Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE): International Foreign Language Education (IFLE): Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad (DDRA) Fellowship Program, Assistance Listing Number 84.022A | ED GRANTS 012924 001

Opportunity Information: Apply for ED GRANTS 012924 001

The Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad (DDRA) Fellowship Program (Office of Postsecondary Education, International Foreign Language Education) is a U.S. Department of Education discretionary grant opportunity listed under Assistance Listing Number (ALN) 84.022A. Its central goal is to support doctoral students who need to go overseas to conduct dissertation research that depends on modern foreign languages and area studies. In practical terms, the program is meant to strengthen U.S. capacity in foreign language and regional expertise by helping emerging scholars complete research that requires time in another country, working with local archives, field sites, interviews, libraries, or other primary sources that cannot be accessed adequately from the United States.

Eligibility operates at two levels. The official applicant to the Department of Education is an institution of higher education (IHE), meaning colleges and universities submit the grant application on behalf of their doctoral students rather than students applying directly as independent applicants. At the individual level, a doctoral student can be supported through the program if they are a U.S. citizen or national, or a U.S. permanent resident; are a graduate student in good standing at an IHE; will be formally admitted to doctoral candidacy by the time the fellowship begins in a modern foreign languages and area studies field; plan to pursue a teaching career in the United States after completing the doctorate; and have the foreign language proficiency needed to carry out the proposed dissertation research abroad. The structure reflects the program's intent to build long-term U.S.-based teaching and expertise in languages and world areas, not simply to fund international travel.

Applications are primarily submitted electronically through the Department of Education's G6 system (www.g6.ed.gov), and the process is deliberately sequenced so that the IHE coordinates and submits a complete institutional package that includes all eligible student components. A key early administrative step is that IHEs must email the institution name and the full name and email address of the project director to DDRA@ed.gov, and the notice recommends doing this at least two weeks before the deadline to avoid last-minute access issues. After that, doctoral students complete and submit their individual applications in G6 to their home institution's project director, and reference providers submit recommendation forms through G6 as well. The project director then compiles and officially submits the IHE's application to the Department, including student applications, references, and required institutional forms. The electronic submission must be completed by 11:59:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the deadline date, and the system will not accept late submissions, so the program explicitly advises applicants not to wait until the final hours.

The notice emphasizes strict formatting and document-handling rules that can affect whether an application is reviewable. Required documents must be uploaded electronically by the IHE, including standard federal and Department of Education forms such as SF-424 (Application for Federal Assistance), the Department of Education supplemental information for SF-424, ED-524 budget forms (non-construction), and the required assurances and certifications. Narrative sections and attachments must be uploaded as read-only, flattened PDFs; interactive, fillable PDFs, other file types (Word, Excel, etc.), or password-protected files may not be reviewable and can lead to the application not being considered. Doctoral transcripts are also submitted electronically through G6. The system provides automatic acknowledgments at different points (student submission to the IHE, reference submission, and final IHE submission). Once the IHE submits, it receives a unique PR/Award number, and within three working days the institution must print the SF-424 from G6, obtain an authorizing representative's signature, write the PR/Award number on the upper right of the hard-copy signature page, and email the signed SF-424 page to DDRA@ed.gov. The Department may later request hard copies with original signatures for other forms if needed.

If the G6 system becomes unavailable at the wrong time, the program describes a narrow deadline-extension policy. An extension to 11:59:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the next business day may be granted only if the IHE is a registered G6 user, has initiated an application for the competition, and the G6 system is unavailable for 60 minutes or more between 8:30 a.m. and 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time on the deadline date. The Department must acknowledge and confirm the downtime before an extension applies, and institutions are directed to contact either the listed program contact or the e-Grants help desk (1-888-336-8930). Importantly, these extensions apply only to documented G6 unavailability, not to local technical problems at the applicant's end.

Paper submission is possible but discouraged and is treated as an exception for situations where electronic submission is not feasible (for example, lack of internet access). To use this option, the IHE must provide a written statement of intent to submit a paper application no later than two weeks before the deadline (with specific rules if that date falls on a federal holiday) to the Department contact listed (Amy Marrion, with the provided mailing address and DDRA@ed.gov email). Paper applications must include a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and must be mailed as an original plus two copies to the Department's specified G6 Functional Application Team address, with acceptable proof of mailing (such as a USPS postmark or dated USPS receipt, or dated commercial carrier documentation). The Department will not consider applications postmarked after the deadline, and it does not accept a private metered postmark or an undated receipt as proof. For paper submissions, the envelope (and SF-424 Item 11 if needed) must clearly indicate the Assistance Listing Number 84.022A, and the Department notes that applicants should follow up if they do not receive a receipt notification within 15 business days after the deadline.

Key opportunity details from the source information include: the agency is the U.S. Department of Education; the funding instrument is a grant; the opportunity category is discretionary; eligible applicants include public/state controlled and private institutions of higher education (and other eligible entities as specified in the official notice); the funding opportunity number is ED GRANTS 012924 001; the original closing date listed is March 29, 2024; and the program expected to make around 90 awards. For the most authoritative requirements on priorities, performance measures, selection criteria, and the full set of submission instructions, applicants are directed to the official Federal Register notice and the Department's Revised Common Instructions for Applicants to Department of Education Discretionary Grant Programs (published December 7, 2022).

• The Department of Education in the education sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE): International Foreign Language Education (IFLE): Fulbright-Hays Doctoral Dissertation Research Abroad (DDRA) Fellowship Program, Assistance Listing Number 84.022A" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 84.022.
• This funding opportunity was created on 2024-01-29.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-03-29. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 90 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, Others.

Apply for ED GRANTS 012924 001

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