Overview

The U.S. military needs future military officers who possess the necessary critical language and cross-cultural communication skills required for effective leadership in the 21st-century operational environment. Project GO (Global Officer) is an initiative sponsored by the Defense Language and National Security Education Office and administered by the Institute of International Education and National Security Education Office which provides scholarship funds to ROTC Cadets who wish to study a critical language during their college career. Scholarships are available for both domestic and study abroad programs. The goal is to help ROTC students achieve at least an intermediate level of language proficiency by the time they graduate college.

In line with this goal and to eliminate heavy course loads that ROTC students typically take each semester, in the summer of 2023, from June 19thto August 13th, Lewis University will host an 8 week fully funded immersion residential Project GO program in beginning Russian on its Romeoville campus.

What does Project GO Scholarship Cover?

All accepted students will receive full scholarships for participation in the Lewis University Project GO. The scholarship covers:

• Program tuition
• Full board and accommodation on its Romeoville campus
• Cultural excursions and activities
• All instructional materials
• Travel to and from the program site
• Insurance
• Tutoring and language partners

Reasons to apply

• Receive a fully funded scholarship for critical language study
• Earn 12 Lewis university credits and fulfill language requirement
• Gain language proficiency in one of today’s most needed languages
• Be eligible for language proficiency bonus pay (CLIP-b) (*Check with your commanding officer)
• Discover pathways to new career opportunities requiring language and area studies

Application Information

Eligibility

Applicants

• Must be a U.S. citizen.
• Must be an undergraduate or graduate student on track to commission through the Army, Naval, or Air Force Reserve Officers’ Training Corps (ROTC), contracted or non-contracted, at a regionally accredited college or university in the United States.
• Must have no prior learning exposure to Russian.

Newly commissioned officers awaiting active duty, drilling members of the National Guard or Reserve, and Army Green to Gold members are eligible to participate in Project GO domestic programs only.

Not Eligible for Project GO

• Non-U.S. citizens
• Active-duty military members (not participating in ROTC)
• Navy Seaman to Admiral Program members
• Officer Candidate School participants
• JROTC students
• Native speakers of Russian
• Service academy students
• Federal government employees
• Those who have prior learning experience or exposure to Russian .

Dates and Deadlines

How to apply

The application is available through the Project GO Central Application System and opens on 10/3/2022.

To know, before you apply:

1. The national application system has a 60-minute timeout. You do not have to complete your application in one sitting but make sure to save your work.
2. All materials and applications must be submitted through the Project GO Central Application System. Lewis University cannot accept any documents.
3. Submit your application when you are finished. You do not need to have the letters letters of recommendation at the time of the submission, they can be added later.
4. Two letters of recommendation are required:
   1. A letter from your commanding officer.
   2. An academic letter of recommendation that addresses:
         a) the relationship between the recommender and applicant and
         b) the reason the applicant is a good candidate for this scholarship.​

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Selection criteria

• Academic merit
• Language experience
• Cultural sensitivity
• Leadership
• Commitment to Project GO mission
• Diversity

About the Program: what to expect

The program offers 200 contact hours (12 academic credits or two years of instruction at Lewis University) and will be held at the Lewis University campus. Classes will meet for five hours each weekday, with tutoring and assignments required outside of the classroom. Classes follow the proficiency-based approach, while integrating reading, writing, speaking, and listening skills. Students complete 200 contact hours (12 credits) over the course of 8 weeks. The program covers two full years of language and culture at LU, which fulfills LU Globalization requirement and all of which may count towards fulfilling the Russian minor at LU. In addition, students participate in excursions and attend numerous cultural events and cultural clubs (watch Russian movies, meet with guest speakers, play popular Russian games etc.).
Please note that the acceptance to the Lewis University Project GO scholarship is also a commitment to continue studying the Russian language. Students are expected to take another full year of Russian at the intermediate Level delivered online.

Classes will meet five hours each weekday, with tutoring and assignments required outside of the classroom. Students will also be paired with a language partner for additional practice in oral acquisition. Instruction is supplemented by daily cultural events such as weekly film screenings, cultural activities, games, guest speakers, and weekend trips. Halfway through the program, at the end of the 4th week and in order to develop fluency in colloquial everyday Russian, students will sign “No English Contract” according to which they will use Russian as the only language of communication until the end of the program. Saturday and Sunday are days-off on which students can enjoy the proximity of Chicago and its suburbs.

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