Fulbright US Student Program An Introduction by the College Center for Scholarly Advancement 5 th Floor, Harper Memorial Library Connect with the CCSA: Online at ccsa.uchicago.educcsa.uchicago.edu Follow us on Twitter: twitter.com/UChicago_CCSA;twitter.com/UChicago_CCSA Through Facebook: With our Listserv:

What is the Fulbright Program? In brief: The Fulbright Program was designed for the “promotion of international good will through the exchange of students in the fields of education, culture, and science” – Senator J. William Fulbright

…So what does that mean? To achieve their goals, the Fulbright Program grants awards: 1900 grants to US Students 2200 grants to international students The grants are overwhelmingly of two types: Study/Research English Teaching Assistantship

To the website! us.fulbrightonline.org

Study/Research: 9 to 11 month grant (varies by country) Provides funding to pursue independent or collaborative research project ~140 countries currently accepting proposals

Research: Topics are entirely self-selected Requires “Letter of Affiliation” Huge variation in composition of projects: Humanities Arts Social Sciences Biological/Physical Sciences

Study: Pursue coursework or a degree through a “Partner Award” Typically do not require Letter of Affiliation Though, if you have one, they will absolutely read it Partner Awards are uncommonly competitive The UK fields ~1,000 applications for <50 awards

English Teaching Assistantship (ETA): The name is exceedingly accurate: Assistant Teach English ~20hrs per week acting as an in-class resource for English-language learning students (varies by country) ~20hrs per week dedicated to “Host Country Engagement” A way to formalize Fulbright’s mission to facilitate cross-cultural engagement Using an extracurricular passion of yours to provide a vehicle for exchange, often- times geared towards explaining parts of American culture

The Application: The main components you will be responsible for producing are: Statement of Grant Purpose 2 Pages for Study/Research 1 Page for ETA Personal Statement Embark Online Application

The Application: Additional Requirements: 3 Letters of Recommendation Standard 1.5/2 page letters for Study/Research 1 Page ETA Recommendation Form Letter of Affiliation: Research required Study highly encouraged Language Evaluation Form (if necessary)

The Timeline: April 25; Fulbright “Primer”: Breaks SoGP into component building blocks Brainstorming activity – non-binding June 16; rough drafts of essays July 14; first “draft” of Embark Online Application A good time to formally ask for Letters of Recommendation August 23; Campus Interview Deadline October 4; Final Campus Deadline

The Timeline (after Submission): November/December: National Screening Committee S/R: Mostly college professors/PhDs who have regional familiarity with the country you are applying to NOT discipline specific (excluding Arts) ETA: TESOL/English as a New Language Professionals Forward 1.5 to 2 times the number of applications as there are grants to be awarded For example: (us.fulbrightonline.org/statistics)

The Timeline (after Submission): January 2017; first round notifications March through April 2017; Host Country Selection ~August 2017; grant begins March 2018 for some countries in Western Hemisphere

Crafting a Competitive Application: It takes time. It takes great letters of recommendation. S/R Only: It takes a strong letter of Affiliation. It will not expound on a love of culture or an uncritical appreciation of the Fulbright mission.

Final Thoughts: Value of “the Process” UChicago has a strong history of producing outstanding Fulbright Grantees: Top Producing List