Undergraduate Academic Affairs

October 29, 2010

UW is a top producer of US Fulbright students

Undergraduate Academic Affairs

UAA News

Second consecutive year the UW makes the list

The Fulbright Program, the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program, recently announced the complete list of colleges and universities that produced the most 2010-2011 U.S. Fulbright Students. The success of the top-producing institutions is highlighted in the October 25 online edition of The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Eleven undergraduate and four graduate students from the UW were selected Fulbright Fellows for 2010-2011. This number sets an institutional record, garners the UW a place on the top-producing list for a second consecutive year, and moves the UW up in the national rankings.

The UW is now tied for tenth in the Chronicle’s list of top-producers of US Fulbright students among research institutions. The other schools that also tied for tenth are Rutgers University at New Brunswick and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The UW is one of two Global Challenge peer institutions to be listed.

The Fulbright competition for the bachelor’s degree level is administered at the UW through the Office of Merit Scholarships, Fellowships, and Awards in Undergraduate Academic Affairs and, for graduate degree levels, is administered by the Office of Fellowships and Awards in the Graduate School.

Under this program, almost 1,700 American students, artists and young professionals in more than 100 different fields of study have been offered grants to study, teach English, and conduct research in over 130 countries throughout the world beginning this fall.

Of the 1,700 Fulbrighters, 19% are at the Ph.D. degree level, 17% are at the master’s level, and 65% are at the bachelor’s degree level. Students receiving awards for this academic year applied through 600 colleges or universities. Lists of Fulbright recipients are available at: www.fulbrightonline.org/us.

Since its inception in 1946, the Fulbright Program has provided more than 300,000 participants—chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential — with the opportunity to study, teach and conduct research, exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns. In the past 64 years, more than 44,000 students from the United States have benefited from the Fulbright experience.

The Fulbright Program is sponsored by the United States Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. The primary source of funding for the Fulbright Program is an annual appropriation made by the United States Congress to the Department of State. Participating governments and host institutions, corporations and foundations in foreign countries and in the United States also provide direct and indirect support. The J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, composed of 12 educational and public leaders appointed by the President of the United States, formulates policies for the administration of the Fulbright Program, establishes criteria for the selection of candidates and approves candidates nominated for awards.

In the United States, the Institute of International Education administers and coordinates the activities relevant to the U.S. Student Program on behalf of the U.S Department of State, including conducting an annual competition for the scholarships.

The Fulbright Program also awards grants to American teachers and faculty to conduct research and teach overseas. In addition, some 3,850 new foreign Fulbright students and scholars come to the United States annually to study for graduate degrees, conduct research and teach at U.S. universities, colleges and secondary schools.