978 



TABLE 26.— NSF FELLOWSHIPS TENABLE ABROAD, FISCAL YEARS 1960-70 



1 No competition in 1969. 



Sources: Data on number of applicants and number of awards are from charts prepared by Division of Graduate Educa- 

 tion in Science, NSF: "Distribution of Fellowship and Traineeship Awards Applied For and Offered, Fiscal Years 1952-70," 

 prepared June 30, 1970: data on number of awards made tenable in foreign institutions are from: NSF annual reports, 

 fiscal years 1960-70; percentages figured from data given. 



The numbers of awards for fellowships abroad in the four program 

 areas has decreased since the height of the program in the mid-sixties 

 (probably due to the balance of payments problems). 



Financial data are not reported separately for these awards in 

 hearings. The only readily available information on funding for these 

 foreign aspects of the four programs comes from the U.S. Office of 

 Education studv, which gives the following figures for the fiscal years 

 1966, 1967, and 1968, respectively: $2,201,705; $1,365,866; and 

 $1,291,000.^-^ According to NSF, fellows sent abroad under this activ- 

 ity are not given any special "kind of preparation, counseling, orienta- 

 tion, and language training" before departure. The only attempt made 

 to enhance communication between participants is that "Each fellow 

 going abroad is sent a list of all presentl)^ abroad or who will be 

 abroad in six months. They are responsible for making their own 

 contacts." No special follow-up is made to secure the Fellows' reac- 

 tions to the overseas experience or to obtain information on their, 

 foreign activities and the results of these activities while abroad. 

 However, "fellows are required to submit terminal reports to the 

 Foundation describing their activities and accomplishments, and 

 evaluating the program as a whole." Apparently these reports are 

 not used by U.S. missions abroad. 



Responding to specihc items in the Questionnaire, the Foundation 

 says there are no problems in the administration" of the program; 

 the program should be expanded considerably; the Foundation has 



326 Inventory of Federal Programs . . . , op. cit., p. 351. 



