Horb

I'll to the amazing above answer that "extensive" means extensive. I have people panicking because they, over the course of their life, went on three week long vacations to Europe with their family. That isn't extensive. Three years in Russia? That is extensive.

I know people leave Fulbrights for medical reasons (physical/mental health complications) but I don't know anyone who went into planning to possibly leave early. It think if it is a medical reason, you're fine, but if you are doing it for monetary reasons, then that'll be different. You should consider talking to them about the grant / finances issues.

I highly doubt they would find it and if they did and asked about it, you could produce the draft or the log in in for the account, no? It is really only in universities where re-using your own work is plagiarism and even then, this isn't that.

Community engagement really does vary on applicant. Some people join a church. Some people join a sports league. What I've always told students is that you should think of something you already do in the US to interact with your local community and consider if that is an option. I, for example, am part of a local soccer's fan club (for the Bundesliga). We meet weekly to watch games and organize BBQs and other stuff. So I plan to do a similar thing when in Germany. It doesn't need to be volunteering, they just want to see you've thought about how you can integrate into your community. I am not including my in my SoGP. I am writing the answer in the box on the application form and I think my PS will be enough to show that I know how to integrate into German communities.

There's a slight difference though between people who travel a lot and people who studied abroad. They do not count study abroad at all towards their definition of "extensive travel." If you've traveled a ton with your family, however, that will count. It is my understanding that they like to award grants to people with fewer travel experiences, as the grant is more rewarding.

I mean, the UK acceptance rate is brutal as is. If it were me, I might see if I was qualified for another country or scholarship (such as: Marshall, Rhodes, or something).

This is true but you need to confirm enrollment in order to put the loans in deferment.

It is! For a full grant it is two single spaced pages and very different content.

The letter is a requirement, not a recommendation. In addition to this, the statement of grant purpose is quite different than the ETA.

Hi All, I'm thinking of applying for a short-term research grant to conduct archival work in Germany. Is there anyone here who won one that would be willing to PM about the application process? I'm also applying for a Fulbright, but the DAAD process seems more intense and I'm not sure if I'd be a good fit for it like I am the Fulbright.

I'm going to give some overall financial advice: 1. Put your loans into deferment (assuming you can make payments while they are in deferment). I recommend this because if you fall on hard times or your family does and can no longer help you out (or need your help!), you can miss "payments" without it affecting your credit. To my knowledge, no loans have a rewards program for paying them off sooner, other than them not making more interest. 2. Build up an emergency fund equal to 6-9 months of expenses. You can do this slowly. For instance, you could pay just the interest on the loans and throw the rest into savings. 3. Once step 2 is accomplished, pay off your loans. Put everything you have towards them. Make them your number on priority. As for PAYE Plans: they benefit people who can't afford their regular loan payment (you need to pay $300, but only have $100 after all other expenses). The down side is that they usually result in a longer loan and thus a greater accumulation of interest. You can, of course, always pay more and thus reduce the interest, but if you don't have the money to do so, you're just preventing yourself from going into default.

Hi all! I'm applying for a research grant to Germany to do archival research and had a few questions I'm hoping I may get advice on. I've contacted two professors so far to get an affiliation. The first responded kindly, but said he had just moved his research center to London (boo). The second I emailed late Friday afternoon (4pm US EST) and haven't heard back from yet (trying not to panic). I currently have a letter from the archive I intend to use stating I can use it and the resources available, but know that I need a university affiliation to really make this seem viable. If I intend to do archive work in Berlin, it is considered abnormal to have an adviser from an area outside of Berlin? I assume, if I'm only meeting them a few times a month (my work is very archive/manuscript based) it wouldn't be too difficult to travel 2 hours outside the city for a meeting and head back in. But would this come off as less feasible? I only ask because I'm not sure how many other people there are in my field of study in Berlin and well...I want to nail down the affiliation soon.

Fulbright does not require all but dissertation status, but that's only for research taking place outside of the US.

I contacted Fulbright and found out I MUST apply through my university bc I am currently enrolled in a grad program. I do know however that there's not two categories when they decide so at large is not more or less competitive

Are there any candidates applying at large on this forum?

Agreed. It actually had more info than the email I got last year (no numbers were given). But I'm also peeved that we didn't "officially" find out until the middle-end of April.

I'm so infuriated by the letter (first, if you have A1 German, which feasibly some applicants could, the entire letter is in German, good luck reading it quickly). Second, there was about a 40% acceptance rate (109 applicants for around 40 award) and no mention of where I fell within that. I REALLY want to know why I wasn't selected. Oh well...#endrant Good luck to everyone who got the award! I hope your flights are inexpensive and arrive on time, that you have beautiful weather, and that you have an overall amazing experience

Pretty sure no. also just got my rejection in the portal. This is not early April daad.

Hi NeneGalle, I'm not sure how far you made it in your last application, but I was a finalist (now what they call semis-finalist, i guess) to the UK a few years ago. I went through the interview stage and everything. So, if I can be helpful to you in anyway, let me know! I know how hard it is getting a UK grant.

From my understanding, you essentially get up to $2300 and if it costs more than that, you cover the difference yourself. Most programs are less than that amount (at least the ones I looked at).

Hello all! I'm applying for a Research Grant to Germany for my PhD dissertation.

Hey all, if anyone who won the language grant would be willing to talk about their application, please let me know! I may reapply for a research grant or other grant next year and to know what they look for would be great. Obviously, private message would be best so I no longer fill the thread with my anxiety posts.

Thanks guys. It's disappointing. I really needed the grant to do the work I wanted to do for my dissertation. Now I'll have to reassess everything, maybe change my topic as I go into the research phase. I hope that anyone who is still waiting to hear back has different news. Perhaps expect to hear from DAAD NY as Uta said she just received the list of recipients.

Hi all, Just heard back via email from Uta. I didn't get the grant (again). I think that is it for me and DAAD. I'm off to sob and then get back to grad school. Good luck to everyone else.

Not yet. I mean, I'm imagine I was rejected for my language proficiency last year, so this year should be a similar situation and thus I doubt the glitch will matter.