Middlebury Fellowships and Undergraduate Research
A font of information about undergraduate research, competitive fellowships, application processes and upcoming events and deadlines!
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See http://go.middlebury.edu/watson for more information. Nomination application deadline is Sept. 7 at noon. Contact fellowships@middlebury.edu with questions.
//If you’re thinking about applying for a Fulbright grant or Watson nomination in the fall, you should start working on these applications. Many of you have already talked with me about your ideas or completed a preliminary application this spring–which is a great way to get started! And yes, you can absolutely still apply for these in the fall even if you did not submit a preliminary application! Below are a few notes for those of you just considering these now or already working on the applications:
Dean Gates is happy to talk with you, answer questions and review essay drafts. You can email questions to fellowships@middlebury.edu and/or make appointments at go.middlebury.edu/appt . Dean Gates has limited appointment hours during the summer–June and July appointment hours are posted! If you don’t find available appointments that work for you, you can email some good days/times. Zoom and in-person meetings are possible. Email works too–that’s a great way to get feedback on essays or ask quick questions. Please note, Dean Gates will be out of the office during the middle of July, so drafts submitted at in that period will not be reviewed until the week of July 25.
Make sure you know the internal deadlines and application processes! See https://go.middlebury.edu/fulbright and https://go.middlebury.edu/watson for details. We often get questions that can be answered by reviewing the information on these pages, so please review carefully and then send your questions. You will also find information about internal deadlines and application instructions on these pages. Note: the fellowships office must register Watson applicants in the online Watson system. As of today, everyone who has notified us of their interest has been registered! If you can’t find your link, check your junk/clutter/spam filters. For technical or password problems with the Watson online system, you must contact the Watson office for help.
If you haven’t sent in a preliminary application for Watson or Fulbright, you can still apply! Alumni, you can apply for Fulbright through Middlebury; you just have to follow our internal process and deadlines. At this point in the summer, I recommend you start working on the applications themselves (not the preliminary application form) and email or talk with Dean Gates about your ideas or questions. The online applications for both are open and you can begin working on those.
For more Fulbright info, check out the webinars offered by the Fulbright team–see the schedule here: https://us.fulbrightonline.org/applicants/information-sessions. There are some great sessions coming up, including answering the short answer questions on the Fulbright application and office hours focused on the Study/Research and ETA grants with program staff. For Fulbright applicants, the main dates to focus on now are the August 15 “Intent to Apply” deadline, which guarantees we can provide at least one full round of feedback on your materials and the Fulbright internal deadline this year (Thursday, Sept. 8 at noon).
The Watson internal deadline this year will be Wed, Sept. 7 at noon. And yes, both of these internal deadlines are before classes begin, so please plan accordingly!
//Thinking about a Watson Fellowship? Whether you’re a rising senior or just want to learn more about what the Watson Fellowship is, check out the Spring Watson Webinar on Thursday, May 12th, from 3:00 PM to 4:00 PM ET. Watson Fellows Momi Afelin ’19 and Jacob Fontaine ’21 will be joining as guest speakers. The webinar will be led by Watson Executive Director (and Watson Fellow) Chris Kasabach and Associate Director Sneha Subramanian. To learn more, you can visit the Watson Leadership page here.
Webinar Registration Link:
https://watson-foundation.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZArd-uhqz4rHNxv4vWnpfQb3Jojv1Bvtpr1
//Congratulations to Justin Morande ‘21.5, Middlebury’s newest Watson Fellow! Justin was selected as part of the 54th Class of Thomas J. Watson Fellows. Fellows come from 21 states and 8 countries and exhibit a broad range of academic specialties, socio-economic backgrounds, and project diversity. Read more about Justin’s project “Place and Placelessness: Architecture at a Crossroads” at https://watson.foundation/fellowships/tj/fellows/a0C2I00000ZZzfOUAT and in Middlebury’s Newsroom here: https://www.middlebury.edu/newsroom/archive/2022-news/node/662830 .
Interested in applying for the Watson? Learn more about Middlebury’s nomination process at go/watson .
//It’s officially August (gasp!) and this is usually that time when I get a lot of questions from students and alumni wanting to apply for a Watson or Fulbright and they’re just thinking about that now. It’s also the time of year when I try to take vacation, since summer is lovely and the fall fellowships season is coming. So below is an effort to answer some common questions. So read on–and read carefully! It is long.
Is Dean Gates around? How do I talk with her? I have no open appointments right now, but will have some posted for later this month. You will be able to schedule these at go/appt . You can also email me. However, I will be out of the office or busy reading application and essay drafts during the latter half of August so far less available during that time. Appointment hours for Sept. will be posted later in August.
I missed the preliminary deadline for Watson or Fulbright. Can I still apply? Yes, you can! The only HARD deadlines coming up are Middlebury’s internal deadline: 9/8 at noon for Watson, 9/13 at noon for Fulbright.
I’m just thinking about a Watson or Fulbright right now. How do I get started? Review the information and directions at go/fulbright or go/watson and send in the preliminary application! Some application types may be more or less feasible at this point in time, so it’s important you get some feedback.
I’m an alum and interested in the Fulbright. Can I still apply through Middlebury? Yes! You will need to adhere to our internal deadline and have a brief interview with our campus committee via Zoom or phone if you’re not on campus.
I want to apply for the Watson and need to get access to the Watson online application. How do I do this? If you are not yet registered for the Watson online application, contact fellowships@middlebury.edu. We will register you, but check your junk/spam/clutter for the link. Read the instructions at go/watson carefully regarding which application sections to complete for the internal deadline.
Where do I find info about the Watson internal application process? Instructions for nomination materials and submission are online at go/watson . Please review the linked Google documents carefully–there’s a lot of useful info there and answers to common questions.
Fulbright Applicant FAQs
What is this August 15 “Intend to Apply” deadline, what do I send you, and what happens if I miss it? This deadline tells us who is planning to apply in this cycle. It is not a hard deadline, you can still apply if you miss it, and you can decide in September that you don’t want to proceed–just tell us. But we have this deadline because it gives us a sense of the number of applicants and most importantly, TIME to send you feedback on your drafts before the internal deadline.
What to send fellowships@middlebury.edu on 8/15: Read the application checklist at go.middlebury.edu/fulbright . Note: We do not expect a polished application at this point. Recommendations, transcripts, affiliation letters, etc. are not needed at this time (but if you have an affiliation lined up, include a copy of that). We will review your materials, send comments as needed, and you can continue working on your application. We will order transcripts (no charge) for those who send us draft application materials by August 15.
If you do not send in your materials by Aug 15, yes, you can still apply! We may be less able to provide substantive comments on your essays depending on when you send in your materials to review. You will also need to order your own transcript. If you discontinue your application after this point, that is also fine, just let us know as soon as you determine that. See go.middlebury.edu/fulbright for complete application instructions, guidance documents and the Middlebury Fulbright Applicant Checklist. Read all this info carefully.
Is September 13 at noon (Wed) a hard deadline for my Fulbright application? What if I’m missing some recommendations or a letter of affiliation? Yes, this is a hard deadline. No applications will be accepted after this date. If you have a letter (recommendation, affiliation) that is late in arriving, just be in touch with us. You still need to submit the application by the deadline and we can add the missing materials when they arrive (to a point of course!). As always, if you have questions, talk with us.
Are you expecting a polished and complete Fulbright application on Sept 13 at noon? Yes. But see note above about missing letters–it does happen sometimes. But everything in your control should be done and finalized at this point. Essays must be polished with no grammatical or spelling errors. Revisions after this date only happen when the campus committee review process notes issues that require your attention. Note: by submitting the application, you are sending it to the Fellowships office at this point, not to Fulbright. After your committee evaluation is added, we submit to Fulbright in October.
Do you have any helpful information in preparing the application? I’m so glad you asked–we do! Please review the following documents carefully:
Middlebury’s Fulbright Applicant Timeline and Checklist
Fulbright Application Guidance
A few important notes:
Transcripts: Fulbright will accept unofficial transcripts as well as official ones at this stage. If you meet the Aug 15 “intent to apply” deadline, we will send you a Middlebury transcript to upload. If you miss that and upload an unofficial transcript, make sure that it is concisely organized, in chronological order, and contains the necessary elements on an official transcript (courses, grades by semester, overall GPA, major, etc.). If you are a transfer student or have grades from other schools you would like represented, you will need to obtain a transcript from those previous institutions and upload.
Affiliation letters (study/research grants): The affiliation letter is from the institution/individual in the host country with whom you are proposing to work. It should be written in or translated to English, printed on official letterhead and signed by the author. If an English translation is provided, both the original letter and the translation should be uploaded. Letters should include the author’s position title, indicate the author’s willingness to work with you on the intended project, should speak to the feasibility and validity and merits of what is being proposed. The letter should also indicate any additional resources or contacts that the adviser can provide to support the work. Letters will vary, but the strongest letters will address these points noted.
Recommendations and language evaluations: It’s courteous to give at least three weeks notice for these. You can certainly schedule the language evaluation to take place when you return to campus, but the evaluation needs to be submitted by our internal deadline. If recommenders have difficulty meeting the internal deadline, please contact us to discuss. You want to choose recommenders who know you and are best suited to comment on your proposed research or ETA grant application.
Fulbright has a great Application Tips section on the website and make sure to follow any special instructions on the specific country page.
Fulbright webinars and tutorials: are ongoing this summer. Check out http://us.fulbrightonline.org/about/videos-tutorialsand http://us.fulbrightonline.org/applicants/information-sessions (click on webinars to see schedule).
Fulbright online application: Start your online application through this section http://us.fulbrightonline.org/applicants .