Fulbright 2012-2013

[danielleg]

I also applied to a program in London. I am hoping to do a masters at the Warburg Institute, which is part of the University of London.

Would you also be doing a masters program? What did you include in your statement about community service/involvement? That part was tough for me because there isn't anything specific associated with my program that I would be involved with.

[Pantone257]

I also applied to a program in London. I am hoping to do a masters at the Warburg Institute, which is part of the University of London.

Would you also be doing a masters program? What did you include in your statement about community service/involvement? That part was tough for me because there isn't anything specific associated with my program that I would be involved with.

I applied to do a master's in publishing at London College of Communication. As part of my proposal, I made arragements to volunteer at a non-profit creative writing center for youth, to serve as a tutor and help publish their anthology of student works...pretty straight forward, and congruent with the goals outlined in my proposal.

What will you be studying at the Warburg Institute? In the end, how did you connect it with community involvement in your proposal?

[belafish]

I am! I had been trying to put together an application for several years, but could never find a letter of affiliation until now. I am applying for the research fellowship, in biology. This process takes way too long, and I imagine that's part of why Fulbright has trouble recruiting applicants in the sciences.

Belafish, which city do you expect to be placed in? I expect to be in St. Petersburg!

I plan to be in Kazan for most of the time (that's where my affiliation letter came from), but hope to do some work in St. Petersburg and Moscow! I'm not sure if Fulbright will let me move around much, though.

What's your project about, and what made you chose Russia?

[danielleg]

I applied to do a master's in publishing at London College of Communication. As part of my proposal, I made arragements to volunteer at a non-profit creative writing center for youth, to serve as a tutor and help publish their anthology of student works...pretty straight forward, and congruent with the goals outlined in my proposal.

What will you be studying at the Warburg Institute? In the end, how did you connect it with community involvement in your proposal?

That sounds like an exciting project. It's good you were able to find a volunteer opportunity related to your program. Did you get a letter of affiliation from the writing center? I'm hoping it's not a disadvantage that I only have a letter of affliation from the master's program.

The Warburg Institute offers a one year master's in Cultural and Intellectual History 1300-1650, which focuses on the rediscovery and influence of classics in the Renaissance. I have a degree in Classics and want to continue studying Latin and other languages (Italian, French) and specifically learn about the history of the role of classical literature and the Latin language in western civilization.

I didn't include any specific volunteer program for my community involvement aspect, I just hope that my project as a whole seems community-oriented enough. I even asked the New York office about how to include something for an academically focused project at one of the teleconferences I attended in September, and the panel didn't really provide a clear indication of what qualifies as community involvement besides obvious things like volunteer work. I did mention that I would apply to live in Goodenough College in London, which is a diverse community of students and has various club and volunteer opportunities available to its members. I also stressed the community aspect of my program, as it is a small program, dominated by UK and EU students. I am worried that this might not be enough and will possibly be conceived as a weak spot in my project.

I'm not sure if you, or others had this opportunity, but I'm currently studying at a University where its office of study abroad has applications of previous Fulbright winners for current applicants to look over. Did anyone else read some of these while applying? It was helpful to read the essays to get a sense of how people organized them and also to get a glimpse of what the committees are looking for. Some of the projects had specific volunteer/community affliations, and some didn't. One of my goals is to become/improve as an educator, so my hope is that wanting to be involved in education has an inherent community-oriented benefit built in. Maybe?

I hope so! I am so nervous about finding out. I keep going over parts of my application and doubting everything.

[LAS]

Did anyone apply for the ETA in Spain?

[Dynamom]

Did anyone apply for the ETA in Spain?

I did! I have a Kindergartener and think it would be a great immersion experience for her, too. I'm hoping for Valencia, but would be thrilled to go anywhere.

[Pantone257]

That sounds like an exciting project. It's good you were able to find a volunteer opportunity related to your program. Did you get a letter of affiliation from the writing center? I'm hoping it's not a disadvantage that I only have a letter of affliation from the master's program.

The Warburg Institute offers a one year master's in Cultural and Intellectual History 1300-1650, which focuses on the rediscovery and influence of classics in the Renaissance. I have a degree in Classics and want to continue studying Latin and other languages (Italian, French) and specifically learn about the history of the role of classical literature and the Latin language in western civilization.

I didn't include any specific volunteer program for my community involvement aspect, I just hope that my project as a whole seems community-oriented enough. I even asked the New York office about how to include something for an academically focused project at one of the teleconferences I attended in September, and the panel didn't really provide a clear indication of what qualifies as community involvement besides obvious things like volunteer work. I did mention that I would apply to live in Goodenough College in London, which is a diverse community of students and has various club and volunteer opportunities available to its members. I also stressed the community aspect of my program, as it is a small program, dominated by UK and EU students. I am worried that this might not be enough and will possibly be conceived as a weak spot in my project.

I'm not sure if you, or others had this opportunity, but I'm currently studying at a University where its office of study abroad has applications of previous Fulbright winners for current applicants to look over. Did anyone else read some of these while applying? It was helpful to read the essays to get a sense of how people organized them and also to get a glimpse of what the committees are looking for. Some of the projects had specific volunteer/community affliations, and some didn't. One of my goals is to become/improve as an educator, so my hope is that wanting to be involved in education has an inherent community-oriented benefit built in. Maybe?

I hope so! I am so nervous about finding out. I keep going over parts of my application and doubting everything.

I didn’t get a formal letter from the writing center…I only had email correspondence, which I was prepared to make into a PDF and submit, but the program manager recommended that I not include it as part of the application, so I only mentioned it in the proposal. I also submitted a letter from the director of the master’s program I applied to. I was really confused about affiliation letters for the UK in general, and had a hard time getting a clear answer about them, but eventually learned that since acceptance letters count as affiliation letters—and because the Fulbright deadline was months before most university application deadlines—it wasn’t necessary to submit an affiliation letter when we submitted the application. I was told that once we receive formal acceptance letters into the master’s programs that we would submit them, but only if offered a grant. So yeah, all the hoops I had to jump through to get a formal letter from the university saying that I was a good candidate for the course wasn’t entirely necessary…but hopefully it will help!

Did you have a similar experience, or did you manage to get into the university early enough to have an acceptance letter on hand to submit as an affiliation? In any case, I think it’s good that you had something to submit. I just sent my university application about a week ago—hopefully I’ll hear back before February, just in case I make the first cut and get a phone interview, so I can confirm that all is set and I am actually in the program.

It’s great that you’re planning to apply to Goodenough – I honestly can’t think of a better way to engage in intercultural exchange than that (it’ll be like living in a mini-UN!), and surely you’ll be able to find some kind of extra-curricular community involvement that is related to your field that way. But even if it isn’t directly related, I don’t think it’s necessarily a bad thing. Being able to show that you have a range of interests and involvement just makes you that much more well-rounded, and will enrich your experience in London...and I think the Commission would eat it up in your reports.

It must have been a huge help to use previous examples of successful applications as a guide. I’m currently living abroad, so I applied at-large and wasn’t able to access any on-campus resources. But I scoured the internet for any and all kinds of Fulbright resources like it was my full.time.job. I was able to find a few of examples of successful proposals and got a good idea of how to organize my thoughts succinctly.

At this stage, I am just trying to be detached…we did the best we can and now it’s up to the experts. I’ve had the opposite issue as you…I’m scared to go back and read my application! I haven’t looked at it once since I submitted it. I’m a little terrified that I’ll find some glaring error, and then I would freak out 100x more than I kind of already am. I’m trying to put it out of my head and proceed with making plans as if it’s not going to happen…that way, if it doesn’t, I’ll (hopefully) be on to something else and be really excited about that, or I’ll be pleasantly surprised (ecstatic, actually) come March.

Best of luck to everyone! I look forward to this forum blowing up a lot more in the coming weeks – it’s great to read everyone’s experiences and be able to commiserate with others on this painstaking process!

[Futurelawyerchick]

Anyone happen to hear from Switzerland yet? From what I know from the website, recommended candidates are supposed to fill out some type of Swiss government application in December.

Edited December 16, 2011 by Futurelawyerchick

[orangeMan]

I hear Goodenough College is amazing and cheap too though all my friends from the UK universities got rejected there.

I did mention that I would apply to live in Goodenough College in London, which is a diverse community of students and has various club and volunteer opportunities available to its members.

[danielleg]

I hear Goodenough College is amazing and cheap too though all my friends from the UK universities got rejected there.

Yeah...I heard about it from one of my friends who studied in London. He mentioned that if you want to live there you really have to sell yourself in the application. Also you have to apply as soon as you can because spots fill up quickly since it *is* so amazing and cheap. Most applications I think are hard in that way because they want you to prove something about yourself that is tough to prove. like with the Fulbright, even though I feel like i have the qualities they are looking for in a candidate, it's hard to prove that, especially on paper. I applied At-Large and so didn't get the benefit of a campus interview. I'm wondering how much that is weighted. It seems hard to imagine that they could weight it too much since some applicants dont even have the opportunity to have one.

[danielleg]

Did you have a similar experience, or did you manage to get into the university early enough to have an acceptance letter on hand to submit as an affiliation? In any case, I think it’s good that you had something to submit. I just sent my university application about a week ago—hopefully I’ll hear back before February, just in case I make the first cut and get a phone interview, so I can confirm that all is set and I am actually in the program.

I had a similiar experience. I e-mailed the director the program and explained what my interest was in the program and my academic background. I wanted to ask him about language requirements too to make sure that my various language proficiences were adequate for the program before I went any further with my application. He wrote an affiliation letter for me, similiar to the one you got too, basically saying "yes, this person seems good for our program, but hasn't yet applied/been accepted."

Congrats on getting your application in! I am going to aim for January/early February to submit mine. It seems so early though because my program at least (I'm not sure about other UK programs) recommends that applications are in by April, but even that isn't a fixed deadline, so I feel very early applying Jan/Feb! However, the earlier I apply and hopefully, am accepted, the sooner I can potentially find and apply for other scholarships in case the Fulbright does't work out. It is tough to find them though- I don't qualify for the Marshall because my GPA is too low and most of the scholarships for the program through the UK are for UK or EU residents only.

Where are you abroad now, if you dont mind me asking?

[Pantone257]

I had a similiar experience. I e-mailed the director the program and explained what my interest was in the program and my academic background. I wanted to ask him about language requirements too to make sure that my various language proficiences were adequate for the program before I went any further with my application. He wrote an affiliation letter for me, similiar to the one you got too, basically saying "yes, this person seems good for our program, but hasn't yet applied/been accepted."

Congrats on getting your application in! I am going to aim for January/early February to submit mine. It seems so early though because my program at least (I'm not sure about other UK programs) recommends that applications are in by April, but even that isn't a fixed deadline, so I feel very early applying Jan/Feb! However, the earlier I apply and hopefully, am accepted, the sooner I can potentially find and apply for other scholarships in case the Fulbright does't work out. It is tough to find them though- I don't qualify for the Marshall because my GPA is too low and most of the scholarships for the program through the UK are for UK or EU residents only.

Where are you abroad now, if you dont mind me asking?

Yeah, the deadline for applications to my program isn't until May! So applying in December is super early, but, like you said, the deadlines don't seem to be fixed...kind of a rolling cycle or something. I've also had a hard time finding other scholarships...I graduated in 2008 and the cutoff for Marshall is 2009 - booo! So Fulbright seems to be the only option for me - it's that or loans...(and I haven't quite decided if it's worth going into debt over).

I've been living in Israel for a little over two years. I'll be back in the States in March - just in time to find out about Fulbright (provided I make it that far!)

[oa0176]

Yeah...I heard about it from one of my friends who studied in London. He mentioned that if you want to live there you really have to sell yourself in the application. Also you have to apply as soon as you can because spots fill up quickly since it *is* so amazing and cheap. Most applications I think are hard in that way because they want you to prove something about yourself that is tough to prove. like with the Fulbright, even though I feel like i have the qualities they are looking for in a candidate, it's hard to prove that, especially on paper. I applied At-Large and so didn't get the benefit of a campus interview. I'm wondering how much that is weighted. It seems hard to imagine that they could weight it too much since some applicants dont even have the opportunity to have one.

this is exactly what I think! And its like, we never really know what they are looking for in candidates.

anyway, now that I am close to the end of finals, the idea of waiting another month for the first decisions is starting to freak me out again!!

[OliviaKate84]

So many wonderful projects that people have put together...I wish the best for everyone and that those of you who are posting all get ETA fellowships.... Is there anyone out there who has applied for an ETA in Italy? Thanks!

[RusPNI]

I plan to be in Kazan for most of the time (that's where my affiliation letter came from), but hope to do some work in St. Petersburg and Moscow! I'm not sure if Fulbright will let me move around much, though.

What's your project about, and what made you chose Russia?

I would be working on a project involving the immune system's effects on the brain in a model of early life stress. I also want to look in the laboratory's archives to study the history of the research in the field. I chose Russia, because there in other choice! I studied Russian in college, and lived in St. Petersburg for about 8 months. It's a lovely city, and I desperately want to return. I'd also love some more time to travel around Eurasia after the end of the fellowship.

Relatedly, does anyone know about extending the Fulbright fellowship? I suppose it's rarely allowed, but under what circumstances is it allowed? Russia, may have its own complications because of visa regulations...

Belafish, I have not been to Kazan. But I have heard many good things about Tatarstan from otherwise skeptical people. Are you worried about any political sensitivities from the Russians about your proposal?

[msafiri]

Relatedly, does anyone know about extending the Fulbright fellowship? I suppose it's rarely allowed, but under what circumstances is it allowed? Russia, may have its own complications because of visa regulations...

This may vary by region. We were explicitly told at our orientation for Central America & the Caribbean that there would be no extensions because they don't have the money for it.

[LAS]

I did! I have a Kindergartener and think it would be a great immersion experience for her, too. I'm hoping for Valencia, but would be thrilled to go anywhere.

Good luck! So nervous and excited at the same time!

[waveaflag]

that survey e-mail is just mean.

[sautdanslavide]

that survey e-mail is just mean.

...agreed. any email with the headline "fulbright" is going to cause thousands of hearts to jump...

[Futurelawyerchick]

YES! The Survey freaked me out so much I filled it out ASAP out of ridiculous paranoia that it would delay review of my application if I didn't...

[fosgfp]

YES! The Survey freaked me out so much I filled it out ASAP out of ridiculous paranoia that it would delay review of my application if I didn't...

same!!

[blackcoffee64]

I know this is late coming, but is any else applying for research grant in China? My project is in economic geography in Nanjing next year. Good luck to everyone!

[Dynamom]

I filled in the survey too - definitely thought they could have done a better job of talking frankly about safety in foreign countries and also about experiences of non-traditional applicants.

[oa0176]

i just filled out the survey, but I was so freaked out when I got the email lol. December is almost over, so now we don't have that much time to wait.

[FranzisKaner!]

So, at the end of this last semester, my GPA dipped below a 3.5 to a high 3.4. I'm interested in whether anyone knows if this will affect my chances of getting accepted for the Fulbright. Will we have to submit any more documents after the January notifications if we do indeed make it through the first round?