Eligibility Criteria 

Competition for the YTILI Fellowship Program is merit-based and open to young entrepreneurs and leaders in their home communities who meet the following criteria: 

• Applicants between the ages of 25 and 35 at the time of application. 
• Applicants who are citizens of the following countries: Albania, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kosovo, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Moldova, Montenegro, Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine, United Kingdom. 
• Applicants must be living and working in their country of citizenship. 
• Have at least two (2) years of experience at their current social or business venture. 
• Able to begin the YTILI Mini MBA Entrepreneurship Curriculum in November 2021 and their U.S. based experience in March – April 2022. 
• Are eligible and able to receive a U.S. J-1 Visa. 
• Are proficient in reading, writing, and speaking English at the time of application. 
• Are committed to returning to his or her home country after completion of the program. 
• Are not a U.S. Citizen or permanent resident of the United States or have applied for U.S. permanent residency in the past three years. 
• Are not a U.S. government employee. 
• Have not participated in an exchange visitor program sponsored or funded by the U.S. Department of State in the past five years. 
• Are not residing or working outside of Europe at the time of application.

 
Please Note 

• YTILI Fellows are not allowed to bring dependents (including spouses and children) during the U.S. Fellowship, U.S. Conferences, and the Innovation Summit. 
• The U.S. Department of State and WorldChicago reserve the right to verify the information included in the application. If there is a discrepancy, or information is found to be false, the application will immediately be declared invalid and the applicant ineligible. If you do not meet the technical eligibility requirements for this program, please visit the website for information on other U.S. Department of State exchange opportunities. 
• The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs of the U.S. Department of State strives to ensure that its efforts reflect the diversity of U.S. society and societies abroad. The Bureau seeks and encourages the involvement of people from traditionally underrepresented audiences in all its grants, programs and other activities and in its workforce and workplace. Opportunities are open to people regardless of their race, color, sex, religion, geographic location, socio-economic status, disability, sexual orientation or gender identity. The Bureau is committed to fairness, equity and inclusion. 

Apply 

Source: https://ytili-worldchicago.org/about-ytili