NSLI-Y Students

NSLI-Y Description:

The National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) is a scholarship program offered by the US Department of State. The scholarship covers all expenses, including airfare, cell service, health insurance, and even a generous weekly stipend. Any high school student can apply to study their chosen language in a variety of countries for the summer term or academic year. 

Lydia King 2025

I cannot recommend NSLI-Y highly enough. As part of the Kaohsiung, Taiwan Cohort, I got to stay with an amazing host family and learn from awesome teachers. My host family often took me to cultural landmarks within the city and even to the mountains of Taiwan. They even celebrated my birthday with me! I attended Wenzao Ursuline University, and had Chinese class every morning from 9:00-12:00, then had lunch off-campus from 12:00-1:00, and had special activities from 1:00-3:00, such as peer tutoring or culture class, where we got to do calligraphy, play Chinese chess, and more. After school and on weekends we were free to hang out until curfew or until our host families wanted us home. At the end of the program, I had to give a cultural presentation on a topic of my choice, which gave me a chance to learn a lot about Taiwanese culture. 

Within my cohort, I made many close friends. During our free time, we often visited the mall, sang karaoke, went to the beach, and more. As a cohort we had overnight trips to Tainan and Taipei, where we got to visit museums and explore the city. My friends and I enjoyed visiting night markets and indulging in the food scene - over my seven weeks, I tried a new restaurant for lunch nearly every day! We also got to visit a local high school and connect with Taiwanese high school students. I still regularly keep in touch with my host family, teachers, local friends, and cohort friends over social media. 

NSLI-Y is a once-in-a-lifetime experience that not only provided me with new friends and favorite memories, but also vastly improved my Chinese language skills and prepared me for college. Over the summer, my oral proficiency score improved from an intermediate low to intermediate high, and I felt extremely well-prepared entering AP Chinese Language and Culture in the fall. The application process helped prepare me for applying to colleges, and NSLI-Y is a prestigious program that looks great on a college application. I learned how to function independently, use public transportation, cope with homesickness, and overcome culture shock, and i barely had to pay a cent. 

Application Process:

There are two rounds of applications. The first round considers grades, test scores, two letters of recommendation, and three essays, including a “letter to your host family.” There is a minimum GPA requirement of 2.5.  If accepted to the semifinalist round, applicants must complete an interview, demographics questionnaire, and a physical as well as a mental health checkup if they have a prior history of mental health issues. If named as a finalist, the health forms are reviewed and approved. Finalists are sorted into different cohorts within their target language and term. For Mandarin Summer 2024 there were three cohorts in three different cities. Depending on the location, students might stay in dormitories or with host families. Applicants have no control over their program location. Before programs begin, finalists must attend mandatory webinars and complete preparatory activities. No language experience is required, but students must complete an Oral Proficiency Interview before and after the program to measure their improvement.

My Application Timeline:

*Applied for Mandarin Summer 2024

First Application Due: 11/9/23

Semifinalist Decision Notification: 12/8/23

Interview: 1/13/24

Secondary Application and Medical Forms Due: 2/23/24

Finalist Decision Notification: 3/8/24

Program: 6/16/24 - 8/5/24 (about 7 weeks)

For questions or more information, email me at adventure.lydia@gmail.com or follow @nsliy on Instagram.

Angela Wong, 2024

The best part of studying Mandarin has been the opportunities and experiences it has opened up to me. Because I began learning Mandarin more formally in highschool, I found greater motivation to expand my language learning journey past a traditional classroom setting and into an immersive and rigorous study abroad in New Taipei City with the National Security Language Initiative for Youth scholarship (NSLI-Y). Earning the NSLI-Y scholarship twice, the first time with the Virtual Summer Intensive and second time a summer in Taiwan learning at Tamkang University, I have made so many vital connections and made so many cherished memories. For example, while in Taiwan my host mom and I attended a yoga class. All instructions were in Mandarin and through this class I learned the world for inhale and exhale (呼 and 吸). I even meditated and focused on my inner thoughts completely in Mandarin. That experience truly demonstrated to me how powerful learning language is for connecting with a larger community, and motivated me to continue my Chinese language learning journey to continue to learn interesting and more niche vocabulary. At the end of the class, I had the opportunity to discuss with the instructor about her Chinese dance experience, discovering that her Chinese dance teacher was also my Chinese dance teacher’s teacher. Learning Mandarin allows me to connect with a larger community of people and have experiences that I would never have had without studying Mandarin.