Fulbright Foreign Student Program 2025 (Burkina Faso)

This program is designed primarily to strengthen African universities through higher degree training for faculty members. A secondary purpose is to strengthen other educational, cultural, and professional institutions (such as museums, libraries, independent research institutes, and ministries of education, planning, or science and technology). Awards are available for the following types of programs:

• up to two years in a study program at a university in the U.S. for a Masters (MA) degree or a doctorate (PH. D) degree.
• up to one year of independent research at a U.S. university under the guidance of an American professor.
• up to one year of professional development in the U.S. in professional fields (such as medicine or law) or creative fields (such as fine arts, the performing arts, music, and literature). Funding is provided by the Government of the United States of America through the U.S. Department of State and varies depending on the program.

Eligibility Criteria

• Any person who is currently affiliated with and who is committed to continue working either at an academic institution of higher education, or at a public or private educational, cultural, or professional institution in their home country upon completion of their program.
• Only persons who meet the following minimum requirements can apply through the American Embassy in Ouagadougou:
  • Citizens or permanent residents of Burkina Faso who are qualified to hold a valid passport issued by Burkina Faso.
  • Persons who have or will have by July 2025 a university degree awarded after at least four years of full-time study that is sufficient to qualify the person to be admitted to a graduate study program at a university in the U.S.
  • Persons who have the endorsement of their home institution;
  • Persons who are fluent in both written and spoken English.
• Anyone meeting the minimum requirements may apply. However, people who have the following characteristics are the most competitive applicants and therefore the ones most likely to be selected:
  • Persons who are complying with Burkina Faso Development Goals
  • 4th-year university students who graduated or who will graduate before the July 2025 from an institution of higher education in Burkina Faso.
  • Persons who can score at 590 at the TOEFL PBT or 95 for the TOEFL IBT test.
  • Persons who wish to pursue a Masters (MA) degree or a PH. D degree in order to return to Burkina Faso to teach at an educational, cultural, or professional institution.
  • Persons who have outstanding academic records, references, and academic preparation in their fields.
  • For candidates for professional development (including artists, musicians, and authors), persons who have extraordinary skills and talent; and
  • Persons who have not previously studied in the U.S.

Ineligibility Criteria

• The following are examples of persons who are not eligible for this program:
  • Persons who have already received a bachelor’s or master’s degree in the U.S.
  • Persons who have participated in a Fulbright program within the past three years.
  • Persons who cannot score at least 590 at the TOEFL PBT or 95 for the TOEFL IBT test.
  • Persons who cannot score at least 1000 on the combined verbal and quantitative sections of the GRE test (for study programs other than business and law); and
  • Persons who cannot score at least 550 on the GMAT test (for study programs in business).

For more information, visit U.S. Embassy in Burkina Faso.