edon16

US State Department staff 'left with literally nothing to do' under Trump
I hope this means we all get our notifications earlier than usual

Hi! It ended up feeling like a really good conversation and less of an under-the-microscope kind of interview, for which I was thankful. They asked me questions similar to what they asked you (what led me to Bulgaria, host community engagement, etc.), but then also a few specific to my application/answers. I tried my best, and that's been a primary goal throughout this process. They seem confident that IIE will notify us by the end of March.
Def. gonna get a "~no regERts~" tattoo or something to commemorate post-interview life.

I'm wondering if today will be the day some notification start coming out! Its March 8th everybody- time flies when your stressed.

Hi everyone, 
Christine here - I'm a semifinalist for study in Italy.  This is my first time applying for a Fulbright, so many thanks to all of you for the wealth of information you've shared here.   I've been hesitant to chime in (though I've been following along for a while), but I wanted to share an article I came across from The Atlantic about the State Department under the Trump Administration.  Apparently things are pretty quiet there these days.  Not sure if this means anything for Fulbright, but it's an interesting read nonetheless.  

Bulgaria doesn't. It seems like a good handful of countries don't have PDOs.

Got an email from Fulbright and thought it was an acceptance. But twas only the Save the Date email for PDO. :/ 

First in the brainstorming, the dreaded: "did you check your spam folder?" They sent out interview requests Jan 23, with confirmation needing to be in within two days, I believe.
There is no way any sort of selection was made between our notification date and the request to interview, so it could come down to an oversight on their end, too. 
It it could also be like the UK, where only some of the applicants are interviewed. 

Bummer! Maybe its just all of your good luck has been absorbed into the Fulbright ?

My fellow Bulgaria Fulbright friends @Jess2323 @catsbloom @edon16... so I emailed the Bulgarian Fulbright program officer a few weeks ago and she told me:
"This year, we will not conduct interviews with the graduate study grant semi-finalists. We are currently in the selection process, and we will inform IIE of our decision by mid-March, so you should receive a notification from them by the end of March."
I am assuming that this notification timeline will be the same for both ETAs and graduate study awards. Either way I WANT TO KNOW ALREADY!!! I have to respond to MPH program decisions by mid-April. I am watching too much Netflix and just binged Sense8 season one in three days and but then found out season 2 does not come out until May! SO MUCH WAITING 

Happy March Ya'll!!

ITS MARCH! Finally! 

They asked me 4-5 questions. First they asked why I chose Bulgaria. They also asked me about my preference for a small town or larger city. I was told many of the placements are in smaller towns. My background is in education so they asked me about my general experience in teaching, and how I felt about teaching teenagers. My master's degree is in childhood education. The last thing they asked about was my host community engagement project. I felt like my answer to that prompt was the weakest. Afterward, they asked me whether I had any questions about the program!

At least you didn't think it was at 9.45am and find out it was at 8.45am!

Hi! I have not received word about an interview, but I'm strangely calm - somehow. In this situation and for me, I feel my worrying is not energy well spent, but lolololol I still check this forum and my inbox/spam on the regular. It's my understanding pretty much everyone received an interview last year, so maybe Bulgaria is smoothing out the wrinkles in their process and not attempting to interview all the recommended applicants. I'm trying not to read too much into what an interview means or doesn't mean. Though I've had moments of self-doubt, my gratitude to be in this position continues to outshine any anxiety and worry.
I'm sending out good vibes into the universe so that all of us may be rewarded for our hard work! I don't know about @tommec, but good luck with your interview, @catsbloom! I'd love to hear how it goes.

Hey, I haven't heard anything from the Bulgarian commission, but my mindset is to be prepared for an interview / not freak out if one isn't offered to me. After speaking with some current Bulgaria ETAs, it sounds like interviews are a new thing for Bulgaria, like, last year was the first year. So, who knows if the Bulgarian Commission liked doing interviews with applicants - although I can't imagine why it would be a negative apart from the time commitment.
I'm thinking if we don't hear about interviews by mid- to late-February then our cohort won't have them, likely, maybe, AHHH.