Riga, May 20, 2016 – The U.S. Embassy is pleased to announce the launch of this year’s competition for the Fulbright Foreign Student Program and the Fulbright Visiting Scholar Program for academic year 2017-2018. The Embassy encourages all qualified students and scholars to apply.
The Fulbright Program was established in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Senator J. William Fulbright, and is administered by the Department of State and the Institute of International Education. The Fulbright Program is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. With this goal in mind, the Fulbright Program has provided more than 310,000 participants with the opportunity to exchange ideas and observe each other’s cultures and political and economic institutions. Since 1991, the United States has offered Fulbright fellowships to 190 outstanding students and senior educators from Latvia.
Recipients of the Fulbright Foreign Student scholarship will study at a U.S. university for one year, and recipients of the Fulbright Visiting Scholar Program will conduct research, lecture, or pursue combined lecturing and research for five months in the United States. This prestigious award covers tuition and fees at an American university (for students), a monthly stipend, health insurance, and international airfare. Latvian citizens and holders of Latvian non-citizen passports are eligible to apply and must be residing in Latvia at the time of application. All applicants should have strong academic records, proficiency in English, and a desire to use the skills gained in the United States to serve Latvia upon completion of their studies.
Candidates for the Fulbright Student Fellowship must have received a Bachelor’s degree by June 2017 in order to be eligible for the program, and they may apply to study in any field except medicine. Candidates for the Fulbright Scholar Fellowship must already hold a Ph.D. degree or be finishing their dissertation. Scholars may apply to conduct research in any field except medicine.
The deadline to apply for the Fulbright Non-U.S. Student Fellowship program is August 29, 2016. The deadline for Scholars program is November 16, 2016. Application forms and more information on the Fulbright Fellowship Program can be found at http://riga.usembassy.gov/fulbright.html.
