Pursue a community-based internship or service project while working as an English teaching assistant and taking university courses part time
You can find more information about the range of US Fulbright Student grants available in Austria on the global Fulbright homepage.
Applications must be submitted using IIE's online portal. Please carefully read the information below prior to completing your application.
Applications are not currently being accepted. The link to the online application management system will be available on this page when the application period starts.
Fulbright Austria (the Austrian-American Educational Commission) offers up to four Community-Based Combined Grants to facilitate community service, internships, capacity-building, and other community-based projects. These grants are combined with university coursework and English teaching assistantships funded by the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research (BMBWF). Grant recipients work as teaching assistants at secondary schools in Austrian university cities for 13 hours per week (plus preparation and administration time) while concurrently pursuing a project at a community organization and taking university courses on a part-time basis. Applicants should be aware that their teaching assignment will be their first scheduling priority.
Fulbright Austria reviews project proposals for their coherence, quality, originality, feasibility, and benefit to local communities and also takes into account their ability to contribute to the promotion of mutual understanding between the people of Austria and the United States. It is particularly—but by no means exclusively—interested in proposals that reach out to underserved populations and in proposals of bilateral or comparative relevance that enhance Austrian-American collaboration.
There are NO independent Fulbright English Teaching Assistant Awards for Austria. Students interested exclusively in teaching assistantship positions in Austria without projects or university enrollment are encouraged to consider applying for the BMBWF's US Teaching Assistantship (USTA) program, which has been adminstered by Fulbright Austria (the Austrian-American Educational Commission) since 1962. Please note that the USTA program is not a Fulbright program and has a separate application process and deadline. See the USTA program page for details.
Fulbright proposal types
Independent study/research: Yes
Graduate degree enrollment: No
Placement
Fulbright Austria and the Austrian Federal Ministry of Education, Science and Research place successful applicants in a secondary school (or schools) in the university city in which the applicant proposes to conduct research.
Orientation
This grant requires participation in two separate orientations in late September: a one-week Fulbright orientation and an additional one-week teaching assistantship orientation.
Benefits
Applications from graduating seniors and recent undergraduates are welcome. Applicants should explain their proposed projects in their applications as well as their interest in the teaching assistantship component of the grant.
Accepted degree levels
Bachelor's
Master's
Foreign-language proficiency
Required: B1 or above based on the EU CEFR guidelines / “intermediate mid” or above based on ACTFL guidelines
Two years of college-level study, or the equivalent, prior to commencing the grant. German-language proficiency at the intermediate level must be demonstrated by the grant starting date.
Dependents
Dependent support is not available.
Molly Sauter was a 2023–24 recipient of the Community-Based Combined Grant. Her affiliate was Aids Hilfe Wien, and her project was entitled Aiding Education Outreach and Prevention Programs at Aids Hilfe Wien. Watch the interview with Molly to learn more about her experience juggling the aspects of this grant and about her takeaways from her time in Austria.
Applicants should identify the relevant community organization and contact individuals on site, develop a plan for meaningful collaboration, guidance, and service, and include letters of invitation in their application. Fulbright applicants may be affiliated with community or artistic institutions (such as museums or archives), service organizations, or other local organizations.
A list of community organizations that have expressed an interest in hosting community-based combined grantees can be found on Fulbright Austria's website.
Please contact the US student program officer at Fulbright Austria for details or email the relevant organization directly. Please note that prospective applicants need not limit themselves to the organizations on the list and should feel free to propose a project with any suitable organization in Austria.
Recipients of a Fulbright Community-Based Combined Grant are recommended not to seek to earn an Austrian university degree due to time and scheduling constraints.
Affiliation fees/tuition
Fulbright Austria facilitates university enrollment at the applicant's preferred university, and the Austrian government provides for the waiver of tuition fees at public universities. Fulbright Austria does not cover tuition costs for enrollment at private institutions of higher education or other programs of advanced study in Austria that do not waive tuition fees.
To me, Fulbright means experiencing growing moments, constantly learning new things about a different culture, dismantling stereotypes, and inspiring others to do the same. It means increasing my ambition and actively pursuing things I only ever dreamed of before.
-Maria Sanchez, 2018–19 US Fulbright student, Back Bone 20
Sarah Kovacic
Exilarte Center
Exilarte Zentrum: Reviving the Legacies of Exiled Musicians with Digital Humanities
Katherine Kustes
Diakonie Frauenberatung Wien
Exploring Legal and Social Frameworks in Refugee Support Services
Molly Sauter
AIDS Hilfe Wien
Aiding Education Outreach and Prevention Programs at AIDS Hilfe Wien
Claire Schmeller
PROSA (Projekt Schule für Alle)
Team Teacher at PROSA (Project School for All) in Vienna
Lisa Vogeler
Österreichische Autistenhilfe
Supporting Children with Autism, their Families, and their Inclusion in Austria
August Wachter
Diakonie Wien
Interpersonal Integration of Migrants in Vienna
Emily Gallagher
Talespin Verein zur Förderung der Märchenkultur und klassischer Musik
Bridging Communities Through the Arts
Michael Hughes
Backbone 20
Mobile Youth Worker, Community Volunteer, ETA, and Student with University of Vienna
Laura Jensen
Integrationshaus
Healing Trauma through Art Therapy and Empowering Refugees throughout Integration
Anne Riter
Weichenstellwerk Graz
Supporting Syrian Refugee Integration into Austria
Rebecca Grayzel-Ward
PROSA (Projekt Schule für Alle)
A Human Rights Approach to Refugee Youth Education in Vienna
Thomas Pawlowski
Flucht Nach Vorn
Immigrant and Refugee Children Outreach Program
Diana Sosa
Verein Maiz
Women, Migration, and Labor
This grant was not awarded for the 2020–21 program year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Marion Adams
Jewism Museum Eisenstadt
Teaching and Translation in the Austrian Jewish Museum
Russel Altamirano
Kunsthalle Wien
Youth Engagement with Contemporary Art
Collin Powell
EDUCULT
Viennese Gemeindebauten- Intersections of Public Housing, Social Justice, and Migration
Ian Saner
AmberMed
Preventative Approaches in a Multicultural Community
Patrice Splan
Caritas Graz-Seckau
Examining Inclusive Programs for People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
