Wesleyan Named Fulbright Top-Producer

The Fries Center for Global Studies is delighted to announce that for the seventh consecutive year, Wesleyan University has been recognized as one of the top-producing academic institutions for the Fulbright U.S. Student Program, by the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs. Each year, Fulbright sends hundreds of Americans abroad to 160 countries, to teach, study, and practice– facilitating cultural exchange on the global scale.

This year, nine Wes students and alumni – a record high – are studying and working across the globe through the Fulbright program. You can learn more about their journeys here. 

This year’s recipients: Zubaida Bello ’22, Teva Corwin ’25, Hansini Bhasker ’25, Sophie Jager ’25, Spencer Klink ’24, Jack Noble ’25, Kaori Sakurai ’25, Marshall Schulman ’25, and Czarina Yuffa ’25

Wesleyan’s continued performance in sending our students and alumni abroad with Fulbright underlines the recognized importance of global studies and interdisciplinary study on our campus, and the work that the Fries Center is doing. Erica Kowsz, the associate director for fellowships, emphasizes the importance of volume of interest when considering why Wesleyan tends to do so well, both for students and for faculty and staff. Not only have more members of the community joined the application process, but Wesleyan has also consistently had more students and alumni applying each year. Academic Affairs has supported additional staffing for Fulbright advising, helping to foster a culture on campus that supports and encourages fellowship applications. Kowsz underlined the importance of this team approach, highlighting “the wonderful students, alumni, and colleagues [she gets] to work with as a part of the process.”

Each Fulbright grantee is unique, both in their interests and in their career paths. Kowsz notes that there is “a lot of variety in how Fulbright alumni use their grants as a springboard for their academic or professional paths.” Students and alumni interested in applying for Fulbright in next year’s cycle – either research or teaching – should stay tuned to the Office of Fellowships for events this spring and fill out the interest form on the FCGS website, or email fellowships@wesleyan.edu to express their interest. 

For more information about Fulbright’s programs, visit https://fulbrightprogram.org/.