Surely, this is good news for all Cameroonian students. The Fulbright Foreign Students Program scholarship has kicked off in search of eligible candidates. First and foremost, the Fulbright Foreign Student Program Scholarship is for graduate students from Cameron. All thanks to the United States of America Embassy in Cameroon. Here, the Fulbright Foreign Students Program scholarship is merit-based and fully funded. Therefore, all graduate students from Cameroon seeking to take their studies to universities in the United States should start their application process before the closing date.
Fulbright Program
The Fulbright program is among the most prestigious scholarships in the world. Actually, the program was carved out to help improve cultural exchange in the United States of America. This program helps to bring the United States and other countries together and exchange intercultural ideas.
More so, a United States senator called J. Williams Fulbright founded the Fulbright Program. And, this was in the year 1946. Annually, this program sponsors up to four thousand scholarships to foreign students coming over to America, and nine hundred foreign visiting scholars.
This is minus other Fulbright scholarships for teachers and American citizens. Also, the Fulbright scholarship program gets funded by the Bureau of Education and Cultural Affairs of the United States Department of State.
Fulbright Foreign Students Program Scholarship
As usual, the Fulbright Foreign Students Program Scholarship is a highly competitive scholarship. Also, it is a merit-based scholarship meant for Cameroonian graduate students only. This scholarship came down to Cameroon by the United States Embassy in Cameroon. Furthermore, the Fulbright Foreign Students Program recruits and nominates young Cameroonian professionals for graduate-level studies at U.S Universities for the 2023-2024 academic year.
Similarly, each year, the scholarship is granted to about 3-5 Cameroonians.
Students will receive the award when they arrive. Given by the J. William Fulbright Scholarship Board, availability of funds, and successful academic placement.
Scholarship benefits
Now, the scholarship is for graduate students willing to study in the U.S. However, master’s students are more likely to get accepted than Ph.D. students. Furthermore, successful candidates that will study for a maximum of two years of degree study will receive:
- Full tuition fees
- Round trip airfare
- Monthly stipend
- Health insurance to pursue a graduate degree program that will begin in the 2023-2024 academic year.
In continuation, students accepted to degree programs for less than two years are eligible to receive:
Funding throughout their stipulated study year until they conclude. That is, according to the host university.
Again, candidates in non-degree research (I.e, visiting student researchers) will participate in an academic non-degree research program for 9-10 months.
Who can Apply?
To start with, you must meet the following criteria before you can apply:
- Be a citizen of Cameroon or a permanent resident holding a valid Cameroonian passport
- Have at least the equivalent of 4 years of university study. Also the equivalent of a U.S bachelor’s degree. More so, candidates that have 3 years of tertiary study should have the equivalent of 13 years of primary and secondary school. And their undergraduate degree should allow them to be eligible to pursue higher education in Cameroon. However, please note that final equivalent decisions will be determined by each U.S university. Not all institutions will accept 3 years undergraduate degree.
- Have a level of English proficiency that is sufficient to engage in full-time graduate-level study in the U.S. However, there is an option to do long-term English (LTE) language study. This is for moderate English language skills for a period of up to 8 months. Moreover, your English language ability and test scores will determine if you must participate in Long-Term English (LTE).
By the way, special accommodations are available for students with disabilities. Thoughtfully, the Department of States provided previous grantees with screen readers and note-taking software, laptops, cell phones, canes, and/or wheelchairs to assist them while on their scholarship in the U.S.
Eligible fields of study
Basically, this scholarship supports all disciplines. Except for medical studies that will involve patient contact. This, however, can not be approved under the Fulbright program.
How to Apply
- First and foremost, read the application guidelines very carefully.
- Apply online here
- Candidates must attach a copy of a bachelor’s degree diploma, certificate, license, or equivalent.
- Also, the Fulbright Foreign Students Program has a zero-tolerance plagiarism policy. As a matter of fact, the scholarship Board will process all applications with software to help identify any instance of plagiarism. However, if plagiarism appears in any part of the application, it may result in total disqualification.
Selection criteria
For clarification, this scholarship is based on academic and professional merits alone. Regardless of race, color, national origin, sex, age, religion, disability, economic status, etc. However, candidates without extensive or recent experience in the United States will be more preferred.
In furtherance, a successful candidate is someone who can:
- Demonstrate serious commitment to completing the program as scheduled and returning to Cameroon.
- Demonstrate a clear and detailed description of the study objectives and show a connection between their study objectives and future goals through a compelling set of essays.
- Have depth and breadth of work experience in their intended field of study. And also, a full understanding of the field.
- Demonstrate leadership potential based on participation in academic, extra-curricular, community, and professional development activities. Also, personal attributes.
- Show dedication to Cameroon and potential to make a positive impact upon return.
- Contribute to promoting mutual understanding between the people of the United States and Cameroon. You can do this through educational and cultural exchange activities.
- More so, be willing to be a cultural ambassador of Cameroon.
- Have demonstrated academic excellence and strong English language proficiency.
Additional selection criteria for applicants in the Long-Term English (LTE) training component
- Firstly, applicants accepted for long-term English training must be candidates for a master’s degree in their current field.
- Also, individuals seeking D., MBA, Law, or non-degree programs are not eligible
- Finally, applicants in this category must be available to begin their LTE training either in January or March 2023
Closing date for application submission: May 16, 2022
Apply here