Mossy.artist

Well now you've really hit on it. How is Trump going to affect the Fulbright program? I have been wondering that myself since election day but so far no news about it. I was hoping that everyone involved in this cycle would have been selected by the Obama administration but I remember now, that last step which is supposed to be a technicality... well you're studying the right wing in another country right? I don't think it would be a problem if you got all the way to the last step. They were saying applications only really get flagged if you are related to someone in the state department or something specific like that.

Lol. "OMG, moss!" Yes that is what I will tell myself. I was worried it would be more like, "...moss? You mean that green mold stuff on logs? Who cares about that!? We need to fund the important things like cancer research and Holocaust studies!" Thanks for the laugh

Yeah..it can be tricky knowing how much is too much. Is the right wing in power in the country you're applying to? I'm just studying mosses and even I'm worried about being seen in a bad light by the government. I mentioned a forest which is controversially being logged by Poland's new right wing government and I wonder how much involvement the government has with Fulbright selection in the host country. I have hear a variety of things. Or maybe I'll fly under the radar because Poland is usually overwhelmed with History and Art proposals and they won't even see me coming! Hehehe!

Yeah, I did my best to make my proposal easy to understand for anyone as well (using up a bunch of space in the meantime! :/). But like you, I worry about readers really grasping the importance of my research. Or maybe I just wanted it to be read by some environmental person who would be like, "Yeah! Save the plants!". Eh, I'm sure it will work out alright. I had my proposal read by plenty of non-science people and generally, they were interested in the topic. We just need something to complain and worry about until Tuesday ><

I noticed this when I was going over the document and wondered that myself. I imagined that your application would be reviewed by your country committee and maybe one person from the science committee? The people selected for specific country groups all have some sort of experience with that country and I feel like it would still be important to have their input on applications regardless of the discipline as they might have an opinion as to whether the applicant and their project would go over well in the potential host country...idk. Anyway, the selection of reviewers for the science field is still isn't that great for me personally. The most similar discipline to my own is "Biology" and the individual studies microbiology, bleh. Out of everyone there are only 3 reviewers who's fields are ecology/environmental; understandably for Brazil and "The Southern Cone", and oddly for the Netherlands? Ah well, maybe I'm grumbling for nothing. I wish Tuesday would get here already!!

I found this very informative document about the selection process when I was poking around the web recently: http://gradfellows.gmu.edu/wp-content/uploads/Fulbright-Selection-Process.pdf I don't understand why everyone can't get detailed information like this. I go to a pretty big school and I can't think of anything like this that our Fulbright advisers have ever made available to us :/

You have a valid point. I guess I'm just upset that my proposal won't be read by someone who will truly understand its value in the biological world. Of course I did my best to get that message across...Maybe I'll get past because they'll be like, "Oh man, I've been approving so many history applications, I better just let this one through!". It just seems so ridiculous that less than 1% of the reviewers are from the biology/environmental field. Especially in this day and age when environmental topics are so big! And YET, such an overhaul of History/Literature/Political Science. Just really grinded my gears you know? I wonder how the committee members are chosen?

Sorry I misunderstood your research proposition. How do rural communities usually sustain themselves without tourism? Don't such communities usually sell some sort of craft or goods to get things from outside their community?

WOW. Getting to see the list of people who review the applications is actually pretty infuriating as someone coming from a STEM field, specifically Biology/Environment. Why even have science be an option and then so ridiculously under represent it!? Not only is Poland grouped simply into "Eastern Europe" but the ONE single person who even has anything to do with the sciences is a geologist! And I wondered why only Art and History students ever went to Poland... Seriously so upsetting. :'(

So we know the approximate date of notification from previous years...Is there an approximate time of day? If we don't get anything by 5pm is it safe to assume we'll have to wait till next week?

Well that is understandable, not like I would have that much free time anyway! I just meant like maybe short weekend trips. Its better than nothing! And then there is always the period of time after completion. Which country did your friend apply to?

@AnnMarie Lol, I wish there was more consistency with Fulbright advisers. Mine told me I definitely had to downplay my visits. AAAHH! There are so many components to the application that you could be rejected and never know why >< I do speak Polish but similarly, my grammar isn't perfect. I spoke English at home and really only used Polish when I was visiting or on the phone with family. I think it would be helpful though to practice Polish with you. Maybe we each have different strengths and can grow off of each other I'm most stressed about talking about scientific topics. I am basically just hoping that I would get the hang of it as fast as possible once I was there. Don't really know where else I could learn scientific Polish lingo.

@AnnMarie Wow! You did get lucky! I bet her being a Fulbright fellow herself will really give you an advantage as she might have a better idea of what to write to snag you a spot. At first I was pretty lost. I wasn't even sure what to research, I didn't know what the major ecological issue was in Poland and I wanted to research something that actually needed researching. I was lucky in that my father had a friend who was a plant pathologist in Poland. (I should mention here that my dad is Polish and that I was born in Poland but grew up in South Florida). I wanted nothing to do with plant pathology but this friend was an amazingly helpful person who immediately emailed some random scientists who worked in my topics of interests (who she didn't even know herself) and threw us together! It made it so much less awkward XD My mentor and I have extensively discussed my research and I think my affiliation is in pretty good shape. I wish I could be a fly on the wall when the Polish board is making decisions. What is it they're looking for!? I've been to Poland quite a bit myself to visit family. Did you try to downplay your visits since the Fulbright usually doesn't want you to have too much prior contact? I've haven't spent any real time in Warszawa, must be why I didn't realize that about the Vietnamese migrants.

With which institution do you have affiliation? What was the process of gaining this affiliation like for you? That is an interesting topic. I don't think I've ever noticed any number of Asian migrants in Poland. Are these Vietnamese migrants focused mainly in one part of the country? From lurking on expat forums I've gotten the impression that there are a lot of Indian migrants in Poland for some reason. Will you be tying in the current migrant crisis into your research? Do you have any Polish background or have you been to Poland before?

Sounds good. I get the idea that the stronger affiliation you have in your host country, the better your chances are. I applied to Poland to research endangered mosses. I'm hoping that if I get selected I'll get to do some travel around Europe in any free time. I've always wanted to go to Scotland!

Yeah. I haven't really applied to anything else...about to soon but my heart isn't really in it. I just put so much work into the Fulbright application! Not to mention, I feel bad applying to things that I might end up turning down, hate to cause all that trouble. From what I've been reading it seems like quite a lot of people get a "yes" at first only to get a "no" down the line. The wait time is pretty ridiculous considering we put in our apps in October! Where are you applying to?

Have you picked a specific town? Will you be associated with some sort of University? So you're going to see how a small town increases tourism? Isn't there a scenario where a community wouldn't necessarily want to increase tourism? And can't it be said that not all places actually have something special to offer? I understand that financially this could be a good thing, but you also hear so many stories of how the real "spirit" of a place is lost with globalization if you will. How will you be looking into this matter? I have certainly accumulated a good amount of gear at this point, lol. But you don't really need more than something to offer some comfort from the elements. If I get the Fulbright I will definitely have an interesting experience. I'll basically be driving around the country in a rental car (maybe) and just camping in the woods all the time. Hopefully I don't run into any ruffians. There is a good amount of diversity in Polish environments, I plan to sample a little bit of everything to try and capture all the species in a particular group of mosses. I'm most excited to work in the mountains and in the Bialowieza national park which is one of the only remaining patches of virgin forest left in Europe. Prime moss habitat! I hate not knowing what my near future will look like! Moving across the ocean takes a lot of planning but if I get a yes in the next few days I still won't be finding out anything definite for awhile. ><

Wow, horseback riders XD I wonder when Fulbright decides to cancel a season, how much is too much for them? Is it the US or the host country that makes the decision? In Turkey last year there was an actual coup with weapons and all so I guess that makes sense..but with all the bombings that have been around Europe, I am surprised countries like France are open for this year (and that people still want to go!). As for your relative safety if you do go to Turkey, it must depend on what you are doing. My research will have me out in the woods most of the time so I probably don't have anything to worry about, I'm also Polish so I won't attract any unwanted attention. I am worried about my husband who will be coming with me. He is clearly not Polish as he is a hispanic mix and I'd never forgive myself if something bad happened to him. (Poland is pretty anti-immigration right now) What are you proposing to do in Hungary? Why apply to that country specifically?

Hi everyone! This is my first time applying to the Fulbright. I have applied to Poland to research the ecology of endangered mosses. Does anyone have any intel on how Fulbright usually goes for Polish applicants? There are so few scientific applications to there even though the country encourages STEM applicants. Does Poland conduct interviews? I haven't heard about this anywhere else but saw some dates listed on the spreadsheet you guys have been passing around from previous years. I am worried that there will be complications with all the political unrest going on in Poland lately (specifically concerning the budget for the new year, that means Fulbright!) I'd love to chat with some other scientific research applicants. It seems like there are so few of us out there. Or anyone with experience with Fulbright Poland. Good Luck everyone!