Haverford College Once Again Named Top Fulbright Producer

Haverford College is proud to be included, for the fifth year in a row, on the list of American colleges and universities that produced the most Fulbright U.S. Student Award winners. Five Fords earned Fulbrights for the 2019–2020 year, putting the College in the company of only 43 other undergraduate institutions across the country with the highest number of student grants. Roughly a quarter of the Fords who applied for the highly competitive fellowship last year received one.

Gabriel Braun, Alexandra Corcoran, Danielle Jacobsen, Justin Otter, and Seanna Viechweg—all members of the Haverford Class of 2019—were selected for Fulbright Student Awards last spring. Braun, a chemistry major, is at Lund University in Sweden, researching β-amyloid peptides in the lab of Sara Linse. Corcoran, a political science and Spanish double major, is currently pursuing a one-year interdisciplinary master’s in philosophy and public affairs at University College Dublin. Jacobsen, a biology major, is now at the University of Oslo in Norway, researching a toxic polypeptide associated with ALS and Frontotemporal Dementia in a cellular model. Otter, a physics and astronomy double major, is conducting research with Fabian Walter at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg, Germany, using data from ALMA’s Ultra Deep Field survey. Viechweg, an English major, is living in Barbados, researching the relationship between Caribbean science fiction and the islands’ history at the University of West Indies, Cave Hill.

“Our Fulbright students’ excellent preparation across the liberal arts and within their majors provided an outstanding foundation for their current global research,” said Haverford President Wendy Raymond. “Add to this their initiative, talent, and penchant for exploration, and our world gains incalculable benefits from their endeavors. Our five Class of 2019 Fulbright Scholars are terrific ambassadors for the liberal arts, the U.S., and Haverford.”

Each year the Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs announces the top-producing institutions for the Fulbright Program, the U.S. government’s flagship international educational exchange program. Top-producing institutions are highlighted annually in The Chronicle of Higher Education.

The Fulbright competition at Haverford is, as of this year, administered by Jason Chan, the new fellowship and career advisor and assistant director of the Center for Career and Professional Advising (CCPA).

“Haverford has enjoyed a strong track record of Fulbright recipients, which speaks to the caliber of our students and alumni as Fulbright candidates,” said Chan. “I look forward to advising and supporting a new group of applicants through this upcoming award cycle,” which opens March 31.

 “The varied experiences that students gain while at Haverford prepare them well for a Fulbright Fellowship: as researchers, teachers, and campus leaders,” said Dean of CCPA Amy Feifer, who helped advise applicants this year prior to Chan’s arrival on campus. “Our students also possess strong global and intercultural experiences, in keeping with the Fulbright mission of promoting mutual understanding of nations and being engaged in their host country.” 

Since its inception in 1946, the Fulbright Program has provided more than 390,000 participants—chosen for their academic merit and leadership potential—the opportunity to exchange ideas and contribute to finding solutions to shared international concerns. More than 2,200 U.S. students are offered Fulbright grants to study, teach English, and conduct research abroad annually. Fulbright is active in more than 160 countries worldwide and partners with participating governments, host institutions, corporations, and foundations in foreign countries and in the United States.

The Fulbright U.S. Student Program is a program of the U.S. Department of State, funded by an annual appropriate from the U.S. Congress to the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, and supported in its implementation by the institute of International Education. For more information about the Fulbright Program, visit eca.state.gov/fulbright.