JohnT

I received my recommendation back in October - the US scholar program is on a different timetable. The email notification also stated that my next step would be a Skype interview with some experts to assess how my project fit within my "professional goals and interests." No problem, I thought. Well, unless conducted in Spanish. I can speak everyday Spanish fine, but I do not speak the language at an academic level. I am now studying twice weekly with a tutor (great teacher!) and will do an immersion program this summer. In any event, the email message did not mention language. So, the interviewers were a group of 5 academics in Mexico City: sociologist, historian, law professor, and two others. They conducted a full substantive inquiry of my proposal in Spanish. To say I struggled would be a massive understatement. I did explain that I was studying Spanish and would do an immersion program in the summer. I figured that my less than impressive performance in Spanish had doomed my application. But, a week or three later, I met with one of my references for the Fulbright, a famous writer. He told me that two people on the committee in Washington DC had contacted him about my application and said that they "were blown away by it." The most impressive they'd ever seen. So, I let some optimism creep back in. Sigh. Anyway, I hope that this helps. The interview was about a half an hour during which each of the 5 interviewers each asked several probing questions.

Thanks for the kind words! I won't reapply, though, at least not for this project. I have a sabbatical in the fall and will conduct my research and interviews and write the book, which will be published in 2016. So, the book should be sitting on bookstore shelves before I'd get the Fulbright grant, even if I proved successful in re-application. Of course I'm disappointed, but this isn't the end of the world. This will be my second oral history project in recent years and my first, which culminated in a book called Kalamazoo Gals, succeeded beyond my wildest dreams. So, I'm really optimistic about this next book, despite failing on the Fulbright front. Good luck to others, though!

Well, today, January 20, I received (via email) my rejection for my US Scholar application to Mexico. I'd inside information that the substantive review team in Washington, DC loved my application. Alas, a disastrous Skype interview in Spanish with a group of 5 academics in Mexico City doomed my application. I'll still conduct my project, which is an oral history project for which I've got a book publication contract. still, the Fulbright would have been nice! So, a word of warning to those applying to the US Scholar program: practice that language!

Those are the stats for the student programs. The poster is seeking stats for the US Scholar program. As far as I know, those stats are not available. I have read that about 10% of the proposals receive recommendations and about half of those recommended get funded. But, the numbers vary dramatically by geography and topic.

Oliebollen, No, I didn't apply for a CLEA. just the US Scholar Program, for Mexico. So, I was surprised by the interview. But, I do know that I couldn't have prepared better. So, whatever happens, happens. I've spoken with others who received a US Scholar Fulbright grant, but for other countries, and they had no interview. So, obviously, the process varies by country. Anyway, good luck to you. To what program did you apply?

Exactly. The core scholar program is on its own timeline.

Thanks! Honestly, if the Fulbright folks want someone who at this moment is sufficiently fluent in Spanish to converse with a wide range of academics at a deep level, I'm obviously not their guy. I'm committed to my project, have a sabbatical coming, have freelance writing commissions related to my project and Mexico, and will spend next fall in Mexico regardless of the outcome of the Fulbright process. Still ... ouch! Thanks, again.

Well, folks, a brutal interview today. Billed as "an interview of approximately 20 minutes, in which a group of experts will ask more about you and your professional interests and goals," it was a full-fledged, substantive inquiry into my proposed project ... in Spanish. I speak Spanish well enough to get by in daily life and am studying to return to my childhood fluency, but I most certainly am not able to converse about social and cultural implications of my oral history project. A group of 5 academics - historians, social scientists, and law professors - grilled me. I truly struggled both to understand the questions and to formulate answers. i hope I got points for being a good sport. I also hope that the substance of my project, with which my inquisitors seems quite intrigued, carries the day. So, beware and prepare.

Thanks for the advice!

Thanks! Yes, I got the notice of recommendation on October 31. I'll let folks know how the interview goes (and especially in which language it's conducted!).

Hello, all, I discovered this site while Googling information about Fulbright interviews. I'm glad that I stumbled upon such a knowledgeable group! I've applied for the US Scholars program for the fall of 2015 (in Mexico). A couple of weeks back, I received notice that my application had been recommended and that, "The next step is an interview of approximately 20 minutes, in which a group of experts will ask more about you and your professional interests and goals. The interview will be conducted through Skype." Has anyone had experience with an interview like this? The message makes no mention of assessing my Spanish language skills, though I presume that might be an element of assessing whether I can accomplish my "professional interests and goals." Thanks in advance. John