Number of recipients
In addition to being a prestigious academic exchange program, the Fulbright Program is designed to expand and strengthen relationships between the people of the United States and citizens of other nations and to promote international understanding and cooperation. To support this mission, Fulbright Scholars may be asked to give public talks, mentor students, and otherwise engage with the host community, in addition to their primary activities.
Scholars and appropriately qualified professionals outside of academia may engage in collaborative research; or combine teaching and research activities; or pursue a professional project in their area of specialization in two to three countries in at least two different world regions. Activities may also include consulting on curriculum, program and faculty development and conducting workshops. Applicants with a teaching/research project may determine the percentage of the grant dedicated to each activity and should define this in the project proposal. The activities can be conducted in the same academic year or over the course of two consecutive years and may consist of one multi-country trip, two or three single country trips or a combination of one single country trip and one dual country trip.
Any appropriate institution, research center, non-profit organization, government agency, museum, or arts organization in each of the selected countries. For-profit institutions are not elgiible hosts. A country is an eligible host country only if it has an existing Core Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program. Proposals must include only two or three host countries from at least two different world regions. Justification for choosing the countries and world regions should be clearly defined in the proposal. World regions are defined as Sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia and the Pacific, Europe-Eurasia, Middle East and North Africa, South and Central Asia, and Western Hemisphere. Global Scholar Award projects which include countries from only one world region are ineligible. Proposals that include host countries in the developing world are especially welcome and encouraged. The United States is not an eligible host country for this award. Please see additional multi-country awards if you are interested in a project focused on only one world region.
Three to six months total with minimum of one consecutive month spent in each host country, each visit.
Earliest start date is July 1, 2026; latest start date is May 2027. All grants must be completed by August 2028. Preference may be given to scholars proposing projects during the host institution's academic year.
Grants for the Fulbright Global Scholar Award may consist of one multi-country trip; two or three single country trips; or a combination of one single country trip and one dual country trip. On the Award Details page of the application, be sure to enter the dates, length of segment, host institution and country for each proposed country visit. Please consult the chart on this page to see examples of the grant options. Additional parameters include:
The Flex Award is designed for scholars who require multiple visits to the host country. This option allows grants to be conducted over two or three short segments. Applicants must select Flex in the application form, and clearly describe their plans for Flex in their project statement, including a project timeline. Flex grantees may be asked to give public talks, mentor students, and otherwise engage with the host-country academic community.
Interested applicants should provide a clear project timeline in the project statement. All Global grantees may be asked to give public talks, mentor students, and otherwise engage with the host-country academic community.
All applicants must meet the Program eligibility requirements (click to review the requirements).
A letter of invitation from each proposed host institution in each country, confirming the applicant's proposed timeline, must be submitted at the time of application. Project statement must include a detailed description of proposed grant activities (research, teaching and research, and/or professional project), including duration and dates in each country, justification for each country to be visited, host institutions and site(s) to be visited (where feasible).
Confirm with each host institution the language of instruction for proposed teaching. For research grant activity, language fluency sufficient to complete the research project is required. For applicants without local language proficiency, feasibility of conducting research must be demonstrated in both the project statement and the language self-evaluation form of the Fulbright application. Non-native speakers who have local language abilities will be asked to also register an external evaluator within the application.
While a Ph.D. (or equivalent terminal degree such as MBA, MFA, etc.) is preferred, it is not required. Applicants with equivalent professional/artistic training or experience (recognized professional standing and substantial professional accomplishment) are strongly encouraged to apply.
Monthly benefits will follow the rates for Core Fulbright U.S. Scholar grants in each proposed country with a minimum monthly rate of $3,500. These figures can be found under the "Award Benefits" tab on any award page. Dependent benefits are not available under the Fulbright Global Scholar Award. Final grant amounts will be determined prior to the start of the 2026-2027 academic year and are subject to the availability of congressionally appropriated funds. The United States Department of State reserves the right to alter, without notice, participating countries, number of awards and allowances.
Round-trip, economy-class, international travel for the grantee provided for each country visit. Travel will be arranged directly by a travel agency selected by IIE. Relocation Allowance of $750 provided per each country visit.
A $750 book/research allowance is provided for each country visit to assist with the costs of teaching and research materials. Books purchased should be donated to the host institution upon completion of the grant segment.
Please refer to the figures above for an estimate of total monthly Fulbright award benefits. Benefits may include a monthly base stipend, living and housing allowances, and additional one-time allowances. Benefits may vary based on a scholar's current academic rank (or professional equivalent), the city of placement, the type of award (teaching, teaching/research, or research), and the number of and duration of stay of accompanying dependents. Research-only or Professional Project grantees receive a standard stipend that is not adjusted for academic rank. In most cases, dependent benefits will not be provided to Flex grantees, or to grantees pursuing grants less than four months (or a semester) in length.
Final grant amounts will be determined prior to the start of the academic year and are subject to the availability of funds. The United States Department of State reserves the right to alter, without notice, participating countries, number of awards and allowances.
A country is an eligible host county only if it has an existing Core Fulbright U.S. Scholar Program. Proposals must include only two or three host countries from at least two different world regions. Justification for choosing the countries and world regions should be clearly defined in the proposal. World regions are defined as Sub-Saharan Africa, East Asia and the Pacific, Europe-Eurasia, Middle East and North Africa, South and Central Asia, and Western Hemisphere. Global Scholar Award projects which include countries from only one world region are ineligible. Proposals that include host countries in the developing world are especially welcome and encouraged. The United States is not an eligible host country for this award.
Visit our Scholar Directory to view and search all Fulbright alumni. You can also learn more about Fulbright Alumni Ambassadors.
Citizenship/Residency Requirements