soon. Good luck!

Posted

I got waitlisted there as well. Would it be prudent or annoying to check with them to see how long their waitlists are?

Posted

Hi, I am writing for a FLAS grant at Georgetown University. Would someone be willing to help look over my SOP? Thank you! 

Posted

I got waitlisted there as well. Would it be prudent or annoying to check with them to see how long their waitlists are?

 

Yikes, two waitlists? That's so frustrating, but at least you have a better shot than I do now! I haven't written anyone to ask about the waitlists, but I'm a little curious about that, too.

Posted

Hi, I am writing for a FLAS grant at Georgetown University. Would someone be willing to help look over my SOP? Thank you! 

 

For sure. Drop me a PM.

Posted

Am currently an 'alternate'. Email indicates that the application will be evaluated by an external body (East Asian National Resource Center) and I will be notified if I receive an award. However, no notification will happen if I do not receive an award. 

  • 3 weeks later...
Posted

I had to retract my FLAS application last week. For anyone who applies to the University of Kansas down the road, I should let you know that they are -- for whatever reason -- charging $10,000 for the summer program, while the FLAS still remains at $5,000. This is not listed on the website. As a result, I went from Principal to Alternate due to obvious financial limitations. To be fair, I did tell them that I could move to East Africa for the entire summer for the same amount.

Posted

That kind of retort usually only comes to me in the shower the next day.

 

Ahahaha. That was my comment toward the end of the conversation. My initial reaction to the question about whether I'd be able to raise the difference was this: "Well, that's a lot of bake sales..."

Posted

Georgetown MA Asian Studies will release their FLAS results on or before April 15th, according to an internal email.

Posted

FYI I was lucky enough to be selected for a full-year FLAS award off the wait-list, so it does indeed happen!

  • 2 weeks later...

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

This website uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use