What criteria does the Secretary use in selecting institutions for an allocation of fellowships?
34 C.F.R. § 657.21
in effectEffective: 2024-07-01The Secretary evaluates an institutional application for an allocation of fellowships on the basis of the criteria in this section.
(a) Foreign language and area studies fellowships awardee selection procedures. The Secretary reviews each application to determine whether the selection plan is of high quality, showing how awards will be advertised, how students apply, what selection criteria are used, who selects the fellows, when each step will take place, and how the process will result in awards being made to correspond to any announced priorities.
(b) Quality of staff resources. The Secretary reviews each application to determine—
(1) The extent to which teaching faculty and other staff are qualified for the current and proposed activities and training programs, are provided professional development opportunities (including overseas experience), and participate in teaching, supervising, and advising students;
(2) The adequacy of applicant staffing and oversight arrangements and the extent to which faculty from a variety of departments, professional schools, and the library are involved; and
(3) The extent to which the applicant, as part of its nondiscriminatory employment practices, encourages applications for employment from persons who are members of groups that have been traditionally underrepresented, such as members of racial or ethnic minority groups, women, persons with disabilities, and the elderly.
(c) Impact and evaluation. The Secretary reviews each application to determine—
(1) The extent to which the applicant's activities and training programs have contributed to an improved supply of specialists on the program's subject as shown through indices such as undergraduate and graduate enrollments and placement data; and the extent to which the applicant supplies a clear description of how the applicant will provide equal access and treatment of eligible project participants who are members of groups that have been traditionally underrepresented, such as members of racial or ethnic minority groups, women, persons with disabilities, and the elderly;
(2) The extent to which the applicant provides an evaluation plan that is comprehensive and objective and that will produce quantifiable, outcome-measure-oriented data; and the extent to which recent evaluations have been used to improve the applicant's program;
(3) The degree to which fellowships awarded by the applicant address national needs; and
(4) The applicant's record of placing students into post-graduate employment, education, or training in areas of national need and the applicant's stated efforts to increase the number of such students that go into such placements.
(d) Commitment to the subject area on which the applicant or program focuses. The Secretary reviews each application to determine—
(1) The extent to which the institution provides financial and other support to the operation of the applicant, teaching staff for the applicant's subject area, library resources, and linkages with institutions abroad; and
(2) The extent to which the institution provides financial support to students in fields related to the applicant's teaching program.
(e) Strength of library. The Secretary reviews each application to determine—
(1) The strength of the institution's library holdings (both print and non-print, English and foreign language) for students; and the extent to which the institution provides financial support for the acquisition of library materials and for library staff in the subject area of the applicant; and
(2) The extent to which research materials at other institutions are available to students through cooperative arrangements with other libraries or on-line databases.
(f) Quality of the applicant's non-language instructional program. The Secretary reviews each application to determine—
(1) The quality and extent of the applicant's course offerings in a variety of disciplines, including the extent to which courses in the applicant's subject matter are available in the institution's professional schools;
(2) The extent to which the applicant offers depth of specialized course coverage in one or more disciplines on the applicant's subject area;
(3) The extent to which the institution employs a sufficient number of teaching faculty to enable the applicant to carry out its purposes and the extent to which instructional assistants are provided with pedagogy training; and
(4) The extent to which interdisciplinary courses are offered for students.
(g) Quality of the applicant's language instructional program. The Secretary reviews each application to determine—
(1) The extent to which the applicant provides instruction in the languages of the applicant's subject area and the extent to which students enroll in the study of the languages of the subject area through programs or instruction offered by the applicant or other providers;
(2) The extent to which the applicant provides three or more levels of language training and the extent to which courses in disciplines other than language, linguistics, and literature are offered in appropriate foreign languages;
(3) Whether sufficient numbers of language faculty are available to teach the languages and levels of instruction described in the application and the extent to which language teaching staff (including faculty and instructional assistants) have been exposed to current language pedagogy training appropriate for performance-based teaching; and
(4) The quality of the language program as measured by the performance-based instruction being used or developed, the adequacy of resources for language teaching and practice, and language proficiency requirements.
(h) Quality of curriculum design. The Secretary reviews each application to determine—
(1) The extent to which the applicant's curriculum provides training options for students from a variety of disciplines and professional fields and the extent to which these programs and their requirements (including language requirements) are appropriate for an applicant in this subject area and result in graduate training programs of high quality;
(2) The extent to which the applicant provides academic and career advising services for students; and
(3) The extent to which the applicant has established formal arrangements for students to conduct research or study abroad and the extent to which these arrangements are used; and the extent to which the institution facilitates student access to other institutions' study abroad and summer language programs.
(i) Priorities. If one or more competitive priorities have been established under § 657.22, the Secretary reviews each application for information that shows the extent to which the Center or program meets these priorities.
Source: eCFRURL: https://www.ecfr.gov/api/versioner/v1/full/2024-07-01/title-34.xmlFetched: 7/26/2026