Winter Term Grants

The Oberlin Center for Russian, East European, and Central Asian Studies (OCREECAS) is pleased to announce that this year it will be awarding up to three grants of $1,000 maximum each to support students with winter term projects that are thematically related to the OCREECAS region.* Projects may be individual or collaborative and may focus on creative, scholarly, or other pursuits. The OCREECAS Winter Term Grant is open to all currently enrolled students, with priority given to Russian, East European, and Eurasian Studies (REEES) students and majors, as well as additional consideration for demonstrated financial need. Project locations may be anywhere, but proposals must have a clear thematic connection to Russia, Eastern Europe, or Central Asia. Applications including a title, written proposal, resumé, and detailed budget are due by 5pm on November 1, 2026 to kpaabus@oberlin.edu & msolovie@oberlin.edu.

To apply, please submit application materials by email, as a single pdf to Kristina Paabus,  OCREECAS Director (kpaabus@oberlin.edu), & Maia Solovieva, OCREECAS Internship Coordinator (msolovie@oberlin.edu), by 5:00pm on November 1, 2026. 

・ Resume (be sure to include your year in school and major/minor information)

・A concrete description (400 words or less) of your Winter Term project and how it relates to your course of study at Oberlin. If you are planning on going abroad and having an affiliation with a specific organization, please describe what contact you have already had with that organization.

・A brief letter of support from your Winter Term sponsor.

・ As applicable, a brief narrative of your financial situation and why you feel you should be considered for need-based aid (200 words or less).  

・A projected budget (i.e. supplies, travel, visa, food, lodging, or other costs)

Please note the following:

・Notification of the awards will be made by November 9, 2026 (deadline to register for winter term is November 13, 2026).

・Students who receive an OCREECAS Winter Term Grant are still eligible to apply in the future for OCREECAS internships, and each student is eligible for up to two OCREECAS Winter Term Grants during their time at Oberlin.

・This is purely a monetary award—OCREECAS is not responsible for providing logistical support (visa, travel arrangements, etc.).     

・Awardees will be required to write a Winter Term report (approx 400 words) and submit jpegs of images to the OCREECAS director and the student’s WT sponsor by the college credit deadline.

・*The OCREECAS Region includes the following: Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Poland, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan. Please note that OCREECAS does not support travel to locations that have U.S. State Department travel advisories of 3 or 4.