siguenomas

Alternate for a research grant to Colombia. So those letters have gone out. Best of luck to everyone who hasn't heard yet! FWIW, Jody Dudderar (South America contact) is out of the office through the 18th.

Let us know what you find out! Have you all been accepted at your institutions of choice, if you are enrolling? Has anyone not been?

Hey Nena, thanks for sharing that information! Welcome!

Hehe. Or we could be: more paranoid, more impatient, and/or less gainfully employed. :D I kid! I applied to a country near Ecuador and have been quite jealous of the the fact that everyone who applied for a grant there has been notified. Congratulations! Has anyone emailed Jody to find out about Western Hemisphere timelines? (And out of curiosity, has anyone here applied for a grant to Canada?) Just quoting these because they struck me as wise and balanced, were really inspiring, and helped me take a few deep breaths and... yes. It will be okay.

Just repostin'.

Re: someone else scoring the at-large applications, I don't know! That's an interesting question. I'm not sure whether the scoring applies to the entire app or just the interview. Our campus Fulbright advisor told us that at-large and enrolled applicants have the same chance of success, i.e. there isn't a penalty for applying at large. So my impression (assumption?) was that the interview was just another way for the committees to get to know you, and the ultimate decision would be a combination of your project's feasibility, applicability, and depth; your personal statement and demonstration of fitness for the program and the mission of the Fulbright; and all of those other factors we have read about on the Fulbright website or just can't know about. It's so hard to say from this side of the process. All we have after a certain point is speculation...

If I understand it correctly, the score is just an additional variable that universities send along with the applications. The top score is either 1 or A (don't remember which one). They don't have to rank students against each other, but can rather assign the score individually -- that is, several students' applications could be forwarded with a score of 1, several with a score of 2, etc. I don't know how high the numbers or letters go up. I think (based on a conversation I had quite a while ago) the incentive for the school to give accurate scores is so that their credibility isn't lost -- it doesn't want to become known as a school that just gives out 1s to every student. However -- at least at my school -- they also want to see students succeed, so, where possible, I would assume that they will give out the highest score they can while keeping credibility. I think they must also provide some comments along with the score. Those comments and the score are what the at large applications do not include.

I love looking at the Google spreadsheet and seeing that there are 15-25 other people on it at the same time. It's very encouraging. Re: leaving a significant other behind, I would consider turning down the Fulbright only if it were clear that spending time with this person would be worth it now, five years down the road, and maybe even twenty-five years down the road. Imagine your life with your girlfriend, but without the opportunities that the Fulbright might open up. Then switch. Does one seem better to you?

Skyfire, do you have a link to the documentation on this? I remember hearing it, too.

Hooray for waiting! I'm a research finalist to the Western Hemisphere. Quick question about university affiliations: Does anyone have resources or a link to the official procedure on gaining admission? I have the impression that we are supposed to apply according to the institution's deadlines as though we will receive the grant. Have you all started doing this or done it already? Has anyone had to provide official translations of their transcripts for their affiliation? I feel like I could do a passable work-up of my transcripts in the host language, which would be free. The "official translation" service websites provide quotes of $100+. Is this cost reimbursed? One other question: I realized that the wording in my proposal doesn't specify exactly when I would start. I don't want to apply to begin at one time if Fulbright would expect me to begin at a different time! Anyone else had experience with this? (I realize that this is a little vague -- feel free to pm me for specifics!) Loving the spreadsheets. Would it be possible or a moderator to put a sticky at the top of the thread so that the links are available on every page of posts? That would be so convenient!

Hey TravelExpress, Congratulations! The person I know who got an Ecuador ETA last year had a pretty bad time with release dates. It sounded like some notifications came late. However, they are there now and having a great time. I don't know about Ecuador-specific information, but I contacted our Western Hemisphere rep during the application process and she was really helpful. Same! (I got my notification last week. Accepted at this stage and moving to the in-country reviews. Is anyone making a worksheet for this year's final decision notifications?) Matilda, best of luck! Can you tell us more about the process for you applying to come to the US?

gchandra, I'll send you a message... How are you all citing references? I'm doing endnotes right now because the numbers are smaller than typing out "Name (Date)." I cite two references.

Hi all! I'm applying as an alumna of my college for a research grant in Colombia. I'm so excited! However, I started the formal process a little late. I have a few questions that may be answered in this thread, but search isn't helping me and I won't have time to read through them for a couple of days (has anyone else been doing this while working full time? ). - Can letters of affiliation be printed, signed, scanned and sent to me as PDFs? How are people doing these? - Do you think there would be any disadvantage to my application if I planned to gain a Master's as part of my project? My affiliate offers a one-year Masters that would be in my field. I'm still deciding whether or not it would be the right thing, especially because I would like to take courses in another department to fortify another aspect of my project - Anyone with experience in flexible starting dates? Will planning to start on a different date make my application weaker? The website says the preferred start date is August 1. However, many programs begin in the winter or in July. - Has anyone else been asked to apply and be accepted to the affiliate institution before a letter will be written? I understood that a letter would say something like, "Pending acceptance to our hallowed institution, we will offer Siguenomas the following resources and support..." However, the affiliate with which I hope to work has asked me to apply for their program first. I have not been very good at asking for letters, and don't want to pester them. However, the deadline is coming up and a complete application would take some time, plus add an unanticipated burden to my referees. - Is anyone willing to proofread my statements? I would love some feedback (and would be happy to proofread for others)!