The National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) is a US Department of State ECA program launched in 2006 by President George W. Bush to develop the foreign language skills of American high school students in eight critical-need languages. Korean, Mandarin, Russian, Arabic, Hindi, Bahasa Indonesian, Tajiki, and Turkish are all taught in summer and academic year programs abroad.
Target Language Programming Language education is the primary objective of the program, and the majority of time abroad is spent focusing on this. Each in-country program is facilitated by a different organization, contracted by the US Department of State.
Target language programming begins with mandatory predeparture online language class. This is done at the student's own pace and is aimed at getting all students in the cohort to the same general baseline level. Students then take an Oral Proficiency Interview, or OPI, to determine their language ability before taking part in the program.
All eight summer language programs are 6–7 weeks in duration and take place between mid June to early August. Academic year programs vary more significantly by country, but generally take place from September to May.
During summer programs abroad, NSLI-Y students take 5–7 hours of intensive language class per day, as well as receive thirty minutes to two hours of homework daily. Coursework is incredibly rigorous and requires a deep dedication to the target language and culture. Language instruction is carried out in a full immersion setting without the use of English for teaching, even for beginners. An immersion setting helps NSLI-Y students pick up on both tangible language skills and on subtle nuances of the language such as regional dialects, slang, and nonverbal cues. Language teachers are highly experienced in their fields and provide supplemental lectures as well as are available for office hours throughout the full duration of the exchange.
All NSLI-Y programs consist of homestays. Host families are selected and vetted by local implementing organizations; often chosen families have previously hosted NSLI-Y or other exchange students. In the uncommon event of a program being unable to find enough volunteer hosts, students could be placed two to a family, or in some instances placed in dorms. Freedoms vary program to program, but students are generally allowed a loose leash to explore inside their city after classes and on weekends. All programs require students to navigate public transportation from their host family's residence to school daily. This commute can consist of subway, bus, train, bike and often takes between thirty minutes and an hour and a half one way.
Most weeks NSLI-Y cohorts take 1-3 day group excursions to different regions of their host country. These include trips to other major cities or landmarks, or to sites of major political importance such as the DMZ for Korean cohorts and Kinmen Island for Taiwanese cohorts. These trips are an integral part of cultural education that NSLI-Y students receive and are often some of the most enjoyable parts of students' exchanges.
Cultural programming with local students is also a cornerstone of NSLI-Y in-country programming. Varying program to program, most NSLI-Y students are paired with local partners (high school and/or college students) who complete cultural or linguistic missions together around the host city independently.
In the case of emergencies, diplomatic staff from the local American embassy or consulate are available to assist. If necessary, NSLI-Y participants would be evacuated alongside diplomatic personnel. Medical insurance is provided for participants as well as access to in-country English speaking medical professionals and American based mental health professionals are available virtually.
Post program, NSLI-Y students are required to take another OPI and score two levels higher if they started at Novice (low, mid, high), and one level higher if they started as Intermediate or Advanced. Continued funding for implementing organizations depends on the students meeting these standardized thresholds. Students who do not meet the required advancement are disadvantaged if applying to future US government scholarships.
The NSLI-Y scholarship is all encompassing and pays for international and domestic flights to the host country, meals, board, and classes while in the host country, as well as significant stipends for use on living expenses abroad.
Korean South Korea - Virtual and Summer
According to the State Department's grant document, in 2026-2027 there will be 40 virtual, 83 summer, and 0 academic year Korean NSLI-Y spots. In the 2025-2026 there will be 40 virtual, 83 summer, and 12 academic year Korean NSLI-Y spots. The academic year program for Korean was canceled as a result of State Department budget cuts along with increased costs associated with the exchange program.
NSLI-Y Summer Korean Program Incheon Cohort
NSLI-Y summer program in Incheon is implemented by SUNY Korea. The Incheon cohort is 20 students who are placed in host families in Songdo and other neighborhoods in Incheon. Cultural excursions include traveling to the DMZ, a templestay at Bulguk-sa, overnight stays in Kangwha-do or Busan, k-pop dance lessons, and trips to Seoul. Given its close proximity to Seoul, students often go to the city on weekends and afterschool with friends by subway. Students in the Incheon cohort get assigned local university student language partners with whom they complete weekly cultural assignments and are also paired with high school students from the partnering Bakmun Girls High School. Lecturers and guest speakers present to the Incheon cohort on many topics including democratization and economic development, linguistics, traditional arts and pottery and a meeting with North Korean defectors.
Seoul Cohort
The Seoul summer program is implemented by Ewha Women's University or Hanyang University and is the largest cohort at thirty to forty students. Homestays are throughout Seoul and surrounding cities and some students have one way commute times of up to two hours. Cultural excursions include meeting Korean and Japanese high schoolers at the US embassy, Korean high school supporters, a graduation trip to the eastern coast beach city Gangneung, a baseball game, and other annual programs. Students from the Seoul cohort often complain that because of the many English speakers in the city, it was harder to utilize their Korean skills in their everyday lives.
Yongin Cohort
Yongin-si summer NSLI-Y program is implemented by the American Cultural Exchange Service (ACES) with classes being held at Dankook University and consists of 15 students. Yongin is a midsized city located roughly two hours south of Seoul. Students are placed with host families in Yongin and are assigned Korean peer partners from Dankook University. Cultural programming includes pottery, Korean war and economic development lectures, a templestay at Beopju-sa, a baseball game, k-pop dance lessons, and trips to Seoul both as a cohort and with host families.
Jeonju Cohort
Jeonju is a small to midsized city located in the southwest of South Korea in Jeolla-do. The Jeonju summer NSLI-Y cohort is 15 people and is implemented by xyz. Jeonju is most known for being a traditional Korean city with minimal western influence, and most students are placed with host families who live in Hanok villages. Cultural programming for the cohort includes a templestay at Bulguk-sa, hiking in Andong, Korean saunas, and traditional cultural excursions throughout Jeonju and Jeolla-do.
All Korean summer cohorts follow different curriculum, but students in all programs receive equally quality teaching that consistently meets the OPI thresholds set by the State Department. NSLI-Y summer cohorts operate entirely independently of each other and there are no programs done as a group between different cohorts. Cohorts are generally divided by preprogram Korean knowledge, but which cohort is advanced/beginner varies.
Korean Academic Year The NSLI-Y Korean Academic Year program is held annually in Seoul and the scholarship is awarded to 10-15 students per year. Over the course of the academic year (September to May) students are placed with host families, take classes in local Korean high schools and also receive 10 hours of Korean language instructional time per week. Most participants already have an Intermediate proficiency level and leave the program as Advanced. Programming is more varied and can include trips to Jeju-do, academic conferences/lectures, sports, and annual holiday celebrations.
Korean Virtual NSLI-Y Korean virtual NSLI-Y is implemented by the Department of East Asian Studies at Yale University. The intensive language class teaches absolute beginners the basics of Korean including hangul, counting, and basic conversation. By the end of the course students are able to read, write, and carry out everyday conversations at a Novice-Low level. Classes are twice a week for 2.5 hours over the course of ten weeks, adding up to fifty hours of instructional time. During this period, some classes are dedicated to making kimbap, learning Korean history, and guest lecturers teaching Minhwa art, and traditional Korean music.NSLI-Y student blogs and cohort student-run Instagram pages are great resources for further information.
Other Language Programs Chinese: (China and Taiwan) - Virtual, Summer, and Academic Year
In 2026-2027 there will be 50 virtual, 150 summer, and 30 academic year Mandarin NSLI-Y spots.
Arabic: Virtual, Summer (Morocco and Jordan), and Academic Year (Morocco)
(Egypt is being considered as a possible location for 2025-2026 programs.)
In 2026-2027 there will be 40 virtual, 90 summer, and 12 academic year Arabic NSLI-Y spots.
Russian: Virtual, Summer (Latvia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan), and Academic Year (Kyrgyzstan)
In 2026-2027 there will be 50 virtual, 95 summer, and 12 academic year Russian NSLI-Y spots. Unlike in previous years, in 2025-2026 there will be no cohorts located in Estoniahttps://www.nsliforyouth.org/languages-and-program-experience/russian/ Hindi: (India) Virtual and Summer
In 2026-2027 there will be no summer or academic year cohorts. Turkish: (Turkey) Virtual and Summer
In 2026-2027 there will be no virtual and no summer Turkish NSLI-Y spots.
Bahasa Indonesian: (Indonesia) Summer
In 2026-2027 there will be no summer Bahasa NSLI-Y spots.
Tajiki: (Tajikistan) Summer
In 2026-2027 there will be no summer Persian NSLI-Y spots.
Student quotas generally remain stable year on year; for the most up to date data refer to the NSLI-Y ECA Grant Document for the upcoming two years.
Application Process Applications are administered by American Councils for International Education. NSLI-Y summer program is limited to US citizen high schoolers that have completed their freshman year and is open to high school graduates under the age of 19. Academic year programs are available to high schoolers starting their sophomore year but are most popular as a gap year program.