PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — With 36 Fulbright scholarships awarded to recent alumni and current graduate students in 2023-24, Brown University produced more student Fulbright winners than all but one school in the nation, according to data released by the U.S. Department of State on Tuesday, Feb. 13. The grants fund research or teaching abroad for up to one year.
The University shares the No. 2 spot with Harvard University, behind only Georgetown University. Brown has ranked among the top three student Fulbright producers in the U.S. annually for the past eight years, earning the No. 1 spot in four of those years. Since data collection began in 2009-10, Brown has been recognized as a Fulbright Top Producing Institution 15 times.
“Brown's recognition as a top producing Fulbright institution is a reflection of our phenomenal students, who forge unique postgraduate paths through teaching, rigorous scholarly inquiry and service,” said Joel Simundich, assistant dean of the College for fellowships. “It is their careful self-examination and generosity of spirit that uniquely prepares them for the Fulbright, and their tenacity and drive to build community that sees their continued impact abroad. We are immensely excited to see where their paths take them.”
Fulbright students are selected for awards based on a variety of factors including the strength of their application, personal qualifications, academic record and the extent to which the candidate and their project will advance the Fulbright mission of mutual understanding between people of the United States and people of other countries.
While applicants learn of the awards during the spring, the Fulbright program publishes data each February on the top producers of Fulbright scholars and students. This year’s data reflect the total number of awards offered for the 2023-24 program year, while data prior to 2022-23 reflect the number of awards accepted.
The Fulbright U.S. Student Program has promoted international peace through intellectual and cultural exchange since its founding in 1946. The program funds approximately 2,000 recent graduates and current graduate students annually to teach and conduct research in 140 countries around the world.
Cyprene Caines: Homecoming, humanities and higher ed
Brown’s 2023-24 student Fulbright winners are now midway through their year teaching or conducting research in more than two dozen countries across Asia, Latin America, Africa and Europe. Teaching placements include elementary schools, high schools and universities, where awardees are providing classroom instruction and exchanging cultural perspectives between the U.S. and their host countries. Research award recipients are pursuing projects in a wide range of academic fields, from biology and ecology to literary arts and economics.
For recent graduates, Fulbright fellowships provide opportunities to pursue projects that extend the courses of study they pursued while at Brown. Brown Class of 2023 graduate Cyprene Caines earned a Fulbright award in the humanities, and last fall set out for Trinidad and Tobago, where she has spent months researching Black Trinidadian women writers.
