Key Components of the U.S. Host Institution Letter of Invitation
Thank you for your interest in the Fulbright Visiting Scholar Program! The following checklist includes the key
components that should be included in the institutional host’s letter of invitation to support a Fulbright Visiting
Scholar exchange.
The letter should:
✓ Be on the inviting institution’s official letterhead.
✓ Indicate the Fulbright Visiting Scholar’s name, country of origin, and topic/title of the proposed project.
✓ Include the exact start and end dates (month, day, and year) being proposed as the period of the
exchange. This could help avoid rewriting letters after selection as precise start and end dates are
required for visa sponsorship documentation. Country requirements vary, but typically, a Visiting
Scholar award must be at least 3 months in length and no longer than 12 months.
✓ Indicate the nature of in-person activities your institution would make available to the scholar, whether
regular meetings with the host faculty member, departmental events, office access, library access, lab
work, teaching, or any collaborative activities. While the COVID-19 pandemic has moved many activities
online, the J1 Exchange Visitor Program and the Fulbright Program still require consistent in-person
engagement. This is the hallmark of Fulbright’s person-to-person exchanges and fully virtual programs
are not supported.
✓ Outline any financial or in-kind arrangements the institution can provide to the Visiting Scholar, which
may include office space, computer, lab or library access, housing resources, meal plans, transportation,
or a salary supplement (if applicable).
✓ Indicate whether the scholar would be expected to cover any affiliation fees that may be required,
making sure to indicate the amount. Fulbright appreciates any level of cost-share that can be provided
by U.S. institutions, including waiving affiliation fees, covering supplies, supporting lab costs, or
similar.
✓ Indicate the primary faculty host and hosting department where the Fulbrighter will affiliate.
✓ Be signed by an administrative officer of the institution who has the authority to approve official
affiliations (Provost, Dean, Department Chair, or similar). The letter may include more than one
signatory.
✓ Include any contingencies the host institution may have, including visitor policies pertaining to COVID-19
(such as vaccination or testing requirements for campus access).