English Teaching Assistant Program Application Components

All applicants must complete and submit their application via the Fulbright Online Application. This is where you enter data, upload documents, and register your recommenders and foreign language evaluator. The following items comprise the components of the ETA application:

Biographical Data

The Personal and Contact Information pages of the application asks for your basic personal information, such as your name, contact information, birth date, etc.

• Complete all required fields: You should take care to accurately complete all the required fields in these sections.
• Use proper capitalization and punctuation: This is a formal grant application, and you are advised to follow the English language rules on capitalization and punctuation. Do not enter responses in all caps. Be sure to proofread your responses in the PDF proof prior to submitting your application.

Program Information

On the Program Information page, you must include a Summary of Proposal addressing why you wish to undertake an ETA grant to the host country, along with an explanation of your plans for host country engagement and future plans upon returning to the U.S.

• Project Title: Enter “English Teaching Assistantship” for all proposals within this category.
• Abstract/Summary of the Proposal (1750-character limit): Concisely detail why you wish to be a Fulbright grantee and undertake an English Teaching Assistant opportunity and why you have chosen to apply to the specific country.
• Host Country Engagement (1750-character limit): At its core, the Fulbright program aims to promote mutual understanding and seeks individuals who can be cultural ambassadors while living abroad. This section should offer a description of the ways in which you will engage with the host country outside of your grant activities to fulfill this mission. How do you plan to share your culture and values in your host community? Specific ideas should be included.
• Plans Upon Return to the U.S. (850-character limit): A brief description of your future career and/or educational plans following completion of the Fulbright grant.

Statement of Grant Purpose

This one-page document should clearly describe what you will be able to bring to the classroom in the host country, as well as explain any ideas you have on how to reach students coming from a different pedagogical tradition.

Carefully read the award description for the country to which you are applying: This is necessary for you to understand the nature of the program and the specific requirements, since the design of the English Teaching Assistant Program (ETA) will vary from country to country. Some countries may give specific instructions on what to include in your Statement of Grant Purpose. Address the following points:

• What specific qualifications, training, or experience will you bring to the classroom and your role as an English Teaching Assistant?
• What specific ideas do you have for engaging with students in the host country and helping them learn English?
• What attributes do you possess that will assist you in the challenge of living and working in a new cultural environment? How have you demonstrated these qualities in your academic and professional life? Use specific examples.
• Do not make your Statement of Grant Purpose location-specific within the host country, unless specifically requested to do so in the country summary. ETAs will be assigned placements in the host country by the Fulbright Commission, or the U.S. embassy based on their needs, so nothing addressed in the Statement of Grant Purpose should be location-specific since you will not know where you will be based and what resources may be available.
  • Any preferred placement locations noted by applicants in the Statement of Grant Purpose are not guaranteed. Applicants are expected to be flexible on placement if offered a grant.

  Adhere to the proper format:

  • Length is limited to a maximum of one single-spaced page. The application system will not allow documents longer than one page to be uploaded.
  • Use 1-inch margins and Times New Roman 12-point font.
  • At the top of each page include:
    • On line 1: Statement of Grant Purpose
    • On line 2: Your Name, Host Country, and English Teaching Assistant Program

    Personal Statement

    The statement should be a one-page narrative that provides a picture of yourself as an individual․ It should detail your personal history, family background, influences on your intellectual development, the educational, professional, and cultural opportunities that you have (or have not) accessed, and the ways in which these experiences have affected you and your personal growth. Include your special interests and abilities, career plans, and life goals, etc.․ It should not be a list of facts already listed on the application or an elaboration of your Statement of Grant Purpose․ Rather, it should be specifically related to you and your aspirations as they relate to the specific Fulbright Program award to which you have applied.

    Do not repeat information from other parts of the application.
    
    Adhere to the proper format:

    • Length is limited to a maximum of one single-spaced pages. The application system will not allow documents longer than one page to be uploaded.
    • Use 1-inch margins and Times New Roman 12-point font.
    • At the top of each page include:
      • On line 1: Personal Statement
      • On line 2: Your Name, Host Country, and English Teaching Assistant Program

      Foreign Language Forms

      Language requirements vary by country, so before starting the application you should review the specific language proficiency requirements of your selected award. You must possess the necessary language skills to successfully complete the project you are proposing.

      For programs where language skills are required, you must complete the Language Self Evaluation form within the application, and register an individual to complete the Foreign Language Evaluation Form. The Foreign Language Evaluation Form is completed by a professional language teacher, preferably a university professor.

      Submission of both the Language Self-Evaluation portion of the application and Foreign Language Evaluation form is mandatory, even if you have advanced skills or are a native speaker of the language. The application system will not allow the submission of an application if a required Foreign Language Evaluation form is not registered. Failure to submit the required language forms may affect your eligibility.

      For programs where language skills are recommended or not required, if you possess some language skills relevant to the host country, you should complete the Language Self Evaluation and submit a Foreign Language Evaluation Form. It will be beneficial to have your language ability documented, even if it is not required for the award. Remember, even if a country indicates that English will be sufficient for carrying out the proposed project, for purposes of engaging with your host community, at least a basic level of language skill should be obtained prior to leaving the United States for the host country.

      For programs in countries where English is one of the national languages, you do not need to submit any foreign language forms unless a foreign language is required for your project.

      If language proficiency is not required for the award and you have little or no knowledge of the language relevant to the host country but plan to acquire proficiency prior to the start of the grant, you may discuss your plans in the Language Self Evaluation. In this case, you should not obtain a Foreign Language Evaluation.

      For Commonly-Taught Languages: The Foreign Language Evaluation should be completed by a professional language teacher, preferably a university professor. The language evaluator cannot be related to the applicant.

      For Less-Commonly-Taught Languages: If a professional language teacher is not readily available, a college-educated native-speaker of the language can be used. The language evaluator cannot be related to the applicant.

      Provide your language evaluator with the Instructions for Foreign Language Evaluators. You can print these out and discuss them with the person completing the form.

      If you wish to have the same person complete both a recommendation and a Foreign Language Evaluation, you will need to register the person once for the recommendation and once for the Foreign Language Evaluation. Please check with your evaluator/recommender to ensure they receive the correct forms. If your evaluator/recommender is having issues accessing the forms, please instruct them to email FBstudentsupport@iie.org for assistance.

      Recommendations

      You must submit three recommendations as part of the application. The recommenders will be provided an electronic form with a series of short-answer questions regarding items such as your communication skills, interest in teaching, and ability to work in unstructured environments. Recommenders for English Teaching Assistant Program applicants do not submit written letters of recommendation and must complete this form in full.

      The recommenders completing the ETA reference forms should be the three individuals who can best speak to your ability to teach English in a classroom abroad based on your intellectual and professional preparation. You should provide the recommenders with a copy of your Statement of Grant Purpose before requesting the recommendations. The recommendation should NOT simply be a character reference, as this will be of no value in assessing your ability to be a successful English Teaching Assistant.

      • • It is encouraged that at least one recommender is able to speak to your skills and experiences outside of academia. Examples of non-academic recommenders include coaches, supervisors, or mentors.
        • Recommenders cannot be related to you. Do not submit recommendations from a parent, sibling, or other relative.
        • Provide recommenders with copies of your Statement of Grant Purpose and Personal Statement for reference.
        • It is common courtesy to give recommenders at least 4-5 weeks to complete the recommendation forms. Confirm with your recommenders that they can submit your recommendation letters within this timeframe, and ahead of the national deadline.
        • Provide your recommenders with Instructions for ETA Recommendation Writers.
        • All recommendation forms must be completed in English. Please ensure your recommender can complete the form in English.
        • You must register the recommenders in the online application system so that they can complete their recommendations directly in the application. When available, it is preferred you register your recommenders using their professional or institutional email address. Let your recommenders/evaluators know that they should be expecting an email message with the following information in the header:
          • From: Fulbright U.S. Student Program (FBstudent@iie.org)
          • Subject: Fulbright Recommendation for [Your Name]
          • The deadline to request a recommendation be un-submitted is Friday, October 4, 2024 at 5:00pm Eastern Time.
          • The recommender sends an email from the registered email account to FBstudentsupport@iie.org to request that the recommendation be un-submitted.
          • The email to FBstudentsupport@iie.org must include the applicant’s full name and country of application.
          • The recommender will need to allow at least 48 hours for the request to be implemented.
          • Once the recommendation is un-submitted, the recommender can edit the recommendation and resubmit.
          • All recommendations must be submitted by the application deadline, Tuesday October 8, 2024 at 5:00 pm Eastern Time. Late recommendation submissions are not accepted under any circumstances.
          • If a recommendation letter needs to be removed from the application after being submitted, the recommender must send an email from the registered email account to FBstudentsupport@iie.org to request that the recommendation be deleted from the application.

          Note: Applicants and Fulbright Program Advisers cannot request that a recommendation be un-submitted.

          Applicants can follow the status of the recommendation (in progress, submitted) from the Applicant Status Page of the application. Additional instructions and details on the online submission of recommendations are available within the application system.

          Transcripts

          The Fulbright Program requires a complete academic record of your higher education. You must provide transcripts from all undergraduate and graduate institutions from which you received degrees. Transcripts must also be submitted from other institutions where you studied and received credit for coursework.

          Failure to submit required transcripts will result in your application being declared ineligible.

          • You must upload one unofficial academic transcript from each post-secondary institution from which you received (or expect to receive) a degree. Additional transcripts should be uploaded for coursework and grades not reflected on degree-granting transcripts.
          • If a degree is still in progress, you may upload a copy that shows the most recently completed semester.
          • Make sure that the document that you submit clearly shows your name, the name of the institution, and appears as an academic record that is organized chronologically--with course dates, titles, credits and grades. Screenshots of online academic portals (e.g. a course schedule) will not be accepted.
          • Graduate-level students who do not include undergraduate transcripts will be considered ineligible.
          • Consult the Transcript and Upload Instructions page for more detailed information.

          ETA Application Components Overview

          Checklist for ETA Candidates

          Starting the Application

          Contact the Fulbright Program Adviser at your school to discuss the campus application process and note any campus deadlines (pertains only to candidates applying through a U.S. institution).

          Carefully review the program summary for the country and award to which you are applying.

          Draft responses for the following required short answer questions: 1) Abstract/Summary of Proposal, 2) Host Country Engagement, 3) Plans Upon Return to the U.S.

          Draft a Statement of Grant Purpose that details what you will bring to the classroom.

          Draft a Personal Statement that provides the screening committee members with a fuller picture of who you are and what has motivated you to pursue this Fulbright opportunity.

          Consult with professors and/or colleagues with background in the country to which you are applying or professionals in the English/TESOL fields.

          Solicit critiques on the draft Statement of Grant Purpose from professors, advisers, mentors, colleagues, etc., and make revisions as appropriate.

          Contact 3 individuals to complete the recommendation form for the English Teaching Assistant Program grant. These individuals should be those who can best speak to your ability to succeed in assistant-teaching English to non-native speakers. You should provide a copy of the Statement of Grant Purpose to each individual completing a recommendation form. Allow enough time for the recommender to complete their recommendation before your institution’s campus deadline and/or national deadline.

          For candidates submitting Foreign Language Evaluations: Contact the professor or other professional foreign language instructor who will complete the Foreign Language Evaluation form for the application.

          Obtain transcripts from each post-secondary institution attended.

          Before Submitting the Application

          Make any necessary revisions based on feedback from the Campus Interview Committee (pertains only to candidates applying through a U.S. institution).

          Check for typos—misspellings, capitalization errors, grammatical mistakes, etc.

          Make sure that all the required short answer questions have been completed, including: Project Title Abstract/Summary of the Proposal, Host Country Engagement and Plans Upon Return to the U.S.

          Check to make sure that the Statement of Grant Purpose, the Personal Statement, and the transcripts have been uploaded into the correct sections of the application.

          Confirm that recommenders and language evaluators are registered in the application system and have received the email link to complete the recommendation/evaluation. Applicants can submit their application before the recommendations/evaluations are submitted. After application submission and before the national deadline, applicants can log in to the application and resend email links.

          Preview the complete application in the Fulbright online application system by going to the Review page.

          Print a copy of the application for your records.