FLAS Scholarships

My name is Giselle Fagundes Draper and I am a Senior at the U. I am a double major studying Accounting and Latin American Studies with a Minor in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies. This is the 3rd year I have received FLAS for Portuguese. As a Brazilian-American, FLAS has helped me improve my Portuguese as a heritage speaker. It has helped me better communicate with my family members and understand more about my own culture. FLAS has changed my life and opened a new part of me that has always been there, but I didn't know how to connect with. Because of FLAS, I feel more like myself and have become more in tune with my culture, something I will cherish forever. I hope to use Portuguese in my future career and I hope to one day work in Brazil. I encourage anyone who is considering applying to just do it. Start the application process early, and get to know the faculty and staff in your department, it will go a long way.

- Giselle Fagundes-Draper, majoring in Accounting and Latin American Studies with a Minor in Portuguese and Brazilian Studies

I study Korean on campus! FLAS made it possible for me to make the final decision on majoring in Asian Studies. This award has honestly helped push me in the direction that I have wanted to go and supported me and my decisions (thank you Patrick Cheney and immense thanks to Professor Koeun Park and Professor Deberniere Torrey). This scholarship has also excelled my language learning opportunities and now I am happy to say that I have and can comfortably communicate with my family in South Korea without worrying about a huge language barrier. This award has allowed me to connect with my family along with getting a degree- how many awards can you say do both?

APPLY! If you are interested in a language and are determined to continue your studies with the language, please apply! It has been such a huge help to my academic career and has allowed me to attend school without worrying about tuition. The application process does seem daunting, but it is all worth it in the end. I used to be the student that if I saw an application that was longer than one page, I would just pass it up. I am forever grateful that I didn't do that with the FLAS scholarship. 

I hope to study abroad in South Korea for a few semesters after I graduate. I want to experience being abroad within a community that I am familiar with but at the same time a stranger to. While in South Korea I want to pursue a degree in Psychology while also engaging with the community, such as teaching English to students. 

When you are a part of FLAS, you are a part of a community. I am so lucky to be a part of this fellowship because I have gotten to know more faculty within the University of Utah and more opportunities have been opened to me because of being in this fellowship. Meeting and networking with individuals within FLAS has helped me connect with individuals across multiple disciplines on campus. A language isn't something that you stop learning or using within school, it is a highly sought-after skill post-grad and will continually bring opportunities to you. 

- Sarah Moore, majoring in Asian Studies, minoring in Korean

Many of the politics and social movements I investigate, express and define their objectives in the Quechua language. I have developed a better understanding of these movements as a result.  

I began studying Quechua my first semester at the U. Learning this language has been essential to deepening my understanding of Latin American culture and politics, and society. This language defines many people's way of life. It expresses specific meanings for interactions with others, among communities, and with nature. I think this understanding has helped me develop research that more accurately reflects the worldviews of the populations that I study. I am also eager to use these skills to meet more people and experience new places.

Language study provides insight into cultures and beliefs that is difficult to grasp through a simple translation. Language study indicates what is important to a culture and how they view and interact with the world.  Traditional customs and knowledge are inherent to language. Not only is language study important for preserving culture and knowledge, it is important for sharing it. 

Definitely apply! It gives you a great opportunity to pair the study of language and culture. This is useful for any type of research and life in general. For research, you better understand the people and topics you study. You also have access to a wider pool of sources. In life, you can meet new people and learn from them. My greatest language experience was learning about religious customs from a shop owner in Mexico. This interaction would not have been possible without my language skills. The FLAS gives you the tools to have these types of experiences. 

- Christine Schulz, M.A. Latin American Studies - Political Science, Public Policy, Public Administration, History 

FLAS enabled me to study Japanese full time.  For a language like Japanese where the grammar and expressions are very different from English, a lot of practice time is required to get conversational.  What's more, the writing system requires intense memorization and drilling so I'm very happy to have been able to focus exclusively on language acquisition and research for two years as a Master's student.  It has already brought me great career opportunities and will continue to do so going forward.  Students who are thinking about applying should go for it!  Before you apply, I recommend you think long and hard about not only your professional goals, but what you love about other cultures and languages.  I think it's important to enjoy what you're studying and let the FLAS further enrich your life.  Going forward, I want to work in international relations or education and continue to use my language skills in everyday life.

- Alessandro Easthope, MA Asian Studies 

I am a second year PhD Student in the Department of Education, Culture, and Society and am studying Nahuatl at the intermediate level. FLAS has allowed me to study Nahuatl this past summer and to continue studying this academic year. Not only is Nahuatl one of my ancestral languages (I am Puerto Rican and Mexican), but it is related to my research as well. I am interested in the relationship between culture and language because both influence thought. Studying the Nahuatl language has given me insight to the Nahuatl culture and Indigenous Mexican culture in general, and is teaching me the way some of my ancestors thought.

 For those of you thinking of applying, I would ask, what is stopping you from applying? Yes, it does take a lot of work to learn a new language, but what you learn will be invaluable! 

I hope to teach or consult with educational institutions about centering education around Indigenous knowledge and culture.

- Rosie Ojeda, Ph.D candidate studying in the Department of Education, Culture, and Society

I study Vietnamese and received a FLAS scholarship to study in Vietnam summer 2019. Vietnamese is a moderately difficult language to learn, there are tones, different words you use for specific situations and grammar structures, and there are numerous different accents with their own vocabulary which is both unique and confusing when listening to people from different parts of Vietnam. 

By being able to study abroad in Vietnam I was able to learn more about my culture and heritage and can improve my Vietnamese language skills. I hope to be able to use these skills in a future career as a collegiate professor or in the Intelligence community. The skills I learned abroad are irreplaceable and extremely valuable in helping me appreciate media and art in Vietnamese. 

I would tell every student to try and apply for a FLAS scholarship. Having that experience is priceless and is extremely helpful when applying for various jobs and internships. This can only help you, and at the very least, you learned a second or third language. 

I hope to be a collegiate professor and teach Vietnamese history or Political relations within Southeast Asia, alternatively, I also would like to work as an intelligence analyst for the NSA or as a linguistic analyst.

Living in Vietnam during the summer was fantastic, I had lived there before, but now I could have a genuine college experience as I studied there. I was also able to meet relatives and travel with them to my mother's hometown and explore my ancestral lineage and experience for myself what life was like for them. After I initially lived in Vietnam a few years before my FLAS scholarship, I fell in love with the people, the country, and the beauty that exists within this hidden gem.

- Jacob Rigby, majoring in Political Science and minoring in History and Asian Studies 

I studied Japanese, and later, Mandarin as there were no other Japanese courses left for me to take. Mandarin is useful as it helps me read older Japanese texts more fluently.

I could never have completed my masters if it weren't for FLAS. The financial support was immeasurable. A masters degree requires a lot of attention and care, which is extremely challenging while working to support oneself. It would have taken me 3-4 years to complete the degree requirements and thesis if it weren't for FLAS.

It is a fantastic opportunity, and you won't regret applying. Pay attention to detail and make it clear what your goals are.

I'd like to write my own Japanese textbook series one day. Most of the existing textbooks are lacking in some way, or are confusing/misleading about the use of the language. I also hope to lecture in Japan as a visiting professor, but that is still several years away.

- Sami Mosher, MA Asian Studies, Japanese Cultural Anthropology and Linguistics

Since I entered the University of Utah I have realized that our challenge as students is not to pick one area of interest and go down a paved path, but to gather all of our interests and pave our own unique path. I am currently an undergraduate double majoring in Chemistry and Latin American studies, and studying Nahuatl. Finding a way to merge my love for the sciences and passion of learning Nahuatl has been a challenge; however, I have succeeded in paving my own path due to the experiences I have had as a FLAS recipient.

Receiving the FLAS fellowship has validated the importance of learning Nahuatl and has encouraged and supported my interdisciplinary interests. FLAS has provided me with many opportunities. It has allowed me to go to Yale University twice, to participate in a six-week intensive course, filled with modern Nahuatl, classical Nahuatl, and cultural activities. It has enabled me to continue to take Nahuatl and Latin American studies courses at the University of Utah. It has provided financial means to attend two intensive winter courses in Zacatecas, Mexico and visit the communities of my instructors in Chicontepec, Veracruz over two spring breaks. During my two visits to Chicontepec I have been able to interact with people of the communities –in Nahuatl– and listen to the elderly share stories, anecdotes and experiences in Nahuatl. FLAS has been my ticket to escape the STEM bubble I was in as an incoming freshman. It has granted me the opportunity to meet students from all over the world, studying different disciplines at various educational levels (bachelor’s, master’s, Ph.D.); from these interactions develop my future educational and career plans.

Thanks to the opportunities and experiences I have had as a FLAS recipient I have decided to continue on to graduate school and I am working towards creating an environment, both in academia as well as in society, where “traditional” medicine of indigenous communities is valued in the same regard as “modern” medicine thus helping to preserve the knowledge and practice of traditional medicine in Nahua communities.

- Brisa Zavala, majoring in Latin American Studies & Chemistry 

At the time I write this, it's been just over five months since I've moved to Japan to participate in an exchange program between the University of Utah and my host university Akita International University (AIU). AIU lies in the mid-southern region of Akita City, a modest city just slightly larger than Salt Lake City proper in both geography and population. Salt Lake City is much colder during the average winter, but the snowfall in Akita City has it beat by nearly three times! (No surprise then that Akita is famous for its skiing, too.) However, I think the one thing that has amazed me the most about this study abroad experience is not necessarily that the culture here is wildly different from my own—as is inherent with being halfway across the globe—but that for every difference exists some similarity.

One of the most formative experiences I've had so far was a class I took during the fall semester, called Akita Rural Studies. In this course, we cooperated with a small village within Akita City with a population of less than 250, over half of which are 65 years of age or older. This village is named Kayagasawa. They taught us about their local traditional performing arts, bangaku. The community welcomed me along with the rest of the class, where we learned directly from the members of the community about the struggles they face with depopulation and aging not only to keep bangaku alive but to keep their farming-based economy healthy as well. The instruction included members of the Bangaku Preservation Society teaching us dances traditionally used in bangaku.

 At the end of the semester, at their local cultural festival, we performed the dances they taught us and afterward had the opportunity to mingle with them over a meal. Though at times it was a challenge to understand their dialect of Japanese even with my intermediate-level knowledge of the language, it was a fantastic opportunity to practice using Japanese to communicate with them and learn about life in the countryside of Akita, and even teach them a little about life in the United States.

Overall, I'd say the most important thing I've learned from this class and my time so far here in Japan (especially in the midst of widespread conflict back home in the states) is simple. While our differences in cultures should be celebrated and embraced, what unites us is the humanity and joy we can find in not only cultural traditions and the performing arts, but also communicating with and respecting one another as global citizens.

- Joe Van Alstyne, majoring in Japanese

My name is Chantelle Hartling and I am a junior at the University of Utah. I am double majoring in Social Work and International Studies and have minors in Spanish and Psychology. I speak fluent Spanish and I chose to study Portuguese because it is a language I have always wanted to learn and something I felt I would be applicable to my areas of study. I plan on working with refugees in the future and being able to speak three languages will allow me to help a greater number of people. I would also love to do humanitarian work in lower income regions throughout South America.

Learning a new language is going to benefit your life in numerous ways, but what’s essential is how you plan to use that skill. My advice for submitting a successful application is to be specific in your statement of purpose so it is clear what you plan to do with this opportunity in the future.

 The FLAS scholarship has been so beneficial for me throughout this past year because it has not only allowed me to begin learning a new language, but also to learn about culture and customs of Portuguese speaking countries around the world, and the required area studies classes have made it possible for me to finish my minor in Spanish.  Receiving this scholarship has been an amazing experience and has greatly enriched my university education. 

- Chantelle Hartling, majoring in Social Work and International Studies and minoring in Spanish and Psychology

Sponsored by the United States Department of Education, the Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) Fellowship allocates academic year and summer fellowships to academic institutions to provide assistance for undergraduate and graduate students studying modern foreign languages or related area or international studies. Fellowships cover all tuition and transportation fees as well as a living stipend. Jason Chen, a current second year medical student at the University of Utah, studied intensive Mandarin Chinese at the Princeton in Beijing program through the FLAS Fellowship.

We caught up with Jason to discuss his experience in China as well as the FLAS Fellowship application process.

After graduating from the University of Utah with a Bachelor of Arts in Spanish and Honors Bachelor of Arts in Biology, Jason Chen pursued a Foreign Language and Area Studies Fellowship (FLAS) fellowship to study intensive Mandarin Chinese at Beijing Normal University with the Princeton in Beijing program (PIB). Following PIB, he served as a Fulbright English Teaching Assistant in Oxolotán, México, where he taught English and Mandarin courses to indigenous students in the sierra of Tabasco. His fellowship experiences have helped him realize the importance of serving diverse communities. He hopes to pursue a residency in Family Medicine after graduating medical school, with the goal of becoming a Regional Medical Officer in the State Department or the medical director of a Community Health Center. 

- Jason Chen, Spanish and Biology major and second-year Medical student