Fulbright 2016 - 2017

[kyjin]

6 minutes ago, wildchartermage said:

If you're a finalist to an European country, especially in Western European countries, such as Italy, Germany, etc, as a student, you can pay to enroll in the national health system to have your pre-existing conditions and routine exams covered...Also, while you travel in Europe/EU outside of your country, you're covered (once you get the European Health Insurance Card...just request it from your local health center).

This is a pretty good and inexpensive option, especially if you're poor like me and have no health insurance in the US. 149 euros per year is a bargain in Italy compared to whatever we pay in the US. 

Some non-European countries have this too! I'm enrolling in Japan's national health care, which covers something like 70% of fees. Fulbright's care should cover the rest. I'd advise grantees to see what each commission recommends. Japan's commission highly recommends enrolling in national healthcare in addition to the coverage already received by the US Fulbright commission. 

[Swingin_Sween]

18 hours ago, whaynes2 said:

Youth democratic initiatives.What about you?

I'm looking at water conservation during times of drought. I'm hoping we find out ASAP since I need to make a decision about another opportunity within the next week or two

[LifeLearner]

2 hours ago, heylorelaihey said:

I am a Fulbright ETA to Germany, and the Self-Service portal does not have a program I can click on to upload my documents. Has anyone else experienced this?

I did! Email your contact at IIE. Scroll down to the bottom of the Finalist Resources Page and click "IIE Program Manager" and there is a list of Program Contacts. I found my area (I am a Spain ETA so I emailed the Europe contact the problem) and she fixed it the next day. They said some others were having problems too, so don't worry!  

[heylorelaihey]

1 minute ago, LifeLearner said:

I did! Email your contact at IIE. Scroll down to the bottom of the Finalist Resources Page and click "IIE Program Manager" and there is a list of Program Contacts. I found my area (I am a Spain ETA so I emailed the Europe contact the problem) and she fixed it the next day. They said some others were having problems too, so don't worry!  

Bless your heart!! Thank you!! I was so worried! <3

[brianli888@gmail.com]

1 hour ago, wildchartermage said:

Thanks for the informative post!

If you're a finalist to an European country, especially in Western European countries, such as Italy, Germany, etc, as a student, you can pay to enroll in the national health system to have your pre-existing conditions and routine exams covered...Also, while you travel in Europe/EU outside of your country, you're covered (once you get the European Health Insurance Card...just request it from your local health center).

This is a pretty good and inexpensive option, especially if you're poor like me and have no health insurance in the US. 149 euros per year is a bargain in Italy compared to whatever we pay in the US. 

That's really awesome to know. Thanks! 

[potatopower12]

1 hour ago, Swingin_Sween said:

I'm looking at water conservation during times of drought. I'm hoping we find out ASAP since I need to make a decision about another opportunity within the next week or two

That sounds awesome! I'm kind of in the same boat. I have some things on the table, but I can't move forward with anything to I hear about Fulbright. Good luck!

[sairam94]

5 hours ago, sesebella said:

It's on the finalist resources page. I printed out the terms and conditions, printed it, signed it, scanned it, and uploaded it in the self-service portal

thank you!! are they strict on the deadlines? I realized I missed it by a few days and I'm freaking out

[wanderingbutnotlost]

I love you all! I'm feeling much better about the health coverage now. I also heard back from IIE, and was told that they mostly recommend those with pre-existing conditions to continue their U.S. based health insurance. Otherwise, it seems fine to just go with the sickness and accident coverage. 

I was also worried about the fact that Fulbright doesn't cover sickness/accidents that occur outside our placement countries, but enrolling in the national health system seems like a great option. Thanks again, everyone! 

Last thing - in addition to being a noob at health insurance, I'm also a grandma when it comes to social media. If there is a Facebook group out there for Germany Fulbright ETAs, let me know! It took me months to find the Peace Corps one for my country of service...

[high jump coach]

8 hours ago, wildchartermage said:

As you'll be on the student visa, you can pay €149 per calendar year to enroll in the national health system, where you'll be treated the same as a Italian citizen for health coverage. This is great if you need preventative care, access to medicine, etc. Though I am also waiting to hear more about health insurance coverage from Fulbright and what it covers and does not cover. 

Thank you! I was actually hoping for something exactly like this. It's too bad the grant period stretches over 2 calendar years, but even 300 euro is dirt cheap next to a comparable US plan.

Perhaps the most frustrating thing about this is that I actually have an appointment for a citizenship application with my local Italian consulate, which would possibly make this a moot point for me. But I made the appointment last November, and the earliest they will see me is November 2017... 

[Neuronerd94]

1 hour ago, brianli888@gmail.com said:

I got my terms document approved a few days after submission (I'm going to Spain). As for emailing the Terms document, are you referring to the following line? 

"Print, sign and upload the document into the Fulbright Self-Service Portal AND return a copy to the Fulbright Commission as instructed by your contact at the commission."

In that case, I was going to ask the exact same question haha.

I submitted my forms a week ago but they still haven't been approved (or denied for that matter). My two week deadline is today, so its making me a little nervous!!

[SoundandVision]

10 hours ago, Neuronerd94 said:

I submitted my forms a week ago but they still haven't been approved (or denied for that matter). My two week deadline is today, so its making me a little nervous!!

I submitted mine on 3/27 and they were approved on 3/31 if that's helpful! My deadline is today too so I keep rechecking everything but I think all we needed was to upload the Terms and Conditions and the Proof of Citizenship by today.

[geocat]

15 hours ago, sairam94 said:

thank you!! are they strict on the deadlines? I realized I missed it by a few days and I'm freaking out

I missed the deadline too and am also freaking out. I couldn't access the Program in the Self-Service Portal (maybe because I missed the deadline?) so I just emailed the documents as attachments to the contact person for the documents at IIE for Spain. I hope everything turns out alright for both of us.

[SoundandVision]

18 hours ago, brianli888@gmail.com said:

I got my terms document approved a few days after submission (I'm going to Spain). As for emailing the Terms document, are you referring to the following line? 

"Print, sign and upload the document into the Fulbright Self-Service Portal AND return a copy to the Fulbright Commission as instructed by your contact at the commission."

In that case, I was going to ask the exact same question haha.

So, I was nervous and unsure about this as well, and I emailed a PDF of the Terms and Conditions document to the commission contact. She emailed me back promptly with a "Thank you for the terms" so I am unsure whether or not that was necessary but it certainly didn't seem to hurt.

I don't know if that helps anyone else! I say just err on the side of cautious though. You've worked so hard for this, you want to be on top of the paperwork.

[horatiustb]

55 minutes ago, geocat said:

I missed the deadline too and am also freaking out. I couldn't access the Program in the Self-Service Portal (maybe because I missed the deadline?) so I just emailed the documents as attachments to the contact person for the documents at IIE for Spain. I hope everything turns out alright for both of us.

Uploaded mine on the 2 week deadline. Just received an email today saying that it had been approved and all was good. 

[sairam94]

3 hours ago, geocat said:

I missed the deadline too and am also freaking out. I couldn't access the Program in the Self-Service Portal (maybe because I missed the deadline?) so I just emailed the documents as attachments to the contact person for the documents at IIE for Spain. I hope everything turns out alright for both of us.

you should be able to access the program in the self service portal, I was able to!

[wildchartermage]

14 hours ago, high jump coach said:

Thank you! I was actually hoping for something exactly like this. It's too bad the grant period stretches over 2 calendar years, but even 300 euro is dirt cheap next to a comparable US plan.

Perhaps the most frustrating thing about this is that I actually have an appointment for a citizenship application with my local Italian consulate, which would possibly make this a moot point for me. But I made the appointment last November, and the earliest they will see me is November 2017... 

Agreed, it's so annoying how they are not flexible about 1 year thing, so we end up paying 300 euros or more for 2 calendar years. But yes, still dirt cheap than an US plan. By the way, if you have a disability that can be proved with an Italian doctor, most medical services are free, including visits to specialized doctors. I am working on getting that "exemption" or "esenzione" to save even more on costs for my "pre-existing condition."

By the way, did you know that you can just move to Italy for the purposes of getting your citizenship and cut out the Italian Consulate to get your Italian citizenship/passport in few months instead of a year? I don't have any Italian heritage, unfortunately, but this information is something I just saw on the Internet. Google around and I am sure you will find helpful information. One guy said best to move to a medium sized instead of a large or small city so the wheels of bureaucracy there can get moving quicker in a medium-sized city than...let's say, Milan or Rome. 

 

[high jump coach]

30 minutes ago, wildchartermage said:

By the way, did you know that you can just move to Italy for the purposes of getting your citizenship and cut out the Italian Consulate to get your Italian citizenship/passport in few months instead of a year? I don't have any Italian heritage, unfortunately, but this information is something I just saw on the Internet. Google around and I am sure you will find helpful information. One guy said best to move to a medium sized instead of a large or small city so the wheels of bureaucracy there can get moving quicker in a medium-sized city than...let's say, Milan or Rome. 

Somebody had suggested to me that I might be able to get it done faster over there than waiting for the consulate in NY. I haven't seen any concrete info. on the process, but I also haven't really started looking very hard yet. In any case I was definitely planning to finalize my application packet (I have all the documents, but I need to translate some of them to Italian, and get Apostilles affixed) before I go. Would definitely be nice to get it done sooner rather than later - there's a good chance I won't even still live in NY by November 2017, in which case I might have to get an appointment with my new consulate...

[wildchartermage]

44 minutes ago, high jump coach said:

Somebody had suggested to me that I might be able to get it done faster over there than waiting for the consulate in NY. I haven't seen any concrete info. on the process, but I also haven't really started looking very hard yet. In any case I was definitely planning to finalize my application packet (I have all the documents, but I need to translate some of them to Italian, and get Apostilles affixed) before I go. Would definitely be nice to get it done sooner rather than later - there's a good chance I won't even still live in NY by November 2017, in which case I might have to get an appointment with my new consulate...

Can you do both Fulbright and going through the citizenship process at the same time while in Italy? Kill two birds with one stone?

My only options for an Italian citizenship is either to live there for 10 years (not feasible) or marry an Italian guy (more feasible, but nothing is guaranteed when it comes to relationships. lol lol lol)

[sairam94]

@geocat let me know if the IIE gets back to you about your paperwork! I'm really hoping there are no penalties  I'm really freaking out 

[busybee]

Meanwhile... Still waiting here.

[high jump coach]

4 hours ago, wildchartermage said:

Can you do both Fulbright and going through the citizenship process at the same time while in Italy? Kill two birds with one stone?

I'm not sure, but it's definitely something I was planning to look into. The citizenship process via jure sanguinis is actually pretty simple (but tedious) as long as you don't have to go hunting down your family's original Italian vital records. I have all those documents, so really it would just be a matter of dropping off a folder and paying a fee (300 Euro at my local consulate). The hold up in the states is that for a busy consulate like NY it can take 2 years to get an appointment just to drop off that folder (btw to make that appointment they made me call a phone service that cost $3/minute)... and then another 6 months to a year to have it reviewed. 

But if I am able to apply in Italy, I'm pretty sure I could do it during the Fulbright. There are ~16 listed Fulbright commissions that prohibit dual citizens from receiving awards (Germany I think?) but from everything I've read so far Italy seems to allow it.

[salmazahran1992]

On March 5, 2016 at 7:25 AM, sat0ri said:

 

Yes, that's the problem I am facing! thus, I have to live somewhere in a safe neighborhood  that's why I was asking cause safe neighborhood like east harbor are pretty much expensive! 

 

On March 5, 2016 at 7:25 AM, sat0ri said:

So, you are a Fulbright hopeful coming from Egypt hoping to study in MD? From my experience with the US Fulbright, they have a searchable database with the value of the grant. So for UK partnership Fulbrights, they typically pay for whatever cost of tuition and provide a ~13,000 USD living grant, which is enough to not necessarily have to work there, but obviously not enough for a lavish stay either. 

For Baltimore there are some cheap areas, but that is also a very dangerous city. 

 

[Dostoprimechatel'nosti]

13 hours ago, busybee said:

Meanwhile... Still waiting here.

Ditto.

[Swingin_Sween]

10 minutes ago, Dostoprimechatel'nosti said:

Ditto.

Same. Someone from the Fulbright Applicant Facebook group said that IIE wanted to notify everyone by April 15th this year, although that looks unlikely to me based on how many of us are still waiting

[Dostoprimechatel'nosti]

7 minutes ago, Swingin_Sween said:

Same. Someone from the Fulbright Applicant Facebook group said that IIE wanted to notify everyone by April 15th this year, although that looks unlikely to me based on how many of us are still waiting

I know! April 15th will be around the same time and the same day of the week that I was notified last year...so that has been my guess for when I will hear back.  But that also means that everyone who hasn't been notified will be finding out in the next 8 days. I hope that it works out that way - but it will be a busy week and a half!