Stories

The NSLI-Y program languages include Arabic, Chinese (Mandarin), Indonesian, Hindi, Korean, Persian (Tajiki), Russian and Turkish. Listed below are all multimedia stories written, and shared by NSLI-Y students, alumni, partners, and supporters. These stories include all NSLI-Y program languages and are ordered chronologically from the most recent post.

Alumni and current students, join the conversation by submitting your own story.

Click on a language below to see stories and media related to a specific NSLI-Y program language:

Displaying Turkish stories from .

Freya participating in a cooking class in Turkey.

Turkish

NSLI-Y Honors Black History Month | Alumni Spotlight: Freya

NSLI-Y is excited to honor Black History Month and recognize the achievements of Black Americans, by spotlighting the stories of our Black alumni. Freya, from Tuscon, Arizona, is an alumna of both the Fall 2021 Virtual NSLI-Y Program and the 2022 Turkish Summer program in Bursa, Turkey.
Nicholas Borbely headshot.

Turkish

Alumni Spotlight: Nicholas Borbely Details Varied Language Journey

NSLI-Y alumnus Nicholas Borbely has had a varied language journey. From growing up bilingual to receiving prestigious awards like NSLI-Y, the Critical Language Scholarship, and Fulbright—Nicholas is a well-established globe trotter.
Phoebe and her fellow cohort members in Indonesia

Global

NSLI-Y Parent Testimonials: Summer 2022

While some parents are excited for their child to study abroad, others may be nervous, particularly given the pandemic and geopolitical events worldwide. After many NSLI-Y overseas programs resumed in 2022, NSLI-Y was fortunate to receive several testimonials from parents and alumni addressing their experience.
Whatsapp image 20220317 at 14 14 25 jpeg

Turkish

Life & Leadership: Reflections on Atatürk & Turkish History

Fiona Finch, an alum of the 2021-22 Turkish Academic Year program, discusses how learning about Turkish history taught her the importance of reading & leadership.
image of nsli-y korean students smiling and posing together with a banner that has korean writing

Global

2022-2023 NSLI-Y Application Season Announcement

Applications for the NSLI-Y 2022-2023 summer and academic year programs are now open!
An image of Sawyer holding a sign that reads "çok teşekkürler" or thank you so much. The sign is yellow and has the Turkish flag on it.

Turkish

Expectations Exceeded: Learning Virtually During a Pandemic

Sawyer is from Kensington, NH and an alumnus of the Turkish 2020 Virtual Summer Intensive program. Participating in the Virtual NSLI-Y Turkish Summer 2020 Prog...
Header image with title "NSLI-Y VSI 2020 Highlights: Networking Activities" with two slightly transparent images in the background: one with a map of Taiwan and Taiwanese dishes, the other of a man in from of a sign that says "American Chamber of Commerce."

Global

NSLI-Y VSI Highlights: Students Virtually Connect and Network

NSLI-Y's Virtual Summer Intensive offered students the opportunity to connect and network with locals and guests of program countries.
A banner image with the text "NSLI-Y VSI 2020 Highlights: Cultural activities." The image has the NSLI-Y logo in the top left corner and shows food and crafts from cultural activities with a blue overlay.

Global

NSLI-Y VSI Highlights: Students Virtually Participate in Cultural Activities

To ensure the safety of students, teachers, and staff amidst the global COVID-19 pandemic, the National Security Language Initiative for Youth (NSLI-Y) chose to...
An image of the NSLI-Y Alumni Reps posing with a NSLI-Y banner

Global

Learning How to ‘Rep’: The 2020 NSLI-Y Alumni Representative Workshop

Hello! My name is Halden, and I am the NSLI-Y Alumni Representative for Chapel Hill, NC in the Southeast region. Traveling to Chengdu, China in 2018 through NSL...