External Funding

Academic Year Scholarships

The American Association of University Women Educational Foundation awards fellowships for graduate and postgraduate studies to women who are not U.S. citizens or permanent residents.  Selection criteria include an outstanding academic record, professional potential, and the potential of the field of study to improve lives of women and girls in the country of origin. Awards: postdoctoral fellowships – $30,000; doctoral fellowships – $20,000; master’s fellowships – $18,000.

The American Council for Polish Culture provides a $5,000 award to a qualified student to support graduate studies. Applicants must be American citizens of Polish descent who have completed one year of studies at the graduate level.

The Kosciuszko Foundation Tuition Scholarship provides funding for full-time graduate studies in the United States or Poland.  Scholarships range from $1,000 to $7,000. Applicants must be of Polish descent, and a U. S. citizen or permanent res­ident of Polish descent; an undergraduate senior or graduate student; and have a minimum GPA of 3.0.

National Security Education Program (NSEP), David L. Boren Fellowship awards fellowships to graduate students to study a contemporary language and culture in an area of the world other than western Europe, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. Awards are made for a minimum of one and a maximum of six academic semesters (24 months). Support for language or area study coursework at your home university is $2,000 per semester. Overseas study is based on program expenses for a maximum of $10,000 per semester for up to two semesters.  All recipients of Boren awards must seek employment with an agency or office of the federal government involved in national security affairs.

The Paul and Daisy Soros Fellowships for New Americans provide funding of $20,000 and partial tuition remission for up to two years of graduate study in professional or academic programs. Eligible candidates must be a Green Card holder, a naturalized US citizen, or the child of naturalized parents; be no older than 30 years of age; demonstrate the relevance of graduate study to their long-term career goals and potential to contribute to society.

The School of Russian and Asian Studies (SRAS) celebrates of the return of VESTNIK, The Journal of Russian and Asian Studies, the world's first online journal focused on showcasing student research on Eurasia.

Thomas R. Pickering Graduate Foreign Affairs Fellowship supports students preparing to enter the United States Foreign Service. The award includes tuition, room, board, and mandatory fees during the junior and senior years of college and during the first year of graduate (Master’s) study.

Internships

The Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ASEEES) Internship Grant Program provides funding for students who secure unpaid internships related to the REEES field.

Central Intelligence Agency Graduate Studies Programs offers paid student internships of various duration for undergraduate and graduate students. Applicants must be US citizens and should have a strong academic record (3.0 GPA or better).

Research and Study Abroad

American Councils for International Education ACTR/ACCELS is now accepting applications for its Title VIII Grants for Research and Advanced Language Training programs in Central Asia, the South Caucasus, Southeast Europe, Moldova, Russia, and Ukraine. See a full list of countries eligible for each research fellowship. Only U.S. citizens are eligible for these awards. Fellowships will be offered in two categories. Funding for these programs is available through American Councils from the U.S. Department of State’s Program for Research and Training on Eastern Europe and the Independent States of the Former Soviet Union (Title VIII). All competitions for funding are open and merit based. All applications will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, marital status, political affiliation, or disability.

  • Title VIII Research Scholar Program provides full support for three- to nine-month research trips to Russia, Central Asia, the South Caucasus, Southeast Europe, Ukraine, and Moldova. Fellowships include roundtrip international travel, housing and living stipend, visa support, medical insurance, archive access, and logistical support in the field. Open to U.S. graduate students, post-doctoral scholars, and faculty.
  • Title VIII Combined Research and Language Training Program provides full support for research and up to ten academic hours per week of advanced language instruction for three-to-nine months in Russia, Central Asia, the South Caucasus, Southeast Europe, Ukraine, and Moldova. Fellowships include roundtrip international travel, housing and living stipend, tuition, visa support, medical insurance, archive access, and logistical support in the field. Open to U.S. graduate students, post-doctoral scholars, and faculty.

The American Councils Eurasian Regional Language Program (ERLP) provides graduate students, advanced undergraduates, scholars, and working professionals intensive individualized instruction in the languages of Eurasia. Participants may enroll in semester, academic year, or summer programs. All courses are conducted by expert faculty from leading local universities and educational institutions. American Councils currently offers study abroad programs in Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, and Ukraine. Participants can study Armenian, Azeri, Buryat, Chechen, Georgian, Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Persian (Dari, Farsi, Tajiki), Romanian, Tatar, Turkmen, Tuvan, Ukrainian, Uzbek or Yakut.

The American Councils Advanced Russian Language and Area Studies Program (RLASP) serves both graduate and undergraduate students. The academic program is designed to improve participants’ oral, listening, reading, and writing proficiency in Russian language and to develop their knowledge of Russian history, politics, culture, and society. The academic year, semester, and summer programs provide approximately twenty hours per week of in-class instruction in Russian grammar, phonetics, conversation, and cultural studies at Moscow International University, the Russian State Pedagogical University (Gertsen Institute) in St. Petersburg, and the KORA Center for Russian Language in Vladimir. One day per week of the academic program is set aside for local cultural excursions.

The Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies offers a number of fellowships to support dissertation research abroad. 

The Central Eurasian Studies Summer Institute (CESSI) offers high-quality, proficiency-driven online courses in four Central Eurasian languages. Courses are open to undergraduates, graduate students, adult learners, and high school juniors and seniors. This accelerated eight-week program is equivalent to one year of language study, developing speaking, reading, listening, and writing skills through intensive instruction and a range of engaging co-curricular activities. Funding opportunities are available. 

Central European University is a US-style, internationally recognized institution of post-graduate education in the social sciences and humanities. The summer school is an international program in English for graduate students, junior or post-doctoral researchers, faculty and professionals in the social sciences and humanities. It draws its student body of around 500 participants annually from more than 80 countries and its faculty from over 40 countries. The summer school offers 19 high-level, research-oriented, interdisciplinary academic courses as well as workshops on policy issues for professional development, taught by internationally renowned scholars and policy experts (including CEU faculty). Application from all over the world is encouraged. Financial aid is available.

Council for European Studies Pre-dissertation Fellowship Program provides students with the opportunity to develop the skills required to undertake doctoral research through preliminary library research and field-site investigations.  Eligibility is limited to doctoral students who have completed the majority of their coursework and whose universities are members of the Council.

The Indiana University Bloomington Summer Language Workshop  is one of the oldest and most innovative accelerated language training programs in the world. It offers scholarship opportunities for in-person, online, and overseas programs.

Institute of Current World Affairs / John O. Crane Memorial Fellowship provides fellowships for self-designed independent study abroad for a minimum period of two years to young women and men under 36 years of age who demonstrate initiative, integrity, outstanding character, good communications skills, seriousness of purpose, and enthusiasm for their chosen fields.

The International Research and Exchange Board (IREX) offers multiple programs for U.S. and foreign scholar.

  • Individual Advanced Research Opportunities (IARO) provide grants of two to nine months for doctoral students and senior scholars for research at institutions in Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia.
  • Short Term Travel Grants (STG) provide grants for scholarly projects of up to two months focusing on Central and Eastern Europe and Eurasia.

The Shevchenko Society provides scholarships for students enrolled in a Ukrainian language program over the summer. Fellowships are also available to support research focused on Ukrainian studies.

The School of Russian and Asian Studies (SRAS) lists scholarships, aid, and grant programs that can help fund study abroad Eastern Europe and Eurasia. Most are specifically for US citizens.

United States Institute of Peace (USIP): Jennings Randolph Peace Scholar Dissertation Fellowship supports one year of dissertation research and writing on international conflict, conflict resolution, and peace initiatives. Successful candidates must be ABD by the time their fellowship begins.

Dissertation Writing and Post-Doctoral Fellowships

The American Research Center in Sofia (ARCS) invites applications for its new “Residential Fellowship for Southeast European Scholars.” The Fellowship is available to PhD candidates and young postdoctoral scholars whose research specialties are in archaeology, history, art/architectural history, cultural anthropology/ethnography, museum studies, or cultural heritage management with a geographic focus on the Balkans (prehistory to present day).

The Association for Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies (ASEEES) Summer Dissertation Writing Grant Program provides support for full-time summer dissertation writing.

Council for European Studies offers three different kinds of pre-dissertation research fellowships, all designed to support early dissertation research on topics in European Studies, as well as a dissertation completion fellowship, designed to aid late-stage graduate students in completing their dissertation and completing their graduate studies.

The Havighurst Center Post Doctoral Fellowship supports junior scholars of exceptional promise in all areas of academic study related to Russia and other post-Soviet countries.  Fellowships are for one year, but may be renewed for a second year.  Fellows normally teach four 15 week courses in the field of their primary research interest per year and assist in developing Havighurst programs in the area of their interest.  There are no citizenship requirements.

Human Rights Watch Fellowship Program awards paid fellowships with benefits to recent graduates of law schools or graduate programs (master's degree and above) in journalism, international relations, area studies, or other relevant disciplines.  Fellows work full time for one year at Human Rights Watch, based in New York City or Washington, D.C., and monitor human rights developments in various countries, conduct on-site investigations, draft reports on human rights conditions, and engage in advocacy aimed at publicizing and curtailing human rights violations.

The Kennan Institute for Advanced Russian Studies offers grant and fellowship opportunities for research related to Russia and the Soviet successor states, as well as paid research assistant positions.

The Mellon/ACLS Dissertation Completion Fellowships are designed to assist graduate students in the humanities and social sciences during the last year of Ph.D. dissertation writing.  Applicants must complete their dissertations within the period of their fellowship tenure or shortly thereafter.  Awards include university fees, research support, and stipend up to $33,000.

Workshops and Other Training Opportunities

The Summer Research Laboratory on Russia, Eastern Europe, and Eurasia (SRL), held at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, is a multi-week program of workshops and independent library research. Associates are given full access to the collection and resources of the University of Illinois Library, the largest Slavic collection west of Washington, DC, and are able to seek advice from the reference librarians of the Slavic and East European Library. Participation is open to graduate students, Ph.D. recipients employed within and outside of academia, regional specialists, area librarians, and other specialists.

The Writing Across Boundaries Program (WAB) introduces early-career scholars originating from Central and Eastern Europe, Russia, Central Asia, and the Caucasus, to the academic journal publishing process. WAB seeks to provide a supportive, inclusive environment where authors engage each other in conversation about writing, editing, and preparing a manuscript for submission to an English-language, peer-reviewed professional journal. 

Doctoral students, postdoctoral researchers, and other early-career scholars from all disciplines and academic training in the arts & humanities and social sciences are encouraged to apply.