Funding

Fully Funded

Program dates

Aug 30, 2026 – Nov 22, 2026

Cultural Exchange•Remote

AFS Global STEM Changemakers: A Virtual Exchange Program

AFS Intercultural Programs

Application Deadline

August 2, 2026

Official Page

AFS Global STEM Changemakers is a 12-week online exchange run by AFS Intercultural Programs, the nonprofit exchange network, with a curriculum co-developed with the University of Pennsylvania Center for Social Impact Strategy (Penn CSIS). Participants aged 15 to 20 take part from home, joining weekly live Zoom dialogue sessions with AFS facilitators and working through self-paced modules, games and quizzes on STEM, global competence and social impact. The 2026 edition awards 200 full scholarships across two cohorts that run at the same time: a global cohort of 100 places, and a Pan-African cohort of 100 places split 20 each between Angola, Ghana, Mauritania, Nigeria and Senegal. The curriculum covers sustainable development, design thinking and social innovation. Every scholar designs a social impact project, then records it and presents it digitally to Penn CSIS at the end of the program. AFS puts the emphasis on climate change and the energy transition, and its 2026 announcement also names artificial intelligence among the capstone themes. The scholarships come from the energy company bp, whose funding is expected to support up to 5,000 scholarships over five years across the wider AFS Global STEM portfolio. AFS says the program has reached more than 4,100 participants across 125 countries since 2022.

Benefits & funding

  • Full scholarship: places are awarded by scholarship only, so selected participants pay no program fee.
  • 200 scholarships in the 2026 edition — 100 in the global cohort, 100 in the Pan-African cohort (20 each for Angola, Ghana, Mauritania, Nigeria and Senegal).
  • A minimum of 20% of the scholarship places are earmarked for students from native and indigenous communities and for refugees and displaced students.
  • Advanced Certificate on Global Competence for Social Impact, from AFS and the University of Pennsylvania CSIS.
  • 12 weeks of live sessions with a global peer group plus self-paced coursework, about 3 to 4 hours a week.
  • A social impact project of the scholar’s own design, recorded and presented digitally to Penn CSIS.
  • An invitation to the Global STEM alumni platform for continued learning, networking and mentorship, plus eligibility for the AFS Youth Assembly, the annual global gathering of young people working on the UN Sustainable Development Goals. The Youth Assembly itself is open to ages 18 to 35, so scholars still under 18 reach it a few years later.
  • Live sessions run at several times so scholars in different time zones can attend, and applicants state their scheduling preferences.
  • Fully online, so no travel and no visa. AFS says it may be able to help where internet or technology access is a problem.

Eligibility

  • Aged 15 to 20 at the program start date, with a birthdate between 1 December 2005 and 1 September 2011.
  • Open to youth worldwide; the program sets no nationality or residency requirement.
  • Able to take part fully in a program conducted entirely in English. AFS says supplementary support is available in French, Arabic and Portuguese.
  • Interest in STEM, sustainability and global competencies, and willingness to work with peers from other cultures.
  • Access to a computer, smartphone or other device with a webcam, a microphone and a stable internet connection.
  • Able to commit about 3 to 4 hours a week for the full 12 weeks; participation in the virtual curriculum is mandatory.
  • A recommendation letter, plus a parent or guardian permission form for applicants who are minors (applicants who are not minors submit the consent form themselves).
  • Not eligible: anyone who has previously held a scholarship for AFS Global STEM Accelerators, AFS Global STEM Academies, or AFS Global STEM Changemakers: Australia – New Zealand.
  • No particular level of schooling is required.

Can you apply?

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  • Age requirement

    15–20 yrs

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Application process

  1. 1
    Read the program page and check the birthdate window and the technology requirements.
  2. 2
    Register on the AFS Global STEM application portal at application.afs.org/stem/s/applynowregister and complete the online application form.
  3. 3
    Ask any teacher, tutor, mentor or counselor who knows your academic and extracurricular record for the recommendation letter; the form is accessed from the application portal.
  4. 4
    Submit the parent or guardian permission form, or the consent form for applicants who are not minors; handwritten and digital signatures are both accepted.
  5. 5
    Submit before the 2 August 2026 deadline, and check the portal for the separate due date on those two forms — late forms are not accepted, and an application missing a form counts as incomplete.
  6. 6
    Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis. Decisions are announced on 14 August 2026 and the program starts on 30 August. Questions go to globalstem@afs.org.

Program timeline

  1. Applications open

    Jun 2, 2026

  2. Application deadline

    Aug 2, 2026

  3. Scholarship decisions announced

    Aug 14, 2026

  4. Program starts

    Aug 30, 2026

  5. Program ends

    Nov 22, 2026

  6. AFS notes that the timeline is subject to change.