Purpose and Eligibility:  The Fulbright Scholar Program provides support for scholars who are U.S. citizens to travel abroad to conduct research and/or teach in countries of interest and relevance to their research. Fulbright placements are available in all regions of the world, nearly all countries, and most academic disciplines.    *Students interested in Fulbright Opportunities, please click:  https://www.bates.edu/fellowships. 

How Do I Decide If a Fulbright Is Right for Me?

Each year, a searchable catalog of all Fulbright placements is posted at https://fulbrightscholars.org/awards/search. You can browse all available opportunities, or search it by discipline and by region or country. For each award opportunity in your field of interest, you will find information on the location, the topic area, the stipend and benefits, duration, and specific eligibility requirements such as your degree, specialization and level of experience. The listings also identify the Program Officer and Associate responsible for the award, so once you have identified one or more opportunities of potential interest, we recommend that you contact them with any specific questions.

I am interested in a Fulbright opportunity, but I am not (presently) a U.S. citizen. What should I do?

Please contact the Office for External Grants. In addition to your discipline, project area, and the country or region to which you would like to travel, we may also need to know your current immigration status in the United States and your country of citizenship, to help identify other grant and fellowship opportunities for which you would be eligible.

Timeline

Fulbright opportunities are usually posted in Winter or early Spring. The deadline for applications for the 2013-2014 academic year is August 1, 2012. You will be notified in November-January whether your application has been recommended for consideration in the host country, and you will receive notification of whether you receive the award between March-May. Your placement may begin as early as June, depending on the start date listed in the catalog.

What Does a Fulbright Application Look Like?

Detailed guidance and samples for each of the application sections are provided at http://www.cies.org/us_scholars/us_awards/Application-Guidelines.htm. The required sections for all awards are:

• An online application form
• A project statement of up to 5 pages
• A tailored CV or resume
• Reference letters

Depending on the specific opportunity you select, the following may also be required:

• A letter of invitation from an eligible host institution in your desired country
• A Language Proficiency Report
• Supplemental materials for applicants in architecture, the arts, and creative writing
• Bibliography of up to three pages (for research awards)
• Course syllabi of up to ten pages total (for teaching awards)

Other Information

The Fulbright Scholar Program is operated by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES) under a cooperative agreement with the U.S. Department of State. CIES maintains a comprehensive and informative website for potential Fulbright applicants. Please take the time to review the CIES website at http://www.cies.org/. Specific pages of interest include (but are not limited to):

• Frequently Asked Questions: http://www.cies.org/us_scholars/us_awards/FAQs.htm
• Review Criteria: http://www.cies.org/us_scholars/us_awards/ReviewCriteria-NotificationTimeline.htm#1
• Fulbright Scholar lists by year (back to 1998-99): http://www.cies.org/schlr_directories/
• Scholar Stories: http://www.cies.org/stories/

Can I Submit My Own Application?

CIES allows individual scholars to submit their own applications. However, we do ask that you provide us with copies of your application materials, and notify us of the outcome of your application. This helps to build Bates College’s institutional knowledge of how to prepare strong Fulbright applications, which can benefit your future applications and those of your colleagues.