U.S. Embassy & Consulate
in Iraq

Program Information

The Fulbright Visiting Scholar Program for Iraq brings junior Iraqi scholars to U.S. institutions for faculty development, mentoring, and cultural exchange activities.  Discipline-based cohorts will spend 10 weeks at selected U.S. host institutions, where they will be introduced to new teaching and research methods, observe classes, attend seminars, and develop linkages with American faculty through weekly mentoring sessions.  Ongoing community engagement with university-identified host families, volunteers, or others in the broader local community will facilitate the scholars’ participation in outreach activities, including visits to historical sites and attendance at cultural events.  While introduction to new research methods in the scholars’ disciplines is one component of the Fulbright Visiting Scholar Program for Iraq, the program is not intended to provide a venue for individual research projects.

Objectives

• Build higher education capacity in Iraq through faculty development and mentoring for junior scholars.
• Foster long-term collaboration and institutional linkages between Iraqi scholars and U.S. academics.
• Promote mutual understanding between Iraqis and Americans by facilitating the scholars’ engagement with the broader host campus community.

Policies of the Iraq Fulbright Program

While there are overarching policies to which all Fulbright scholarship recipients from around the world must adhere to, there are also policies which are country-specific:

• Two-year home residency requirement: The J-1 visa is an exchange visa which requires all Fulbright scholarship recipients to return to their home country for at least two years upon successful completion of the program.
• Intention to return to Iraq: Your eligibility for a Fulbright scholarship is based, in part, on your intention to return to Iraq immediately following your program.  If you show intent other than to remain in the United States for a temporary, specific, limited period (such as applying for an immigrant visa to the U.S., asylum in the U.S., or residency in a country other than Iraq) you will be ineligible to receive the Fulbright scholarship. Please carefully review the J visa policies for further information.
• No-dependents: J visa sponsorship is offered only to the Iraq Fulbright scholarship award recipient.  J-2 visa dependents (spouses and children under the age of 21) cannot accompany the Iraqi scholarship recipient on his/her study program.

The Fulbright Program is sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. 

How to Apply:

Instructions on how to apply for the program will be available when the next round of competition is announced in the fall of 2021.

Questions about the program should be sent to FulbrightIraq@state.gov.