Fulbright Scholars
Granted an Unforgettable Experiences with UNI’s Cultural and Intensive English Program
The Fulbright Program is an international initiative that offers passionate and accomplished students/scholars from more than 160 countries (including the U.S.) the opportunity to study, teach, conduct research, exchange ideas, and contribute to mutual understanding. Supported by the Institute of International Education (IIE), the program allows international students to enroll in a pre-academic English program to enhance their skills and continue their graduate studies at institutions throughout the U.S.
Fulbright Students at UNI
The UNI Office of International Engagement (OIE), through the Culture and Intensive English Program (CIEP), welcomed ten Fulbright
grantees from eight countries (Indonesia, South Korea, Fiji, Pakistan, Burma, Sierra Leone, Congo, and Mozambique) to participate in the Fulbright's Long-Term English Program from March to July 2023.
UNI also hosts a variety of Fulbright students within their academic studies in Masters and PhD programs in many different disciplines. This is the second time that the UNI CIEP Program has been selected as a host institution for the scholars’ pre-academic training. The Fulbright Scholar Program offers approximately 900 scholarships to students worldwide, enabling them to come to the U.S. and study annually at our universities.
Each student brought many different skills and backgrounds, ranging from forestry to public health and education. All 10 students participated in their pre-academic program through the CIEP, which allowed them to build their listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills in preparation for their academic programs. The students were on campus for four months and described their experience as “amazing” from their arrival to departure. Lauren Rein-Hamburg, a CIEP Instructor who taught the students over the summer, highlighted, "It was lovely to work with this group! They were dedicated to completing work with high integrity and skill. They will be successful in their graduate and doctoral programs”. Students also commented on the positivity of the staff and how they always encouraged students to ask questions.
Students attended CIEP courses in the morning and took part in lab time in the afternoon. This allowed them to connect with the community through events like Talk Tuesday and Retired Senior Volunteer Program (RSVP), worked on homework, and participated in other classroom activities and projects.
Fulbright Scholars also had the opportunity to participate in activities and events organized by OIE, such as attending local festivities, cultural holidays, weekly Coffee Hours, and more. When talking with Fulbright Scholars about their experience, Glory Kindou, a scholar from Congo, commented that they were “Great activities! They helped me to discover many things about how American culture works”.
"I enjoyed the school visits where we got to share our culture with kids and the community. It was a wonderful experience."
As their CIEP classes ended, the 10 scholars departed to various institutions around the U.S. to pursue Master's and Ph.D. programs. Some of our Fulbright Scholars even had the honor to be placed at high-profile institutions such as Cornell University and Texas A&M. Sher, traveling to the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign this August, made note that the pre-academic CIEP program built his confidence for future studies in Energy and Physics.
UNI and the OIE will welcome three new Fulbright scholars this Fall that will go directly into their field of study and more scholars will arrive in March 2024 for the start of pre-academic programs.
