Updated: At least 15 seniors win Fulbrights so far, more awaiting application decisions

At least 15 graduating seniors — Sarah Chen, Courtney Crumpler, Chloe Ferguson, Charlie Brower, Grace Kim, Audrey Hall, Claudia Park, Molly Brean, Eric Silberman, Rebecca Khalandovsky, Clayton Greenberg, Monica Greco, Carolina Nunez, Lily Akerman and Sarah Furgatch — had been awarded Fulbright scholarships as of Monday afternoon.

Since the award notifications are announced by country on a rolling basis, several University candidates have yet to be notified of their application status, according to Director of Fellowship Advising Deirdre Moloney.

The Fulbright program, which is sponsored by the United States Department of State and the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, provides funding for students, scholars, teachers and professionals to undertake graduate study, advanced research, university teaching and teaching in elementary and secondary schools, according to its website. The award is contingent upon graduation from the recipient’s institution, as well as a medical exam and participation in an orientation.

Chen, a Wilson School major, was awarded a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship to South Korea. Chen, who does not speak Korean, said she looks forward to learning another language in the next year. Chen explained that she thinks her interest in East Asian policy will develop over the next year and envisions working in public policy after the Fulbright program concludes.

“I hope to work in politics. If I can’t find anything, I’ll move to D.C. and hope for the best,” she said.

Chen is a former staff writer for The Daily Princetonian.

Crumpler, an anthropology major, received the scholarship for her project on public health in Brazil. She said her project is an expansion upon the major themes of her senior thesis on the inclusion of medicinal plants as a therapy in the public health system in Brazil.

“I have a great friend who won [the Fulbright] in Brazil and spent some time with him and noticed, observed the […] freedom he had to pursue his research interests for a year and it was really amazing. If I could have that opportunity as well I definitely would be excited about it,” Crumpler said. “Looking to his experience I thought it was such a long shot and just put my application out there.”

Crumpler will begin her research in Brazil in March 2014.

Ferguson received a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship to China.

“The posting next year is one part teaching and one part consular embassy work,” Ferguson explained. Ferguson said she will split the next year between Hong Kong, where she will conduct consular work, and Macau, where she will teach university students how to put together resumes and cover letters for those who are applying to foreign firms.

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Ferguson, an East Asian Studies major, said she will begin her work in China in mid-August.

“I was initially thinking I might want to go into state department service later in my life,” Ferguson said. After the Fulbright program, Ferguson plans to work in finance in New York.

Brower, an ecology and evolutionary biology major, received a Fulbright scholarship to do research based in New Delhi on antibiotic resistance as a result of agricultural antibiotic use. While in New Delhi, Brower will work with the Center for Disease Dynamics, Economics and Policy and the Public Health Foundation in India.

“I was very fortunate enough for it to pan out,” Brower said. After his time in New Delhi, Brower said he hopes to pursue an MD-Ph.D. in the United States or the United Kingdom.

Kim’s project will look at the motivations, trends and effects of the Justice and Development Policy Party's legislation toward women in the last decade in Turkey. Kim, a politics major with a Near Eastern Studies certificate, conducted research on Turkey in her independent work as well.

“I’ve written both JPs and thesis on aspects of Turkish politics and wanted to explore gender politics in Turkey further with this project,” Kim explained. After the Fulbright program, Kim hopes to pursue a career in politics or work in the Foreign Service.

Hall, a comparative literature major, was awarded a Fulbright scholarship to travel to Buenos Aires, where she will translate the poetry and short stories of Silvina Ocampo, one of Argentina's most prominent female authors.

Greco, a classics major pursuing a Wilson School certificate, will travel to Jordan for her Fulbright scholarship and will continue the research that she began with her senior thesis on Roman military strategy in the Middle East.

“I am adding an archeological component to the literary research I have done,” Greco said.

Greco is a former Opinion Editor for the 'Prince.'

Park was awarded a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship to Germany. She explained that she would most likely be posted to teach in a middle or high school in Germany. Park is a comparative literature major at the University and will receive a German certificate.

“Ideally, I’d want to go back to grad school for a Ph.D. but I am not exactly sure if I would go for philosophy or comparative literature or German. But grad school is in the future, I hope,” she explained regarding her plans post Fulbright.

Brean, a Slavic languages and literature major, received a Fulbright scholarship for Moscow where she plans to continue her thesis research on the plays of Mikhail Bulgakov.

Brean said she plans to work in consulting for Bain & Company after she completes the Fulbright program in 2014.

Brean is a former news writer for the 'Prince.’

Silberman was awarded a Fulbright scholarship for creative writing and said he plans to spend the next year in Warsaw, Poland.

Silberman said he will be based at the Museum of the History of the Polish Jews, which recently opened in Warsaw. He explained that he will pursue both fiction and nonfiction creative writing on the contemporary Jewish experience.

“After Fulbright, I am hoping to go to medical school,” Silberman said.

Silberman is a molecular biology major at the University. He will receive certificates in Judaic studies and creative writing.

Khalandovsky, a molecular biology major, will pursue research on the vascularization of pancreatic tissue in a biomedical engineering lab at the Israel Institute of Technology for her Fulbright scholarship.

She explained that the lab is trying to grow pancreatic tissue for diabetic patients who need implants, and the lab has discovered that implants are more successful when blood vessels are integrated into that tissue.

“The project I will be working on will find an optimal way to integrate blood vessels into that tissue to make more implantation more successful,” she explained.

Khalandovsky explained that she hopes that her research at the lab will help her make a decision about what career she hopes to pursue after the Fulbright program.

Nunez will use the Fulbright scholarship to study clusters of galaxies in Santiago, Chile. At the University, Nunez is an astrophysical science major receiving a certificate in African studies.

After the Fulbright scholarship, Nunez said she hopes to go to graduate school for astrophysics.

Akerman will pursue a Fulbright scholarship in Ireland next year where she will be writing lyrics. At the University, Akerman is a comparative literature major and receiving certificates in creative writing and theater.

“I wanted to be somewhere where they speak English,” Akerman said, explaining why she applied for Fulbright in Ireland. She will be affiliated with the Royal Irish Academy of Music during her time there.

Furgatch, an English major, was awarded a Fulbright English Teaching Assistantship in Madrid, Spain. Furgatch explained that she will be teaching and working on a civic engagement project during her time in Madrid.

“I thought it would be an incredible experience — kind of like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity,” she said of her decision to apply to the Fulbright scholarship.

Greenberg declined the Fulbright scholarship, which he received to pursue a master's degree in Germany, to instead accept the DAAD Graduate Study Scholarship. He will be pursuing a two-year M.Sc. in Language Science and Technology at Saarland University, Saarbruecken, Germany.