Academic Exchange Programs - Graduate Students
Active
- Assistance listing
- 19.400
- Agency
-
Department of State
- Grant awards
- 268 $1,995,183,774 in federal obligations
Program facts
- Also known as
- Graduate Students
- Assistance types
-
- Cooperative Agreement
- Project Grant
- Treasury account
-
- 19-0209-0-1-154
- More information
Program details come from SAM.gov Assistance Listings. Updated . Grant award figures come from USAspending.gov.
About this program
The Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs funds the Fulbright Program's graduate and international student exchange activities under CFDA 19.400, with the most recent grant award made on August 18, 2026.
This program supports the administration and delivery of four core Fulbright exchange initiatives: the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, which sends approximately 1,908 U.S. students and early-career professionals annually abroad to conduct research, teach English, and pursue academic study; the Fulbright Foreign Student Program, which brings approximately 2,150 foreign participants from roughly 160 countries to U.S. colleges and universities for degree study and research; the Fulbright English Teaching Assistant Program, placing recent graduates in overseas educational institutions; and the Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant Program, hosting early-career foreign educators in U.S. post-secondary institutions. Funded recipients are nonprofits that design and administer these programs, manage logistics including recruitment, screening, participant communication, funding disbursement, and enrichment activities. The program has operated continuously since 1999.
Over the past five years, award cadence has declined sharply—from 15 awards in 2022 to only 2 in both 2025 and 2026—suggesting tighter focus or reduced competition. Cooperative Agreements dominate the portfolio at 76 percent of awards (205), with Project Grants comprising 24 percent (63). The Department of State Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs funds 223 awards representing $1.74 billion in federal obligations, accounting for 99 percent of awards and 87 percent of all federal dollars. Secondary funders include the Department of State general (24 awards, $250.5 million) and regional State Department bureaus (19 awards, $184 thousand combined). Total federal obligations across 268 awards reach $2 billion, with recipients contributing $310 million in non-federal match.
Recent awards reflect the program's dual structure: two major cooperative agreements—IIE's FY 2026 Fulbright Student Program award ($54.99 million) and AMIDEAST's FY 2026 Foreign Student Program for the Middle East and North Africa ($7.16 million)—anchor large-scale administration; concurrent small project grants fund specific initiatives such as EducationUSA advising expansion in The Gambia ($6,000) and women's leadership programming ($11,000). The most recent posted opportunity, FY 2025 Fulbright Student Program (SFOP0010354), closed on July 8, 2024, targeting 501(c)(3) nonprofits and higher education institutions as cooperative agreement applicants. No currently open solicitations appear in recent posts.
Objective and description
- Objective
As authorized by the Fulbright-Hays Act, the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) seeks to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries by means of educational and cultural exchan
- Description
The flagship international exchange program sponsored by the United States Government, the Fulbright Program is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. Funding is provided to non-profit organizations to support their work in designing and administering programs as well as coordinating program logistics. Funding to those organizations supports activities such as publicity and recruitment, screening of applications, communication with participants, payment of participant costs, and the provision of enrichment activities. The Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) Program, an element of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, places recent college graduates and young professionals as English teaching assistants in primary and secondary schools, universities, and language-learning institutions overseas. The Fulbright Foreign Student Program provides scholarships to foreign graduate students, young professionals, and artists from abroad, enabling them to study or conduct research in all academic fields in the United States for one academic year or more. Students and professionals in the Fulbright Foreign Student Program study at U.S. universities, where they experience education and culture in the United States while promoting mutual understanding through sharing their own cultures with the Americans they meet throughout the program. The Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) Program brings early career educators from all over the world to the U.S. to refine their teaching skills, increase their English language proficiency and extend their knowledge of the cultures and customs of the United States while engaging in non-degree studies at accredited post-secondary U.S. educational institutions. The Fulbright-National Geographic Award, an enhancement of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, provides Fulbright U.S. Student researchers with mentorship and training from the National Geographic Society to pursue a storytelling project using a variety of media tools. Please refer to the Grants.gov or the U.S. Department of State's MyGrants (formerly SAMS Domestic) announcement for further information.
Eligibility
- Applicant eligibility
Pursuant to the Mutual Educational and Cultural Exchange Act of 1961, as amended (Fulbright-Hays Act) the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State awards grants and cooperative agreements to educational and cultural public or private nonprofit foundations or institutions. Applications may be submitted by public and private non-profit organizations meeting the provisions described in Internal Revenue Code section 26 USC 501(c)(3). Organizations must have nonprofit status with the IRS at the time of application. Please refer to the Grants.gov or the U.S. Department of State's MyGrants (formerly SAMS Domestic) announcement for further eligibility criteria.
- Beneficiary eligibility
Beneficiaries include recipient organizations, educational institutions, other non-government organizations (NGOs) that meet the provisions described in Internal Revenue Code section 26 USC 501(c)(3), as well as sponsored participants, and the American people and the people of participating countries who interact with the international participants.
- Uses of assistance
The flagship international exchange program sponsored by the United States Government, the Fulbright Program is designed to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of other countries. Funding is provided to non-profit organizations to support their work in designing and administering programs as well as coordinating program logistics. Funding to those organizations supports activities such as publicity and recruitment, screening of applications, communication with participants, payment of participant costs, and the provision of enrichment activities. The Fulbright English Teaching Assistant (ETA) Program, an element of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, places recent college graduates and young professionals as English teaching assistants in primary and secondary schools, universities, and language-learning institutions overseas. The Fulbright Foreign Student Program provides scholarships to foreign graduate students, young professionals, and artists from abroad, enabling them to study or conduct research in all academic fields in the United States for one academic year or more. Students and professionals in the Fulbright Foreign Student Program study at U.S. universities, where they experience education and culture in the United States while promoting mutual understanding through sharing their own cultures with the Americans they meet throughout the program. The Fulbright Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA) Program brings early career educators from all over the world to the U.S. to refine their teaching skills, increase their English language proficiency and extend their knowledge of the cultures and customs of the United States while engaging in non-degree studies at accredited post-secondary U.S. educational institutions. FLTAs teach or assist in the instruction of language courses, supervise language labs, and lead language table discussions and may also act as resource persons and cultural representatives, as they represent their language and culture in the United States. The Fulbright-National Geographic Storytelling Fellowship, an enhancement of the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, provides Fulbright U.S. Student researchers with mentorship and training from the National Geographic Society to pursue a storytelling project using a variety of media tools. Please refer to the Grants.gov or the U.S. Department of State's MyGrants (formerly SAMS Domestic) announcement for further information.
- Length and time phasing of assistance
As stated in the Grants.gov announcements.
How to apply
- Criteria for selecting proposals
As stated in the Grants.gov or the U.S. Department of State's MyGrants (formerly SAMS Domestic) announcements.
- Award procedure
Final awards cannot be made until funds have been appropriated by Congress, allocated and committed through internal Bureau procedures. Successful applicants will receive a Federal Assistance Award (FAA) from the Bureau's Grants Office. The FAA and the original proposal with subsequent modifications (if applicable) shall be the only binding authorizing document between the recipient and the U.S. Government. The FAA will be signed/validated by an authorized Grants Officer, and sent via the U.S. Department of State's MyGrants (formerly SAMS Domestic) to the recipient's responsible officer identified in the application.
- Time to approval or disapproval
As specified in NOFO.
- Renewals
As stated in the Grants.gov or the U.S. Department of State's MyGrants (formerly SAMS Domestic) announcements.
Grant opportunities
| Opportunity | Status | Posted | Applications due |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY 2025 Fulbright Student Program | Closed | ||
| FY 2020 Fulbright Student Program | Closed |
Grant awards
Latest 10 of 268 listed here. See the rest on GovTribe.
Top recipients by federal obligations
| Rank | Recipient | Federal obligations | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Institute Of International Education Inc. | $1,645,694,178 | 82% |
| 2 | America-Mideast Educational And Training Services, Inc. | $171,222,150 | 9% |
| 3 | Laspau Inc. | $17,175,107 | 1% |
| 4 | President And Fellows Of Harvard College | $8,625,904 | <1% |
| 5 | University Of Mass At Boston | $696,428 | <1% |
| 6 | American Councils For International Education: Actr / Accels, Inc. | $209,418 | <1% |
| 7 | Comm Franco Amer Echanges Univ Culturels | $76,000 | <1% |
| 8 | Magyar-Amerikai Fulbright Alapitvany Oktatasi-Kulturalis Csereprogramok Megvalositasara | $75,000 | <1% |
8 of 33 recipients listed here. See the rest on GovTribe.
Federal obligations by fiscal year
| Fiscal year | Federal obligations |
|---|---|
| FY2026 | $40,871,027 |
| FY2025 | $85,146,555 |
| FY2024 | $92,162,429 |
| FY2023 | $97,619,319 |
| FY2022 | $93,675,119 |
| FY2021 | $91,197,084 |
| FY2020 | $82,040,246 |
| FY2019 | $85,797,305 |
| FY2018 | $86,609,696 |
| FY2017 | $89,269,304 |
| FY2016 | $123,243,106 |
| FY2015 | $72,700,961 |
| FY2014 | $102,328,332 |
| FY2013 | $109,408,773 |
| FY2012 | $107,759,125 |
| FY2011 | $90,228,249 |
| FY2010 | $103,173,144 |
| FY2009 | $128,273,939 |
| FY2008 | $80,378,100 |
| FY2007 | $90,522,266 |
| FY2006 | $4,591,198 |
| FY2005 | $56,163,622 |
| FY2004 | $15,250,035 |
| FY2003 | $43,700,573 |
| FY2002 | $6,842,194 |
| FY2001 | $10,900,344 |
Show all 26
Quick answers
What is Assistance Listing 19.400?
Assistance Listing 19.400 is Academic Exchange Programs - Graduate Students, a federal grant program run by Department of State.
What is the CFDA number for Academic Exchange Programs - Graduate Students?
Its CFDA number is 19.400: Assistance Listing numbers were called CFDA numbers before 2018.
How much funding has Assistance Listing 19.400 awarded?
268 grant awards under 19.400 have obligated $1,995,183,774 in federal funds to 33 recipients.
Who receives the most funding from 19.400?
The recipients obligated the most under Academic Exchange Programs - Graduate Students are Institute Of International Education Inc. ($1,645,694,178), America-Mideast Educational And Training Services, Inc. ($171,222,150) and Laspau Inc. ($17,175,107).
How much did 19.400 obligate in fiscal year 2025?
Grants under 19.400 obligated $85,146,555 in federal funds in fiscal year 2025.
Are there open grant opportunities under 19.400?
No opportunity listed under 19.400 is open now. The latest, FY 2025 Fulbright Student Program, was posted on May 9, 2024.
On GovTribe
See this program's full record
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