moderatedbliss

I was just promoted from Alternate to Finalist for an ETA in Malaysia!!

Many of the older students are far more competitive than the younger students. (Provided the time between the two was productively spent by the older student/applicant. If someone is on the older range of the spectrum, knows what a Fulbright is and are in a place in life where they qualify to apply the time was probably well spent)
There are far fewer people above say 24-25 who are going to take time out of their lives to apply for or participate in a Fulbright, so despite being more qualified they tend to be drastically less likely to apply and so there are fewer of them in the pool to begin with. 
Most of the Fulbright recipients I have met (anecdotal but you said you don't mind) were your age when they received the Fulbright. You are probably in the average range, not well above it.
 

There are people in their 40s who do ETAs. There were a couple posting on gradcafe other threads I have read who were life long language instructors and applied for and won ETAs. Others who changed careers later in life and applied and won ETA grants have also been on these boards. 

I'm 25 and won a Fulbright. Age does not matter all. There are people in their 40s who win.

Depends how much the award is and what it'll be used for. If it is used for the same things you're funding with a Fulbright, Fulbright will (most likely) alter your funding package. For example, if Fulbright was providing 1000 Euro per month for 10 months and another ward would offer you 1000 Euro, they might deduct the 1,000 from the 10,000 total they would pay you. But it depends on the amount and what it is used for. Also, note that they can rescind the Fulbright if they found out you got funding from another source and did not report it.

Did you apply at-large or through your school? Your school might have a record of it.

According to the Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai, in Feudal Japan, samurai lived as if they were already dead so they wouldn't fear death. 
(Or at least that's what the movie Ghostdog said) 

I, too, take this approach. I have accepted Fulbright defeat, and as such, have room only for good news. The only direction is up. 

 

According to the Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai, in Feudal Japan, samurai lived as if they were already dead so they wouldn't fear death. 
(Or at least that's what the movie Ghostdog said) 

I, too, take this approach. I have accepted Fulbright defeat, and as such, have room only for good news. The only direction is up. 

 

According to the Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai, in Feudal Japan, samurai lived as if they were already dead so they wouldn't fear death. 
(Or at least that's what the movie Ghostdog said) 

I, too, take this approach. I have accepted Fulbright defeat, and as such, have room only for good news. The only direction is up. 

 

I have an Antunes' book on my shelf. It's in Portuguese, so it's a slow read for me. I'm taking Portuguese lessons with a tutor. I'd love to hear about your translation path. How great would be to have this literature convo over coffee in Lisbon? Here's to hoping your timely response is an auspicious omen. ??

Lisbon. I'm working / teaching myself Portuguese part-time while waiting for my citizenship application to process... 

That's rad! Part of the reason I came is because I want to translate Lusitanian lit in the future. Saramago is great, but António Lobo Antunes is my favorite.

Hi! Where in Portugal? I have friend in the Lisbon and Oporto areas. I want study José Saramago's cultural influences. I love his work. And continue to a series of fabulist stories set in Portugal. And a novel in the vain of Twain's, a Connecticut Yankee...., but of course a Bostonian in Lisbon. 
Are you studying or working? 

In a moment of serenity in what is to be a ~completely anxious~ afternoon, I realized that our love for research and the disciplines we're apart of will carry us far beyond today's outcome. The work we all want to do, regardless of whether or not we can through Fulbright, is necessary and important. Especially now! Best of luck y'all, I'm sending positivity!

hey, i live in portugal! Best of luck. What's your proposal about? 

Hey, everyone! Good luck! I'm sitting here in Boston trying not to bite my fingernails down to the quick. Im applying to Portugal for Arts Research....

You guys i discovered the best way to subvert anxiety over waiting to hear decisions .... get the norovirus! I just made it through two days of being super sick and now I'm like, oh yeah, Fulbright emails today. (Then immediately fall back asleep...) 

I'm out data on my phone and I'll be playing basketball when the info arrives. Going to be awkwardly asking 16 year-olds if I can "borrow their phone to check something" every 15 minutes. 

I'm out data on my phone and I'll be playing basketball when the info arrives. Going to be awkwardly asking 16 year-olds if I can "borrow their phone to check something" every 15 minutes. 

Two years ago, we got our emails at 1800 EST if that helps...

I don't like hearing that at all! That wording makes it seem like today is unlikely 

Gunna plan my exercising around the email tomorrow so if it's bad news, I can drown my sorrow in the leg machines. Either that or take a sad-nap. One of the two. 

Gunna plan my exercising around the email tomorrow so if it's bad news, I can drown my sorrow in the leg machines. Either that or take a sad-nap. One of the two. 

Gunna plan my exercising around the email tomorrow so if it's bad news, I can drown my sorrow in the leg machines. Either that or take a sad-nap. One of the two. 

off topic, but @moderatedbliss you'll appreciate this special note on a box set of Shakespeare for Kids
Recommended for children aged 9–12 and Harold Bloom https://www.groupon.com/deals/gg-a-shakespeare-childrens-story-boxed-set-20-book-2?deal_option=bf2d3ff6-8f93-11e5-8716-002590980a5a&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=US_DT_SEA_GGL_TIM_TTT_PADS_CBP_CHP_NBR_g*gg-a-shakespeare-childrens-story-boxed-set-20-book-2_productpartitionid*130856567101_campaignid*228801421_adgroupid*20592399901_prodtarget*130856567101_productid*43715238_d*Goods-Product-Ads_keyword*_adtype*pla_merchantdid*10018412_c*92163990301_k*_m*_target*_adposition*1o1&mr:referralID=bb6f22cd-d991-11e6-bac4-005056941669&gclid=CLnJ8omZv9ECFYZLDQod0IIEoQ

I'm not entirely sure I understand your question, you're looking for recommendations for schools (academies) that are unacademic? Harold Bloom was a Ivy League professor. Are you asking as you are scoping out schools to which to apply for the PhD?
If you mean criticism that is not so heavily influenced by the literary theory schools that emerged in the mid-20th century, structuralism, marxism, pschoanalysis etc., that we refer in shorthand to as 'theory' literary criticism was still theoretically informed before the theory wars, if not so patently 'pre-defined', to borrow your own term, into subgroups. (In my opinion, it is more that the assumptions on which literary criticism was based were less rigorously examined and systematically applied, but that is another conversation.) If it is less theory-orientated in this sense that you are getting at in your request, the British Isles is much less theoretical than either continental Europe or the US, 'Anglo-American' is a bit of a misnomer in my opinion. The approach in the UK/Ireland is in many way old historicism by default.
I did have a professor who was wasn't so much anti-theory as perplexed by it and told us he basically ignored it hoping it would go away for 40 years (he's just retired). He was trained at Cambridge and wrote criticism much like that of Harold Bloom, focused on meaning as derived from a reading of themes and characters. Its just my two cents, but I reckon you'd be hard pressed to find many professors like him these days, let alone entire schools. Its difficult to simply ignore theory as it has transformed the discipline so much.
That said, Harvard make a point of having no theoretical leaning on their department website, but I can't speak to the reality of such a claim.