“Want to teach Bangla to American, int’l students?”: US offers Fulbright scholarships

The US Embassy Dhaka today (August 7, 2022) announced a call for applications for the 2023-2024 Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) Program.

The Fulbright FLTA program provides scholarships for highly-motivated early career Bangladeshi educational professionals working in English language and other related fields -- such as American studies, Journalism and Media, American/English Literature, and Bangla language instructors -- to teach Bangla in colleges or universities in the US.

This nine-month non-degree program provides Bangladeshi academics and professionals with a professional development opportunity to refine their skills, increase their English language proficiency, and enhance their knowledge of the United States.

Fulbright FLTA fellows typically teach Bangla language classes to American and international students from around the world.

Fellows and their students will have a unique opportunity to learn about each other's cultures and societies. Fulbright FLTA participants may assist in up to twenty hours of language classes a week and are required to enroll in at least two courses per semester, one of which must be in US Studies.

Coursework is offered on either an audit or credit basis. Fulbright FLTA participants will also be expected to facilitate cultural events, language clubs, discussion groups, and language tables and interact with their host community through conversation groups, extracurricular activities, and community outreach projects.

Since 2006, nearly 50 Bangladeshi academics have participated in this educational exchange.

The Fulbright Program is the US government's international educational exchange program aimed at fostering mutual understanding between the United States and other countries around the world.

The Fulbright FLTA Program is sponsored by the US Department of State and is administered by the Institute of International Education (IIE).

Application Deadline: Saturday, September 10, 2022, at 11:59pm EST.

To be eligible, interested candidates must meet the following requirements:

•           Be a teacher of English or related fields with no more than seven years of teaching experience at the university level.

•           Have at least a four-year bachelor's degree from an accredited public or private university in Bangladesh.

•           Be fluent in English.

•           Have a valid minimum TOEFL score of 80 or IELTS score of 6.5.

•           Be a Bangladeshi citizen residing in Bangladesh at the time of application.

•           Submit a complete online application according to the program guidelines.