Applicants should review the eligibility requirements before submitting an application. 

Applying to the English Language Fellow Program is competitive, and each year more applications are received than the program can accommodate.

Personal Information:  All applicants are asked to complete a brief Personal Information section.

Background Information:   

• • Current Address and Contact Information
  • Criminal Conviction History – Applicants who, at the time of application, or at any subsequent time prior to becoming an English Language Fellow, have been convicted of commission of a felony or a misdemeanor (excluding minor traffic violations), must inform the program. 
  • U.S. Government Affiliation, as it relates to the applicant’s eligibility to apply for the program.
  • Previous U.S. Government Grantee Information – Whether the applicant has previously been a recipient of another U.S. government grant. This can include, among many others, participation in  English Language Programs – as a Specialist, Virtual Fellow, etc.; receipt of a Fulbright grant as an ETA, Student, Scholar, etc.; or serving as a Peace Corps Volunteer.
  • Language Skills – Additional language skills are not required, but they can be helpful for projects in certain regions.
  • Affiliations and Awards – Affiliations to organizations or professional associations relevant to the field of TESOL, such as TESOL International, regional TESOLs, NABE, or others; relevant awards or accolades received throughout the course of the applicant’s career.

Education/Credentials:

• The applicant’s academic background, including relevant degrees, certificates, diplomas, state ESL endorsements, or other required credentials for eligibility.

References:

• Contact information for at least two professional references from the applicant’s professional life within the last five (5) years.
• At the moment an application is submitted, references are automatically emailed a link to an electronic questionnaire with six questions to complete.
• Applicants should reach out to their references to ensure receipt of the email.
• One of the two references should be a current or most recent supervisor who has observed the applicant in the classroom.
• Both references should be able to speak to the applicant’s ability to succeed in the Fellow Program by providing examples of their work ethic, initiative, leadership skills, resourcefulness, flexibility, judgment, classroom management skills, and overall strengths and weaknesses.
• Reference responses are confidential.
• An application is not complete, and will not be reviewed, until the two required references have submitted their responses.

Professional Experience:

• This section gathers details regarding relevant professional experience, including employer name, city, state, and country, as well as the applicant’s title, employment dates, average hours per week and instructional hours (if applicable).
• Professional Experiences is reviewed alongside the Resume/CV, so the two should match

Professional Capability:

• This section provides the applicant the opportunity to describe their professional capabilities in as many of the categories below as are relevant to their background and experience.
• Each question asks for evidence of specific outcomes of the applicant’s work, unique contributions they made, recognition they received related to their capabilities, etc. Each entry is limited to 70 words or fewer.
  • ESL, (domestic) English as a second language;
  • EFL, (international) English as a foreign language;
  • K-12, (domestic) e.g., SIOP, bilingual schools, ESL aid/assistant;
  • K-12, (international) e.g., international schools, bilingual education, language schools, language tutoring centers;
  • Content-based instruction, e.g., STEM/STEAM, current affairs, arts;
  • Higher Education, e.g., universities, community colleges, IEPs, vocational or technical schools;
  • Adult Education, e.g., language schools, community language classes, professional language institutes;
  • Presentations/workshops/other, e.g., state/regional conferences, presenting at staff professional development meetings, leading voluntary professional development meetups;
  • Teacher training, e.g., teaching methodology classes for an MA TESOL program, conducting an in-service professional development program for a school district, teaching a TESOL certificate course;
  • Training of trainers, e.g., district-wide training events, leading best-practices workshops or classes for TESOL professionals who train pre- or in-service teachers, teacher education MOOCs or series;
  • Materials and/or resource development, e.g., course modules, online lesson development, textbook material;
  • Syllabus evaluation/design/development;
  • English for Academic Purposes, e.g., academic writing, research, publications;
  • English for Specific Purposes, e.g., law, business, journalism, tourism;
  • Online tools and platforms / online instructional experience, e.g., teaching online courses, designing an LMS for your program, integrating digital platforms in classroom teaching;
  • Testing and assessment development, e.g., at the district, school, or classroom level;
  • TOEFL or IELTS test prep or scoring.

Essays

• Statement of purpose: This is an opportunity for the applicant to explain their motivation to be a Fellow; what they hope to contribute as a cultural ambassador and English language teaching professional; their cultural adaptability; and how a fellowship experience will contribute to their future goals in 500 words or fewer.
• Teaching Philosophy: This is an opportunity for the applicant to describe their guiding principles or beliefs that inform their approach to teaching; how they ensure that these principles are reflected in their classroom practices; and how they tailor teaching methods to accommodate diverse learning styles and individual student needs within the classroom in 500 words or less.

Lesson Plan and Teacher Training Module

• Lesson Plan: Applicants must include one ESL/EFL classroom lesson plan with their application.
• Teacher Training Module: An additional teacher training module is optional; however, it is required if an applicant wishes to be considered for projects that are primarily teacher training.
• In both cases, these must be original lesson plans or modules that the applicant has personally developed and used in their work.

Resume/CV: A copy of the applicant’s resume/CV is required. The resume/CV should be up-to-date with all relevant professional experience, and should include experiences that help define the applicant’s professional background, such as full-time and part-time teaching experience, adult education, volunteer language instruction/tutoring/clubs, and classroom experience in fields outside of TESOL.

Transcripts and Certificates: Applicants must also upload the transcript for their qualifying graduate level degree, and, if applicable, TESOL certificates and/or state K-12 ESL credentials. Additional information can be found here.

Non-U.S. Universities: If your degree was awarded from a non-U.S. institution, you will need to provide a foreign degree evaluation. Visit the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services for a list of evaluation companies. Most of these companies provide a variety of evaluations, but a general evaluation is sufficient for the Program’s application requirements. Once a general evaluation from one of the recommended evaluation companies is obtained, it must be uploaded directly into the application.

Regional Preferences:

• Applicants can indicate regional preferences in the application; however, the program cannot guarantee a match to a project that fits those preferences.
• Applicants are matched to projects based on their professional skill set, experience, and the needs of the project.
• Applicant preferences are taken into consideration where possible, but the more flexibility applicants indicate in terms of where they are willing to serve, the greater their chances are of being selected for a fellowship.

Additional Documentation: Applicants can upload any TESOL related professional presentations, publications, honors or awards, leadership activities, or other information from relevant projects they have led or contributed to.

Additional Experience Abroad: The applicant’s relevant experience abroad, details related to the country(ies), purpose of the visit/trip, type of position (study abroad, volunteer, presentation/conference, or other), and dates must be provided.

Information about Dependents: In most cases, one or more dependents may join the Fellow for all or part of the fellowship period, unless otherwise stated in the project description. Applicants should include information about plans to travel with dependents in their application to facilitate a successful match. Answers to questions regarding dependents will not preclude an applicant from being considered for the program; however, they may not be considered for certain projects due to special country requirements or restrictions. For example, some countries may restrict dependents due to housing or security concerns.

Recruitment: Applicants can share information about how they learned about the Fellow Program.

Applications are accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis until all projects are filled for the relevant academic year. The application closes for approximately two months during the summer each year for updates.

Application Timeline for the 2025-2026 Academic Year

September 1, 2024 – Application for the 2025-26 academic year opens

December 31, 2024 – Priority application deadline

January 21, 2025 – Project matching begins and continues until all projects are filled

July 2025 – Application for the 2025-26 academic year closes

September 2025 – Application for the 2026-27 academic year opens

Applicants are encouraged to apply by the priority deadline in order to have the best chance of being considered for all available projects.

Applicants that apply by the priority application deadline are the first to enter the project matching phase. Applicants that apply after the priority deadline will only be considered for projects that remain available at the time they enter the applicant pool.

Online Application:

• Applications for the English Language Fellow Program are accepted only through the online English Language Programs Portal.
• Through the Portal, applicants can create a new application or access an existing application using their original login information.
• Applicants should carefully review the requirements for a complete application. Failure to follow instructions will delay the review of the application.
• Applicants must accurately reflect their skills and experience; material omission or misrepresentation of any information submitted may be grounds for removing an application from consideration and/or rescinding an offer to participate in the program.
• Applications do not need to be completed in one sitting; applicants can begin an application at any time, save the information, and come back as many times as is required before submitting.

Returning Applicants:

• Returning applicants must log in to the Portal to review/edit the information saved from a previous application, and complete any new sections or questions, before submitting again.