Office of Fellowships Grad Study Application Steps

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When you apply for a graduate study grant, you have some choices to make. What kind of degree program will you pursue? Which university will you go to? What country makes the most sense for you? Fulbright offers two kinds of graduate study grants: 1) open awards that allow you to study in any field at any accredited university in the country, or 2) partnership/named awards that restrict your options in terms of field and/or university. Many degrees are offered in English, even in countries where English is not the language.

• To start exploring on your own, review the Fulbright list of graduate degree grants. You can also use the Award Search tool, selecting filters that will show you which countries have graduate degree offerings that suit your stage of education, language skills, and interests. 
• A few countries require foreign language facility even if the grad program is taught in English. Before you get too excited about a degree program, check Fulbright's country pages to make sure you meet the qualifications. Read these pages thoroughly.
• Note that university grants are offered at over 40 universities in the UK .  Delve into the following databases to explore the top programs in the UK by field of study:
  - the UK's Research Excellence Framework 
  - the Guardian's Best UK Universities Ranking
  You might also consult the list of British universities here and the database to "Find a Course in the UK" ("course" = degree program). Another good resource is the Russell Group website. 
• Go to the universities' websites to read about the degree programs they offer, the research faculty are doing, and what it is like to be a student there. 
• Ask faculty in your field of study for guidance, too! They often know about programs overseas as well as the more familiar U.S. ones. 
• Be sure to check this listing of recent application statistics to make a strategically-wise choice about which grant/country to shoot for. Some have odds that are prohibitive. Make sure you're making a wise choice. 
• Note that under the category of research grants, applicants may pursue training in the creative and performing arts. Take a look at examples of these on the RISD Fulbright page.  
• Finally, consult the State Department website to learn about the U.S. diplomatic relations with the country as well as other interesting facts that may factor in your decision.  
   

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Talk with us about what you've learned on the Fulbright website. We can help you think through your top choices to decide which country to apply to. You can only apply for one Fulbright at a time. If you have never met with anyone in the Office of Fellowships, Request an appointment.  If you have already met with us, email us saying what you'd like to discuss and when you are currently available to meet.  We'll send an invite.

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The Fulbright online application is where you'll tell Fulbright everything they need to know about you (biographical details, extracurricular activities, awards, travel history, work experience), upload your essays, and trigger recommendation and language evaluation requests. You can enter data, revise, and save and return as you go along. Remember to enter work and other activities you have done or will do up to October 2024 when they will read the application. Open the application as soon as you've decided to apply, and begin to fill things in.  Be sure to select the option that you are applying through Amherst College. Read the detailed "Instructions - Completing the Online Application" advice on the first page you come to. It will save you from making errors.  Work on the application throughout the summer so you don't have to do it all at once at the end. 

Reach out to three potential recommendation writers to explain your intentions and ask if they'd be willing to write on your behalf. You can do this in person, over email, or on the phone. Ask early - at the end of the spring semester or beginning of the summer, if possible. They don't have to write the letter immediately, but knowing they've already agreed will reduce your stress.

For the grad study grant, at least two of your writers should be faculty who have taught you as a mature student. If you've done/are doing a senior thesis, your advisor is likely a good choice. Lean toward faculty whose expertise is in the field you plan to study. They can comment not only on your academic strengths, but also on how the program is a good fit for you. The third letter may also be from a faculty member or from a staff person, coach, or work supervisor who can speak in detail to your potential to be an outstanding cultural ambassador.  Ask your recommenders to read our Fulbright Overview page so they understand the Fulbright and what the reviewers hope to learn about you in the letter.  Point out to them the instructions For Recommenders at the bottom of that page.

Reach out to one language evaluator, if needed or desired. If the country has recommended or required language competency, show them what you've got! The application will invite you to complete a Language Self-Evaluation. Do it, even if not required, if you have any skill in the language. It can only help you! If language skill is required, you will have to enter the contact information for a language evaluator. Ask someone who has taught you the language most recently. Send them the link to Instructions for Foreign Language Evaluators. 

After your recommenders or language evaluators have said "yes,"  enter their names and contact info in the Fulbright online application. Trigger the recommendation request through the portal about four weeks before the internal deadline (or sooner, if they wish it). Recommenders often like to see your essays before they write, so send your best draft at that time. While recommendation letters are due by the internal deadline, it's okay of the language evaluations come in afterward (before the final deadline). 

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In order to make use of the study grant (if you win it) you'll have to also get into the university. Fulbright calls your acceptance letter to the university  a "letter of affiliation."  And they want you to upload such a letter at the time of application to Fulbright, if possible. But this is often not possible. University application deadlines usually come later than the Fulbright deadline. As a placeholder, you can request a "letter of affiliation" from a faculty member or program director in the degree program at the university vouching for your potential to get into the program.
 
Asking for this letter, however, comes at the end of this step. First, read the university website to find a faculty member whose research or courses interest you. Ask them to have a virtual conversation with you. Sounds scary, but they usually say "yes" if you ask in a respectful way. Here's a template for an email you can use to request a meeting. Come prepared to the meeting with a few questions about the program that are not already answered on the website. Be ready to explain your interest and especially to discuss any research you might want to do as your thesis or dissertation (usually required in the third term). After some discussion, ask the professor if they would be willing to write an affiliation letter for your Fulbright application.  

Your contact may be unsure how to write that letter. Here is a template your affiliate can use to write their letter. Once they send the letter to you, upload it to your application. Note: this might take months to come to fruition. Reach out in the early summer. Aim to upload your letter a before the internal deadline, but you can still upload it any time before the final deadline. Sometimes the letters come just in the nick of time!

The Statement of Grant Purpose (SOGP) is one of two essays you'll write for the application. You should write this one first. But before you start writing, you need to do some thinking. This Graduate Study SOGP Questionnaire will help you to think through all the info you should put in your essay. Once you submit it, we'll read it and tell you if there is anything you need to consider further before drafting the essay.  

Write the first draft of your statement of grant purpose: include the context for your interest in this field; describe the program you are pursuing, highlighting courses or research you intend to undertake as part of the program; demonstrate how you are prepared for the degree; mention faculty whose work interests you; point out the cultural appeal of the university and its community; and explain how it will lead to your future career or education. (Yes, that's an outline for your essay!) Send it to us as either a Google or Word doc for feedback.  In your first draft, you'll likely still be playing with ideas as to what to include. It's okay if this draft flows over the one page limit, or if it doesn't quite fill a page. As you gain clarity through subsequent drafts on what you want to say, work toward putting your essay into the required format. The version you upload to the application should follow the format below. Before you write, it may help you to read a few essays from former AC Fulbright grad study winners here. 

Format: 1-inch margins, 1.0 spacing, Times New Roman, 12-point font. Do not use the Header tool. Rather, put the lines below within the 1" margin.  At the top of page 1, write: 
Line 1: STATEMENT OF GRANT PURPOSE 
Line 2: Your Name, Country of Application, and Field of Study from Program Info page 
Line 3: Your Project Title as it appears in the Program Information page of application 
On page two, enter the above or only Last Name, Grant Purpose, Page 2. 
Convert to a pdf before uploading.

How many times can you expect to get feedback?  If you start early in the summer, you can expect at least two rounds of feedback. If you start later, it may be one or even none (if you start very late). Before sending an essay, be sure you've brought it to the best level you can. (We'll bring our A-game to reading it, too!)

The second essay you will write is your Personal Statement. It is best tackled once you've got the SOGP in good shape to avoid repetition. This essay is your chance to show the reviewers how you will represent the U.S. as a cultural ambassador from your own experience as a citizen, a student, a person. Draw from your personal history, family background, intellectual influences, educational, professional, and cultural opportunities (or lack of them), and how these experiences have affected you in order to introduce yourself and what you value to your readers․ Include your specific interests, career plans, and life goals, as they relate to the Fulbright opportunity․ To see how others have done this, go back to the sample essays.

There is no pre-draft form for this one! Write the first draft of your Personal Statement after you've tackled the SOGP and send it to one of the fellowships advisors as either a Google or Word doc for feedback. In your first draft, you'll likely still be playing with ideas as to what to include. It's okay if this draft flows over the one page limit, or if it doesn't quite fill a page. As you gain clarity through subsequent drafts on what you want to say, work toward putting your essay into the required format. The version you upload to the application should follow the format below. Convert to a pdf before uploading to the online application. 

Format: 1 page, single spaced, 1-inch margins, Times New Roman, 12-point font. At the top, type:
Line 1: PERSONAL STATEMENT
Line 2: Your Name, Country of Application, and Field of Study from Program Info page

In addition to the essays, Fulbright asks you to compose three short paragraphs in answer to specific questions or prompts. Unlike the essays, we cannot offer you feedback on these before the internal deadline. Do your best by using the advice and resources below. We'll give you feedback on them after the internal deadline. Here they are:

Abstract/Summary of Proposal 
1. Why do you wish to be a Fulbright grantee and pursue this graduate study? Why is this country appealing to you? You will also summarize your project here. (1750 characters)  (1750 characters)

Host Country Engagement 
2. How will you get involved with your community outside the workplace and share your culture and values in the host community? Think of this as explaining what you will do in your free, non-work time that will help you get to know  people in the host country. (1750 characters)

Plans Upon Return to the U.S. 
3. What do you intend to do upon your return to the U.S. (career or educational plans) after the Fulbright? (850 characters). 

The reviewers will likely read these paragraphs first to get oriented to who you are. They are an important part of the story you will tell about yourself.  Aim to be as specific and detailed as possible. Yes, it is okay to pull from your SOGP for your abstract. But rephrase rather than pasting and copying. Reading these portions of previous applications will help you get the idea. This  narrated PowerPoint slide show will also help you think through these questions:
Pulling it Together with Purpose: the Fulbright Application .

Send recommendation and language evaluation requests. Hopefully, you've already asked people to write these. Now is the time to trigger the requests in the online application portal if you have not already done so, and reminder your recommenders of our internal deadline, which is different from the Fulbright deadline they will see on the Fulbright program's own website. 

Request your official AC transcript and study abroad or transfer college transcripts now so you can upload them in the portal by the internal deadline. While Fulbright says they allow unofficial transcripts, because the name of the college must appear on it, AC students must use an official version. To aid you in this process, complete an “Electronic Transcript Request” and when you receive it, convert it to a readable (not secured) pdf. See Fulbright's instructions on requirements and how to upload. The numerical GPA you enter in the application should be the one listed on your transcript. 

For transfer or study abroad transcripts, follow instructions at the relevant institution for requesting an electronic version and convert and upload it as above.

Upload your letter of affiliation. (If it comes in after the internal deadline, upload it as soon as you can afterward.)

• Proofread everything you've written for the application - short entries, small paragraphs, essays, language self-evaluations for typos. We suggest you print the app and read it out loud to yourself, word for word. (You won't catch errors if you review the app on your phone.) Upload your essays as pdfs in the format required. Make sure there are no extraneous second or third pages. 
• Check to see if your recs and language evals are in. If not, send gentle, polite reminders. (If they're really late, send howlers.) If you're waiting for a transcript, upload a placeholder doc with the name of the intended transcript on it so that you can lock the application for campus review. Same for the language evaluations.
• Check to make sure your transcript is UN-secured.
• LOCK the application by your internal deadline! Do NOT submit it. That's for after the campus interview. We will pull the version you've locked for the campus committee to review. Please do not make changes after we lock it until you've received committee feedback. 

All Amherst College students will be endorsed to move forward to the Fulbright national competition. However, Fulbright asks us to conduct a campus interview and to write an evaluation of you as a candidate based on the interview and your written materials. We love this part! We get to talk to you in person (or over Zoom if you're an alum)! 

After you submit your app, we'll send an invitation to schedule your 20-minute interview with the campus Fulbright ETA committee (made up of us and one or two education professionals at the College). Sign up for your interview slot and prepare to receive feedback and talk further about your interest in the Fulbright program, the country, and your chosen graduate program and university.

What do we mean by prepare? Review your own application, and think about what more you can tell us, both about your graduate study goals and your desire to immerse yourself into the culture of the country. 

After your campus interview, we'll un-lock your application in the portal and send you final suggestions for improvement. For this round of feedback, we'll address the essays again if needed, but mostly focus on those short paragraphs. If we have noticed them, we'll alert you to any typos. However, as this application represents YOU, well, then YOU should make sure your app is error-free! Revise and proofread one more time, then submit the application by October 7th at NOON. This will give us time to attach your campus committee evaluation by OUR deadline.

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You have one important step that other Fulbright applicants don't have - applying to the university. While university applications usually don't open until after the Fulbright deadline, you need to apply in time to gain acceptance by January 2025, if possible. You may be able to do this as soon s October, and will likely be able to by November. (For some countries with very different academic calendars, the applications won't open until December or so. Mark your calendar for when the university application will open, and apply as soon as you can.  If you apply and gain acceptance by January, it can help your chances of winning the Fulbright. You'll be able to send Fulbright your acceptance letter in January if you are named a semi-finalist.

Enhance your chances of doing the degree. Scour the university website for sources of funding other than the Fulbright. That way, if you don't win the Fulbright, you might still be able to go with alternate funding. Apply for Amherst College Fellowships, too. Every bit will help!

The Fulbright process takes so long that we joke that people sometimes find out they won and forgot they even applied! After submitting, you wait, but wait actively! That is, be alert to the stages of selection and any emails you may receive from Fulbright. From here, they'll contact you directly about how you are faring in the competition. Tell us what you hear from them, as soon as you here it, so we can continue to support you.