Fulbright vs Grad school

[George1245]

Hello everyone!

 

I was wondering how much being or having been a Fulbrighter can help one get accepted in grad school?

My GPA is 3.5 and I see this as a weakness in my profile. I am hoping having Fulbright in my résumé will help me out.

[Noegenesis]

11 hours ago, George1245 said:

Hello everyone!

 

I was wondering how much being or having been a Fulbrighter can help one get accepted in grad school?

My GPA is 3.5 and I see this as a weakness in my profile. I am hoping having Fulbright in my résumé will help me out.

It's a prestigious scholarship and would help your application substantially. A GPA of 3.5 may or may not preclude you from getting accepted into "grad school": a variety of factors other than your GPA matter, too (e.g., program you're applying to, your publications, your LORs).

[George1245]

On 2/17/2019 at 4:49 AM, Noegenesis said:

It's a prestigious scholarship and would help your application substantially. A GPA of 3.5 may or may not preclude you from getting accepted into "grad school": a variety of factors other than your GPA matter, too (e.g., program you're applying to, your publications, your LORs).

Thanks for that!

[Nothingtown]

On 2/16/2019 at 4:13 PM, George1245 said:

Hello everyone!

 

I was wondering how much being or having been a Fulbrighter can help one get accepted in grad school?

My GPA is 3.5 and I see this as a weakness in my profile. I am hoping having Fulbright in my résumé will help me out.

Hey there! I was a Fulbright ETA in 2015-2016, and I'm just now applying to grad school. Anecdotally, not all my acceptances / rejections are in yet so it's hard to say how much it helped me personally. I have gotten rejected definitively from 2 schools, so I can say it's not a golden ticket. 

I was told by a few well-regarded professors that having a Fulbright was a HUGE boost to grad school apps. They did make it sound like a golden ticket, though to be clear I applied to it because I wanted to be a Fulbright ETA, not because I wanted the help getting into grad school. That being said, I think it only boosts your application in addition to the standard requirements--like how well you did in your major GPA, writing sample, LORs, etc. Basically, it'll strengthen your application but it won't make or break it (in my opinion). I don't think it saved me from my low quantitative score on the GRE.

Speaking of well-regarded professors, some people in graduate admissions committees and in the departments you're applying to are going to be big fans of the Fulbright, moreso than others. One of the people who helped me with my application and LORs was on the admissions committee at their university and on the review board for the US leg of the Fulbright application, so obviously for that person to see it on a resume was a big deal. Looking at the faculty in your department of interest and seeing if they have a history with Fulbright may help you figure out where it carries more weight.

Also, are we talking research or ETA? From my cohort of Fulbrighters, I saw the ETAs going on to really good programs in their specialized languages (ie language, culture, or history programs), and a couple went to law school. Some went on to have US Embassy or State Department jobs, and others got positions in the countries they placed in. They all did very well, though not all of them chose to pursue graduate school. My sense is that the research Fulbright will help more if you're looking at a different field of specialization--say, science or mathematics. But it's even harder to get. I wish I had some numbers for you here, but this is just what I've observed.

Feel free to DM me if you'd like more specific information!

[George1245]

On 2/18/2019 at 3:17 PM, ringoandme said:

Hey there! I was a Fulbright ETA in 2015-2016, and I'm just now applying to grad school. Anecdotally, not all my acceptances / rejections are in yet so it's hard to say how much it helped me personally. I have gotten rejected definitively from 2 schools, so I can say it's not a golden ticket. 

I was told by a few well-regarded professors that having a Fulbright was a HUGE boost to grad school apps. They did make it sound like a golden ticket, though to be clear I applied to it because I wanted to be a Fulbright ETA, not because I wanted the help getting into grad school. That being said, I think it only boosts your application in addition to the standard requirements--like how well you did in your major GPA, writing sample, LORs, etc. Basically, it'll strengthen your application but it won't make or break it (in my opinion). I don't think it saved me from my low quantitative score on the GRE.

Speaking of well-regarded professors, some people in graduate admissions committees and in the departments you're applying to are going to be big fans of the Fulbright, moreso than others. One of the people who helped me with my application and LORs was on the admissions committee at their university and on the review board for the US leg of the Fulbright application, so obviously for that person to see it on a resume was a big deal. Looking at the faculty in your department of interest and seeing if they have a history with Fulbright may help you figure out where it carries more weight.

Also, are we talking research or ETA? From my cohort of Fulbrighters, I saw the ETAs going on to really good programs in their specialized languages (ie language, culture, or history programs), and a couple went to law school. Some went on to have US Embassy or State Department jobs, and others got positions in the countries they placed in. They all did very well, though not all of them chose to pursue graduate school. My sense is that the research Fulbright will help more if you're looking at a different field of specialization--say, science or mathematics. But it's even harder to get. I wish I had some numbers for you here, but this is just what I've observed.

Feel free to DM me if you'd like more specific information!

Hello there! 

 

 

Thanks for that!

I am anxious to know about my results and I did do my best when applying, but I feel my GPA is not so high and my paper is not the best. I did the best I could back then, though.

So I was hoping that being a Fulbrighter was going to make up for that. I do have very good work experiences abroad apart from Fulbright. Anyway, I guess I’ll just have to wait. I did not get any response from the programs I am very interested in, though. 

I guess the only thing I can do now is wait.

 

thank you! 

[miffle]

I'm late to the party here, but I also wanted to add that if your GPA is your main weakness on your application, I don't think you have too much to worry about. Of course, this depends on what kinds of programs you're applying to, but I don't think graduate schools would turn you away just for having a 3.5.
If we're talking about PhD programs in the social sciences at least, 3.5 is often enough for passing the initial round of admissions. GPA and GRE are usually reviewed in terms of a threshold (i.e. having them be good enough, which might mean a GPA of at least 3.5 - 3.7)-- beyond that, what's most important is your research experience, SOP, and LORs.