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as mentioned earlier, the competition is steep. Secondly, you will have to come up with a way to express exactly what it is you want to do overseas and make it sound unique and innovative enough that you can outshine your academic rivals.

With continuous budget cuts in this country and the furthered emphasis that the program has on bring international students to the U.S. as well, you are trying to get a piece of a pie that is literally available to the whole world. Providing funding to over 150 countries all over the map, you will need to be dynamic, original, excellent academically, and possess a bit of persistence that is out of this world.

With that being said, the Fulbright application process can also be tiring and lengthy, as you speak with advisors and submit your application both through snail mail and electronically so all involved in the selection process can have access to your materials. After you complete the application (twice!), you will be interviewed and then perhaps selected. Just like any other government-funded money, you will be given the run-around several times before actually seeing results one way or the other.

However, as many Fulbright recipients will tell you, the waiting and the effort put forth is well worth it if you are selected. D. Geng, a Fulbright alumnus from 2005 who went to China to study rural education. As a teacher and writer, she was able to return home and provide a sense of awareness and a great amount of information not available to Americans otherwise.

She states, " It is too soon to say whether these [rural Chinese] schools will survive, much less serve as replicable models. Yet the move from passive sympathy to personal action and participation has already been made.."

Bringing the world's struggles and victories into the mainstream media & global marketplace is the main responsibility of a Fulbrighter. Are you up for the challenge?

You can begin your journey to becoming a Fulbright grant recipient by preparing yourself first, and then applying second. Priority goes to those with outstanding academic or professional records, and having a background in the language spoken in your country of choice doesn't hurt your chances either. You must be able to present a coherent grasp as to what you will be doing while in your field of study overseas, and your personal qualifications must cause you to stand out and prove you to be a valuable addition to the Fulbrighter family.

Students are also chosen by the extent to which they show their project will help to advance the Fulbright mission of promoting inter-nation understanding and tolerance, and the requirements for each destination country vary. The number of awards for each country is diverse and if you have your sights set on a nation that many people apply to work 7 study in, then your chances are slimmer.

Final selections are made known through letters sent between mid-March and late June, and once you receive the grant, you should be prepared for take off! Not using your grant money or abandoning your project midway can lead to serious repercussions and you may find yourself writing a pretty hefty personal check to the government.

After meeting with your local advisor and extensively researching your nation of particular interest, it is advised that you visit Fulbright's homepage to ensure that you have taken all appropriate steps.

Following this, you can obtain the online application and get started. While an actual completed application is illegal as it would be at risk for plagiarism, below you will find an example of an application partially filled out for reference purposes.

Learn more about this author, Tamara Warta.
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