Scholarship
Boren Scholarship
Defense Language and National Security Education Office (via Boren Awards)
Award
up to $25,000 (duration-based; maximum for 25–52 weeks abroad)
Deadline
Jan 27, 2027
Funds study abroad in world regions critical to U.S. interests for matriculated U.S. undergraduate students who propose language study outside Western Europe, Canada, Australia, or New Zealand. Recipients commit to federal national-security service after graduation.
Eligibility
- Grade levels
- College undergraduate
- Citizenship
- U.S. citizen
- Fields of study
- Social sciences, Humanities
- Essay
- Required
Application requirements
- Start a Boren Scholarship application online: Begin at the Boren Awards Apply Now page and complete eligibility determination before other sections unlock.
- Contact your Boren campus representative early: Campus representatives may set earlier on-campus deadlines for feedback before the national deadline.
- Identify or design an eligible overseas study program: Proposed study must be in an eligible destination and language outside Western Europe, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.
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Complete essays and required application sections: Boren guidance recommends drafting essays early and sharing them with recommenders before the national deadline.
Essay prompts
- Please discuss the following points in one integrated essay, giving equal attention to each point. Explain the significance of your overseas destination, region, and language to U.S. national security. You should make a specific, detailed, and focused argument relevant to your academic interests, as well as your professional goals for national security employment within the U.S. government. Priority organizations (Tier One) are the Departments of War, State, and Homeland Security, as well as the intelligence Community. maximum length of 800 words
- Please discuss the following points in one integrated essay, giving equal attention to each point. You can discuss the points in any order. Think about a previous experience that has led to growth or a personal quality. Reflect upon it and describe how it will assist you in preparing for and spending significant time overseas studying a critical foreign language and culture and, if applicable, conducting your proposed research. Explain how the destination and language you selected will help you achieve your career goals, including your plans to fulfill the federal service requirement. Be specific. If appropriate, you may also include past academic, extracurricular, volunteer, internship, and professional experiences relevant to your federal career goals. As you will be committing to working for the federal government for at least one year, describe what makes you interested in federal service and what you will bring as a leader in the federal workforce. maximum length of 800 words
Verified Jun 21, 2026 · View official source